ST MARY LE BOW |
One of the first churches to be rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren and containing a famous set of bells
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Highlights |
Bell Tower
Church Interior
The Crypt
Cordwainer Statue
Visitor Information |
The Church is open Monday to Thursday 7am to 6pm and
Friday 7am to 4pm. Closed at weekends and Bank Holidays. FREE entry.
Friday 7am to 4pm. Closed at weekends and Bank Holidays. FREE entry.
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The Church of St Mary le Bow
was one of the first buildings to be rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren
after the Great Fire of London in 1666. This Cheapside location dates
back to the reign of William the Conqueror, when the church was known
as St Marie de Arcubus or Le Bow because of the bow arches
of stone in its Norman crypt. Wren continued the arch theme throughout
his new design. Its massive steeple is a square tower reaching
235-feet (72-metres) into the sky, a well-known landmark in the City
made famous by a weather vane in the shape of a golden dragon. The
church was, until the mid-19th century, the City of London headquarters
for the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Inside St Mary le Bow
Did You Know?
The Norman Crypt is now home to a café called The Place Below.
For over 20 years, this great find has been serving home-made dishes in
the Norman crypt of Sir Christopher Wren’s famous St Mary le Bow
church, in the heart of the City of London.
The Norman Crypt below
The tower houses the famous Bow Bells;
with true Cockneys being only those born within earshot of the sound of
the bells. Before modern traffic noise, the bells could be heard as far
away as Hackney Marshes. The Bow bells were once used to signal a
curfew in the City of London duing the war and much of the current
building was destroyed by a German bomb in 1941. The bells crashed to
the ground and had to be recast from the pieces. It took until 1961 for
the bells to eventually ring out again, producing a new generation of
Cockneys.
The complete tower!
Photo © stevecadman (CC)
Many legends surround the church and its bells. For example, the bells are credited with having persuaded Dick Whittington to turn back from Highgate and remain in London to become Lord Mayor. The church is also immortalised in the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons, believed to reference the time the church bells of London rang out to signify the beheading of King Charles I in 1649.
Oranges & Lemons
"Oranges and lemons", say the bells of St. Clement's
"You owe me five farthings", say the bells of St. Martin's
"When will you pay me?" say the bells of Old Bailey
"When I grow rich", say the bells of Shoreditch
"When will that be?" say the bells of Stepney
"I do not know", says the great bell of Bow
Here comes a candle to light you to bed
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head!
Chip chop chip chop - The last man's dead
"You owe me five farthings", say the bells of St. Martin's
"When will you pay me?" say the bells of Old Bailey
"When I grow rich", say the bells of Shoreditch
"When will that be?" say the bells of Stepney
"I do not know", says the great bell of Bow
Here comes a candle to light you to bed
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head!
Chip chop chip chop - The last man's dead
One
interesting historical feature of St Mary's is the balcony in front of
the tower. This is a memorial to an incident in 1331, when a wooden
balcony containing the Queen and her ladies collapsed during a
celebration of the birth of the Black Prince. The balcony continued to
be used as a vantage point, despite this mishap, and many Royals came
to watch the great city pageants from here. After Wren rebuilt the
church, Queen Anne saw the Lord Mayor's pageant from the balcony in
1702.
Did You Know?
John Milton,
a famous English poet, was born in nearby Bread Street in 1608; his
best known poem is called “Paradise Lost”. A crumbling plaque on the
exterior wall of the church commemorates him.
The
district around St Mary le Bow is where boot makers worked in goatskin
leather. The leather was known as Cordovan and the workers as cordwainers.
A statue of Captain John Smith, a cordwainer, who died in 1631 and rose
to become Governor of Virginia and Admiral of New England is therefore
appropriately placed outside the church.
The Cordwainer statue outside the church
Did You Know?
A
set of Bow Bell Milestones mark every mile from the church door to the
south coast resorts of Lewes, Brighton and Eastbourne. The milestones
are marked with a cast-iron depiction of a bow and four bells.
Photo © Geoff Ayres
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