Clerk's Place off Bishopsgate - geograph

Blue Plaque in Clerks' Place, Bishopsgate, London EC3

The Worshipful Company of Parish Clerks is one of the

Guilds A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

of 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 ...

. It has no

livery A livery is an identifying design, such as a uniform, ornament, symbol or insignia that designates ownership or affiliation, often found on an individual or vehicle. Livery will often have elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or ...

, because "in the 16th century, the Parish Clerks declined to take the Livery on the grounds that the

surplice A surplice (; Late Latin ''superpelliceum'', from ''super'', "over" and ''pellicia'', "fur garment") is a liturgical vestment of Western Christianity. The surplice is in the form of a tunic of white linen or cotton fabric, reaching to the kne ...

was older than the Livery and was the proper garb of members of the Company." It is not, therefore, technically a livery company although to all intents and purposes it acts as such. It is one of two such historic companies without livery, the other being the

Company of Watermen and Lightermen The Company of Watermen and Lightermen (CWL) is a historic City guild in the City of London. However, unlike the city's other 109 livery companies, CWL does not have a grant of livery. Its meeting rooms are at Waterman's Hall on St Mary at Hil ...

. Although they have no place in the order of precedence, which governs only liveried companies, ''The Master, Wardens, Assistants and Brethren of the Parish Clerks of the Parish Churches of the City and Suburbs of London and the Liberties thereof, the

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 ...

, the borough of Southwark and the fifteen Out-Parishes adjacent'', are among the oldest City companies. Individual members held property on behalf of the Fraternity near Bishopsgate in 1274. The Company was incorporated by Letters Patent on 22 January 1441/2. Later Royal Charters, granted by

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, dated February 1635/6 and February 1638/9, are kept in the

Guildhall Library The Guildhall Library is a public reference library specialising in subjects relevant to London. It is administered by the Corporation of London, the government of the City of London, which is the historical heart of London, England. The library ...

Parishes

The number of parishes at the time of the 1639 charter was 129, of which 108 were in the City of London. A further twenty one parishes in Middlesex and Surrey within the bills of mortality were added between 1639 and 1825. The Company's 150 parishes are listed below.

Churches included in the Charter of 1639

In the City of London

All Hallows Barking (Berkyngechurche),

All Hallows Bread Street All Hallows Bread Street was a parish church in the Bread Street ward of the City of London, England. It stood on the east side of Bread Street, on the corner with Watling Street. First mentioned in the 13th century, the church was destroyed in ...

All Hallows the Great All-Hallows-the-Great was a church (building), church in the City of London, located on what is now Upper Thames Street, first mentioned in 1235. Destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666, the church was rebuilt by the office of Sir Christop ...

All Hallows Honey Lane All Hallows, Honey Lane was a parish church in the City of London, England. Of medieval origin, it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt; the site became part of Honey Lane Market, which was in turn partially cleared t ...

, All Hallows the Less,

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 ...

, All Hallows London Wall,

All Hallows Staining All Hallows Staining was a Church of England church located at the junction of Mark Lane and Dunster Court in the north-eastern corner of Langbourn ward in the City of London, England, close to Fenchurch Street railway station. All that remains ...

Christ Church Newgate Street Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...

Holy Trinity the Less Holy Trinity the Less was a parish church in Knightrider Street in the City of London, destroyed in the Great Fire of London. Following the fire the site was used for a Lutheran church, which was eventually demolished in 1871 to make way for Mans ...

St Alban, Wood Street St Alban's was a church in Wood Street, City of London. It was dedicated to Saint Alban. Of medieval origin, it was rebuilt in 1634, destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666, and rebuilt, this time to a Gothic design by Sir Christopher Wre ...

St Alphage London Wall St Alphege or St Alphage London Wall was a church in Bassishaw Ward in the City of London, built directly upon London Wall. It was also known as St Alphege Cripplegate, from its proximity to Cripplegate. It is now operated as St&nb ...

