St Edmund, King and Martyr, is an

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 ...

church in Lombard Street, in 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 ...

, dedicated to St Edmund the Martyr. Since 2001 it houses the London Centre for Spirituality, now (2017) renamed the London Centre for Spiritual Direction, but is still a consecrated church. In 2015, the church became an office of

Ric Thorpe Richard Charles "Ric" Thorpe (born 3 February 1965) is a British Church of England bishop and an expert in church planting. Since September 2015, he has been the Bishop of Islington, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of London, and the "bishop f ...

, Bishop of Islington and organisation he leads, Centre for Church Multiplication Since 2019, Imprint Church organises regular worship inside of the building. The church lies in the

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

Langbourn Langbourn is one of the 25 ancient wards of the City of London. It reputedly is named after a buried stream in the vicinity. It is a small ward; a long thin area, running in a west–east direction. Historically, Lombard Street and Fenchurch ...

, and has a ward noticeboard outside.

History

In 1292, the church is first recorded as 'Saint Edmund towards Garcherche', and it reappears in 1348 as 'Saint Edmund in Lombardestrete'. John Stow, in his Survey of London 1598, revised during 1603, refers to it also as St Edmund Grass Church. The medieval church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. After the fire the parish was united with that of

St Nicholas Acons Geographic coordinate system, Coordinates: St Nicholas Acons was a parish church in the City of London. In existence by the late 11th century, it was destroyed during the Great Fire of London of 1666 and not rebuilt. History The church was ...

, which was also destroyed and not rebuilt. The present church was constructed to the designs 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 ...

in 1670–1679, with a tower ornamented at the angles by flaming urns in allusion to the Great Fire. George Godwin described the tower as "more Chinese than Italian", while James Peller Malcolm called it "rather handsome, but of that species of architecture which is difficult to describe so as to be understood". The orientation of the church is unusual, with the altar towards the north, instead of east."The Churches of the City of London" Herbert Reynolds 2008 The essayist

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richar ...

was married here in 1716. In September 1868 a riot occurred outside the church, as a consequence of one of a series of Friday morning sermons given by the Rev. J. L. Lyne – known as "Father Ignatius" – in which he had spoken disparagingly of the traders of Lombard Street. The church was restored in 1864 and 1880."A biographical dictionary of British architects, 1600–1840" Yale 2008 On 7 July 1917, during the second daylight air raid by

Gotha bomber ''Gothaer Waggonfabrik'' (''Gotha'', GWF) was a German manufacturer of rolling stock established in the late nineteenth century at Gotha. During the two world wars, the company expanded into aircraft building. World War I In World War I, Got ...

s of the England Squadron, a high explosive bomb landed on St Edmund's, destroying the main beam of the roof; extensive repair and restoration was required and it did not reopen until 1 October 1919. Some fragments of the German bomb are preserved in the church. Further damage was caused by

incendiary bomb Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, t ...

s during the 1941

London Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

. The church was designated a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

on 4 January 1950.

Previous rectors

Rectors of the church have included Thomas Lyndford, chaplain in ordinary to George I, and

Jeremiah Milles Rev. Jeremiah Milles (1714–1784)
Bodleian Library, Oxford. Accessed 26 November 2016.

, president of the Society of Antiquaries. After the Great War, Studdert Kennedy was given charge of St Edmund, King and Martyr. He moved to work for the Industrial Christian Fellowship, for whom he went on speaking tours of Britain. It was on one of these tours that he was taken ill. He died in Liverpool in 1929, exhausted at the age of 45, and poor people flocked to his funeral in Worcester, for the Dean of Westminster refused burial at the Abbey because, he said, Studdert Kennedy was a "socialist".

Present day

The church and parish now forms part of the combined

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of ''St Edmund the King and Martyr, and St Mary Woolnoth Lombard Street with

All Hallows Lombard Street All Hallows Lombard Street, also seen with descriptor Gracechurch Street, was a parish church in the City of London. It stood behind thin buildings fronting both streets, in Langbourn Ward, The west and south sides faced into Ball Alley. Of ...

St Benet Gracechurch St Benet Gracechurch (or Grass Church), so called because a haymarket existed nearby (Cobb), was a parish church in the City of London. First recorded in the 11th century, it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666 and rebuilt by the o ...

St Leonard Eastcheap St. Leonard, Eastcheap, sometimes referred to as ''St Leonard Milkchurch'', was a parish church in the City of London. Of medieval origin, it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt. The site of the church was retained a ...

, St Dionis Backchurch and

St Mary Woolchurch Haw St Mary Woolchurch Haw was a parish church in the City of London, destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666 and not rebuilt. It came within the ward of Walbrook. History The church of St Mary Woolchurch Haw was an ancient foundation, dati ...

'' – usually shortened to "St Edmund & St Mary Woolnoth" (the only two aforementioned churches to have survived). It is part of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

's Diocese of London. and accommodates the office of the Bishop of Islington.

Gallery

Image:Edmund lombard02.jpg, Historic engraving File:St Edmund King and Martyr.JPG, Now a Centre for Spirituality Image:P1184LCfSp.JPG, Interior

References

External links