This is a list of

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

s, churches and

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

s in

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...

, which is divided into 32

London boroughs The London boroughs are the 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs were all created at t ...

and the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

. The list focuses on the more permanent churches and buildings which identify themselves as places of Christian worship. The denominations appended are those by which they self-identify.

History

Wren and Anglican churches

Before the

Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Thursday 6 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall, while also extending past the ...

in 1666, the

had around 100 churches in an area of only one square mile (2.6 km²). Of the 86 destroyed by the Fire, 51 were rebuilt along with

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

. The majority have traditionally been regarded as the work of Sir

Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren PRS FRS (; – ) was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician-physicist. He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churches ...

, but although their rebuilding was entrusted primarily to him, the role of his various associates, including

Robert Hooke Robert Hooke FRS (; 18 July 16353 March 1703) was an English polymath active as a scientist, natural philosopher and architect, who is credited to be one of two scientists to discover microorganisms in 1665 using a compound microscope that ...

and

Nicholas Hawksmoor Nicholas Hawksmoor (probably 1661 – 25 March 1736) was an English architect. He was a leading figure of the English Baroque style of architecture in the late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth centuries. Hawksmoor worked alongside the principa ...

especially, is currently being reassessed and given greater emphasis. With regard to

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

churches, as opposed to Catholic churches,

nonconformist Nonconformity or nonconformism may refer to: Culture and society * Insubordination, the act of willfully disobeying an order of one's superior *Dissent, a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or entity ** ...

chapels or meeting houses, the designs of the Wren office provided a new standard for British church architecture ever since, as well as giving a distinctive face to the Anglican church in London. Wren also designed a number of Anglican churches outside the City, including

St James's, Piccadilly Westminster St James (or St James Piccadilly) was a civil parish in the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish followed the building of the St James's Church, Piccadilly, Church of St James, Piccadilly, in 1684. After ...

and

St Clement Danes St Clement Danes is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London. It is situated outside the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand. Although the first church on the site was reputedly founded in the 9th century by the Danes, the current ...

. After the Wren era, Hawksmoor was responsible for six of the great Anglican churches in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

(for example

Christ Church, Spitalfields Christ Church Spitalfields is an Anglican church built between 1714 and 1729 to a design by Nicholas Hawksmoor. On Commercial Street in the East End and in today's Central London it is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, on its western bord ...

), and other architects such as Hooke,

James Gibbs James Gibbs (23 December 1682 – 5 August 1754) was one of Britain's most influential architects. Born in Aberdeen, he trained as an architect in Rome, and practised mainly in England. He is an important figure whose work spanned the transi ...

and John James contributed significantly to Anglican church architecture in London.

Metropolitan area

London's churches and chapels are extraordinarily numerous and diverse. Anglican and nonconformist churches and chapels are most numerous, but there are also many

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

churches as well as places of worship for non-

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

religions. Most of the Anglican churches lie within the Anglican dioceses of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to the north and

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

to the south. For historical reasons, the Anglican churches in London north of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

but east of the

River Lea The River Lea ( ) is in South East England. It originates in Bedfordshire, in the Chiltern Hills, and flows southeast through Hertfordshire, along the Essex border and into Greater London, to meet the River Thames at Bow Creek. It is one of t ...

fall within the

Diocese of Chelmsford The Diocese of Chelmsford is a Church of England diocese, part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers Essex and the five East London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, and Waltham Forest (most of which wer ...

, and those in the London Boroughs of Bexley and Bromley fall within the

Diocese of Rochester The Diocese of Rochester is a Church of England diocese in the English county of Kent and the Province of Canterbury. The cathedral church of the diocese is Rochester Cathedral in the former city of Rochester. The bishop's Latin episcopal signat ...

. A few Anglican churches in the Barnet area fall into the

Diocese of St Albans The Diocese of St Albans forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England and is part of the wider Church of England, in turn part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese is home to more than 1.6 million people and comprises the hi ...

, reflecting the historical association of Barnet with Hertfordshire. The Catholic dioceses that cover Greater London are, north of the Thames and west of the Lea, the

Diocese of Westminster Diocese of Westminster may refer to: * Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster, since 1850, with seat at Westminster Cathedral * Diocese of Westminster (Church of England) The Diocese of Westminster was a short-lived diocese of the Church of Engl ...

; south of the Thames the

Archdiocese of Southwark The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Southvarcensis'') is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in England. It is headed by the Archbishop of Southwark. The archdiocese is part of the Ecclesiastical ...

; and north of the Thames and east of the Lea, the

Diocese of Brentwood The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brentwood is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church in England. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Westminster. Overview The diocese covers the traditional county of Essex, an area of ...