St Andrew by the Wardrobe St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe is a Church of England church located on Queen Victoria Street, London in the City of London, near Blackfriars station. History First mentioned around 1170, St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe was almost certainly founded conside ...

, St Andrew Holborn,

St Andrew Hubbard St Andrew Hubbard was a parish church in the Billingsgate ward of the City of London. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666, and not rebuilt. History The church stood in the Billingsgate ward of the City of London. The east en ...

St Andrew Undershaft St Andrew Undershaft is a Church of England church in the City of London, the historic nucleus and modern financial centre of London. It is located on St Mary Axe, within the Aldgate ward, and is a rare example of a City church that survived both ...

St Ann Blackfriars St Ann Blackfriars was a church in the City of London, in what is now Ireland Yard in the ward of Farringdon Within. The church began as a medieval parish chapel, dedicated to St Ann, within the church of the Dominicans (the order after whom th ...

St Anne and St Agnes St Anne and St Agnes is a church located at Gresham Street in the City of London, near the Barbican. While St Anne's is an Anglican foundation, from 1966 to 2013 it was let to a congregation of the Lutheran Church in Great Britain. History The ...

, St Antholin, St Augustine Watling Street, St Bartholomew by the Exchange, St Bartholomew the Great,

St Bartholomew the Less St Bartholomew the Less is an Anglican church in the City of London, associated with St Bartholomew's Hospital, within whose precincts it stands. Once a parish church, it has, since 1 June 2015, been a chapel of ease in the parish of St Bartholo ...

, St Benet Fink,

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 Benet Paul's Wharf The Church of St Benet Paul's Wharf is a Welsh Anglican church in the City of London. Since 1556, it has also been the official church of the College of Arms in which many officers of arms have been buried. In 1666 it was destroyed in the Great F ...

St Benet Sherehog St Benet Sherehog, additionally dedicated to St Osyth, was a medieval parish church built before the year 1111, on a site now occupied by No 1 Poultry in Cordwainer Ward, in what was then the wool-dealing district of the City of London. A ''she ...

, St Botolph by Billingsgate, St Botolph without Aldersgate,

St Botolph without Aldgate St Botolph without Aldgate was an ancient parish in the metropolitan area of London. The parish was partly within the City of London and partly in the County of Middlesex. Each part operated as a separate parish for civil administration with its ...

, St Botolph without Bishopsgate,

St Bride Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland ( ga, Naomh Bríd; la, Brigida; 525) is the patroness saint (or 'mother saint') of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiogra ...

St Christopher le Stocks St Christopher le Stocks was a parish church on the north side of Threadneedle Street in the Broad Street Ward of the City of London. Of Medieval origin, it was rebuilt following the Great Fire of London in 1666, but demolished in 1781 to make ...

St Clement Eastcheap St Clement Eastcheap is a Church of England parish church in Candlewick Ward of the City of London. It is located on Clement's Lane, off King William Street and close to London Bridge and the River Thames. Clement was a disciple of St Peter the ...

St Dionis Backchurch St Dionis Backchurch was a parish church in the Langbourn ward of the City of London. Of medieval origin, it was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London to the designs of Christopher Wren and demolished in 1878. Early history The church of St D ...

, St Dunstan in the East, St Dunstan in the West,

St Edmund, King and Martyr St Edmund, King and Martyr, is an Anglican church in Lombard Street, in the City of London, dedicated to St Edmund the Martyr. Since 2001 it houses the London Centre for Spirituality, now (2017) renamed the London Centre for Spiritual Directi ...

, St Ethelburga, St Faith under St Paul's, St Gabriel Fenchurch, St George Botolph Lane,

St Giles-without-Cripplegate St Giles-without-Cripplegate is an Anglican church in the City of London, located on Fore Street within the modern Barbican complex. When built it stood without (that is, outside) the city wall, near the Cripplegate. The church is dedicated to S ...

