St Gregory by St Paul’s

Church in/near City of London, existing until 1666.

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Church · * · ·
July
14
2019
St Gregory’s by St Paul’s was a parish church in the Castle Baynard ward of the City of London.

The church was dedicated to St Gregory the Great. It was in existence by 1010, when the body of St Edmund was housed there. The remains of the king, martyred in 870, had been translated to London from Bury St Edmunds by Alwyn, later Bishop of Elmham, for safe-keeping during a period of Danish raids, and were returned there three years later. The patronage of the church originally belonged to the crown, but during the reign of Henry VI it was transferred to the minor canons of St Paul’s.

Between June and November 1571, services were transferred from St Paul’s to St Gregory’s while fire damage was being repaired in the cathedral.

On 19 December 1591, Elizabeth Baldry, wife of the 2nd Baron Rich and mother-in-law to Penelope Devereux, Lady Rich, was buried at St Gregory’s.

The existence of the church came under threat while Inigo Jones was remodelling the cathedral in the 17th century. At first he thought that he could accommodate St Gregory’s in his plans, writing in a report, dated 11 June 1631, that "the church is in no way hurtful to the foundations or walls of St. Paul’s, nor will it take away the beauty of the aspect when it shall be repaired. It abuts on the Lollards’ Tower , which is joined on the other side by another tower, unto which the Bishop’s hall adjoins. Conscious that neither of them is any hindrance to the beauty of the church." Over the next few years the parishioners spent a considerable sum on the fabric of the church: Robert Seymour mentions a sum of more than £2000 being spent in 1631-2, while in 1641 the Journal of the House of Commons recorded that more than £1500 had been spent on beautifying the building "four years since".

By 1641, however, Jones had changed his mind, and decided that his renovation of the cathedral necessitated the removal of St Gregory’s. Once demolition had begun, Jones ordered the parishioners to take down the remainder. According to their account, he threatened that if they did not take down the rest of it, "then the galleries should be sawed down and with screws the materials thrown down into the street." The threat having proved ineffective he said "that if they did not take down the said church, they should be laid by the heels." The parishioners complained to the House of Commons of England, and the Commons passed their complaint on to the House of Lords, appending a declaration that the parishioners deserved redress, and that action should be taken against Jones for the destruction. The Lords decided against Jones and the church was rebuilt using stones intended for the cathedral.

In June 1658, a minister of the church, Dr John Hewitt, a royalist, was executed for high treason. He was beheaded on Tower Hill by order of Cromwell’s high court and buried in the church.

The church and the cathedral were destroyed by the Great Fire of 1666. The church was not rebuilt; the parish was instead united with that of St Mary Magdalen Old Fish Street.


Main source: Wikipedia
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CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LOCALITY

None so far :(
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Wendy    
Added: 22 Mar 2024 15:33 GMT   

Polygon Buildings
Following the demolition of the Polygon, and prior to the construction of Oakshott Court in 1974, 4 tenement type blocks of flats were built on the site at Clarendon Sq/Phoenix Rd called Polygon Buildings. These were primarily for people working for the Midland Railway and subsequently British Rail. My family lived for 5 years in Block C in the 1950s. It seems that very few photos exist of these buildings.

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Steve   
Added: 19 Mar 2024 08:42 GMT   

Road construction and houses completed
New Charleville Circus road layout shown on Stanford’s Library Map Of London And Its Suburbs 1879 with access via West Hill only.

Plans showing street numbering were recorded in 1888 so we can concluded the houses in Charleville Circus were built by this date.

Source: Charleville Circus, Sydenham, London

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Comment
Steve   
Added: 19 Mar 2024 08:04 GMT   

Charleville Circus, Sydenham: One Place Study (OPS)
One Place Study’s (OPS) are a recent innovation to research and record historical facts/events/people focused on a single place �’ building, street, town etc.

I have created an open access OPS of Charleville Circus on WikiTree that has over a million members across the globe working on a single family tree for everyone to enjoy, for free, forever.

Source: Charleville Circus, Sydenham, London

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Comment
Charles   
Added: 8 Mar 2024 20:45 GMT   

My House
I want to know who lived in my house in the 1860’s.

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NH   
Added: 7 Mar 2024 11:41 GMT   

Telephone House
Donald Hunter House, formerly Telephone House, was the BT Offices closed in 2000

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Comment
Paul Cox   
Added: 5 Mar 2024 22:18 GMT   

War damage reinstatement plans of No’s 11 & 13 Aldine Street
Whilst clearing my elderly Mothers house of general detritus, I’ve come across original plans (one on acetate) of No’s 11 & 13 Aldine Street. Might they be of interest or should I just dispose of them? There are 4 copies seemingly from the one single acetate example. Seems a shame to just junk them as the level of detail is exquisite. No worries if of no interest, but thought I’d put it out there.

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Comment
Diana   
Added: 28 Feb 2024 13:52 GMT   

New Inn Yard, E1
My great grandparents x 6 lived in New Inn Yard. On this date, their son was baptised in nearby St Leonard’s Church, Shoreditch

Source: BDM London, Cripplegate and Shoreditch registers written by church clerk.

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Comment
Vic Stanley   
Added: 24 Feb 2024 17:38 GMT   

Postcose
The postcode is SE15, NOT SE1

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LOCAL PHOTOS
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Smithfield Market
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Amen Court, EC4M
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In the neighbourhood...

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Smithfield Market
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"Cheapside and Bow Church" engraved by W. Albutt (1837) First published in The History of London: Illustrated by Views in London and Westminster. Steel engraved print after a picture by T.H. Shepherd.
Credit: W. Albutt
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Hopton’s Almshouses, Hopton Street, Bankside (1957)
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Tate Modern viewed from Thames pleasure boat (2003)
Credit: Christine Matthews
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Illustration of Fleet Market
Credit: William Henry Prior
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Amen Court, EC4M
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Anchor Terrace, SE1 A large symmetrical building on Southwark Bridge Road, Anchor Terrace was built in 1834 for senior employees of the nearby Anchor Brewery. The building was converted into luxury flats in the late 1990s.
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View of Cloth Fair in 1884 showing the side entrance to St Bartholomew’s Priory, Smithfield.
Credit: John Crowther
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Holborn Viaduct from Farringdon Street, c. 1910 The building of Farringdon Street is considered one of the greatest urban engineering achievements of the 19th century. It was one of the first engineered multi-lane roads, and also buried the River Fleet in a system of underground tunnels, solving one of London’s most daunting sanitary problems. Its construction also included the building of the world’s first stretch of underground railway, a branch of the Metropolitan Railway that later became part of the London Underground running beneath Farringdon Road from King’s Cross St. Pancras into the City at Farringdon. The construction of Farringdon Street also necessitated the removal of the Fleet Market that had been built in 1736 above the course of the River Fleet, which is now London’s largest subterranean river. North of the market was Hockley-in-the-Hole (around Ray Street Bridge), an area notorious for bear-baiting and similar activities.
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Farringdon Street, EC4M
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