. There are still some two thousand Anglican churches alone, across the capital and if nonconformist and other denominations are included, they cover every age and style, in the design and evolution of which at least six hundred different architects have made contributions. As London expanded during the early 19th century, many new churches and chapels were built independently by the growing nonconformist urban population; to match the growth in nonconformist churches and chapels, the Anglican "

Waterloo church A Commissioners' church, also known as a Waterloo church and Million Act church, is an Anglican church in the United Kingdom built with money voted by Parliament as a result of the Church Building Acts of 1818 and 1824. The 1818 Act supplied ...

" building programme saw numerous Anglican churches constructed across south London in the first half of the century.

Significance

Although many churches and chapels were entirely or partly lost to 19th-century demolitions and to bombing in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, many historic, architecturally significant and religiously significant buildings remain, particularly in the City of London and the neighbouring

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and London boroughs, borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of cent ...

. A number of the churches are mentioned in the

nursery rhyme A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes. From t ...

Oranges and Lemons "Oranges and Lemons" is a traditional English nursery rhyme, folksong, and singing game which refers to the bells of several churches, all within or close to the City of London. It is listed in the Roud Folk Song Index as No 13190. The earlies ...

''. Churches in this list belong to various denominations, as indicated.

Map of medieval parish churches

This map shows the medieval churches of Greater London. The hundred or so medieval churches in the City of London are shown in a separate map in the City section.

City of London

London boroughs

Barking and Dagenham

Barnet

All Saints' Church, Oakleigh Park exterior

Bexley

St John the Baptist, Erith, Kent - geograph

Brent

St Matthew's Church, Willesden by Mike Quinn Geograph 2774482

Bromley

St Mary the Virgin, Downe BR6 - geograph

Camden

Defunct churches

Croydon

Exterior of St John the Evangelist, Upper Norwood

Ealing

Enfield

Greenwich

Hackney

Hammersmith and Fulham

All Saints Church, Fulham, London - Diliff

Haringey

Harrow

Havering

Hillingdon

Hounslow

The spire of St Michael and All Angels, Bedford Park, W4 - geograph

Islington

Kensington and Chelsea

Kingston upon Thames

St Raphael's Church, Surbiton - geograph

Lambeth

St John the Divine, Kennington Exterior, UK - Diliff

Lewisham

Merton

Newham

Redbridge

Ilford-hospital-chapel-font-north-exterior

Richmond upon Thames

Defunct churches

Southwark

Sutton

Tower Hamlets

Waltham Forest

Wandsworth

City of Westminster

Non-English speaking churches

There are many examples throughout Greater London of English-speaking churches which also provide regular worship in one or more secondary languages,For example
this Anglican church
with services every Sunday in Tamil and Urdu, as well as English. particularly amongst the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches. Numerous English-speaking Roman Catholic churches in London provide worship in assorted non-English languages, including Arabic, Aramaic, Cantonese, Croatian, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Korean, Latin, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese (including Brazilian Portuguese), Romanian, Slovak, Spanish, Syriac, Tamil and Tigrinya. The Eastern Orthodox churches in London also provide worship in many non-English languages, including Amharic, Arabic, Aramaic, Armenian, Georgian, Greek, Romanian, Russian, Serbian and Ukrainian. The following table lists churches which conduct their worship in modern languages other than English, or English-speaking churches which have notable non-Anglophone congregations based in the same building. Soho Baptist Chapel 03

Related lists

List of Christopher Wren churches in London Sir Christopher Wren was 33 years old and near the beginning of his career as an architect when the Great Fire of London in 1666 destroyed many of the city's public buildings, including 88 of its parish churches. Wren's office was commissioned t ...

List of places of worship in London, 1804 This is a list of places of worship in London, 1804. It is based on a list in ''A View of London, or, The Stranger's Guide through the British Metropolis'' (1804), headed "An Impartial List of the Principal Churches, Chapels, and Meeting-Houses". ...

Union of Benefices Act 1860 The Union of Benefices Act was legislation which prevented the need for other Acts if following its prescribed three-stage scheme. It enabled reduction of the number of parish churches and vicars/rectors in London's "Metropolis", as defined by a ...

Commission for Building Fifty New Churches The Commission for Building Fifty New Churches (in London and the surroundings) was an organisation set up by Act of Parliament in England in 1711, the New Churches in London and Westminster Act 1710, with the purpose of building fifty new church ...

Notes and references

External links/sources

Anglican Diocese of London

Church of England Parish Finder

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
* The History Files

Friends of the City Churches

Gospel Hall Finder

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain

Methodist Church of Great Britain Church Search

Roman Catholic Diocese of Brentwood Parishes A-Z

Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster – Virtual Diocese

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark – Parish Directory

Seventh-day Adventist Churches in London

United Reformed Church Find A Church

Redeemed Christian Church of God
{{London churches

Churches