St Gregory by St Paul's St Gregory's by St Paul's was a parish church in the Castle Baynard ward of the City of London, built against the south-west tower of St Paul's Cathedral. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not replaced. History The church ...

St Helen Bishopsgate St Helen's Bishopsgate is an Anglican church in London. It is located in Great St Helen's, off Bishopsgate. It is the largest surviving parish church in the City of London. Several notable figures are buried there, and it contains more monumen ...

, St James Duke's Place, St James Garlickhithe, St John the Baptist Walbrook,

St John the Evangelist Friday Street St John the Evangelist Friday Street was a church in Bread Street Ward of the City of London. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666, and not rebuilt, the parish being united with that of All Hallows Bread Street. History The ch ...

St John Zachary St John Zachary (meaning "St John, son of St Zachary", i.e. John the Baptist) was a church, first mentioned in official records in 1181, within the City of London, England, on the north side of Gresham Street, Aldersgate. Its vicar from 25 May ...

St Katherine Coleman St Katherine Coleman was a parish church in the City of London, situated in St Katherine's Row, on the south side of Fenchurch Street, in Aldgate Ward. Of medieval origin, it narrowly escaped destruction in the Great Fire of London in 1666, bu ...

St Katherine Cree The Guild Church of St Katharine Cree is an Anglican church in the Aldgate ward of the City of London, on the north side of Leadenhall Street near Leadenhall Market. It was founded in 1280. The present building dates from 1628 to 1630. Formerly a ...

St Lawrence Jewry St Lawrence Jewry next Guildhall is a Church of England guild church in the City of London on Gresham Street, next to Guildhall. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666, and rebuilt to the designs of Sir Christopher Wren. It is the ...

, St Lawrence Pountney,

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 Leonard Foster Lane, St Magnus the Martyr,

St Margaret Lothbury St Margaret Lothbury is a Church of England parish church on Lothbury in the City of London; it spans the boundary between Coleman Street Ward and Broad Street Ward. Recorded since the 12th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of ...

St Margaret Moses The church of St Margaret Moses was a parish church which stood on the east side of Friday Street in the Bread Street ward of the City of London. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666 and not rebuilt; instead the parish was unit ...

St Margaret, New Fish Street St Margaret, New Fish Street, was a parish church in the City of London. The Mortality Bill for the year 1665, published by the Parish Clerks' Company, shows 97 parishes within the City of London. By September 6 the city lay in ruins, 86 churche ...

St Margaret Pattens St Margaret Pattens is a Church of England church in the City of London, located on Eastcheap near the Monument to the Great Fire of London, Monument. The dedication is to St. Margaret of Antioch. History The church was first recorded in 1067, a ...

, St Martin Ludgate, St Martin Orgar, St Martin Outwich, St Martin Pomeroy,

St Martin Vintry St Martin Vintry was a parish church in the Vintry ward of the City of London, England. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and never rebuilt. History The church stood at what is now the junction of Queen Street and Upper Thames ...

St Mary Abchurch St Mary Abchurch is a Church of England church off Cannon Street in the City of London. Dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, it is first mentioned in 1198–1199. The medieval church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666, and replace ...

St Mary Aldermanbury St Mary Aldermanbury was a parish church in the City of London first mentioned in 1181 and destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. Rebuilt in Portland stone by Christopher Wren, it was again gutted by the Blitz in 1940, leaving only the ...

St Mary Aldermary The Guild Church of St Mary Aldermary a contraction of St Mary Aldermanbury (or St Mary Elder Mary) is an Anglican church located in Watling Street at the junction with Bow Lane, in the City of London. Of medieval origin, it was rebuilt from 15 ...

St Mary-at-Hill St Mary-at-Hill is an Anglican parish church in the Ward of Billingsgate, City of London. It is situated on Lovat Lane, a cobbled street off Eastcheap. It was founded in the 12th century as "St. Mary de Hull" or "St. Mary de la Hulle". It was se ...

St Mary Bothaw St Mary Bothaw (or Saint Mary Boatehaw by the Erber) was a parish church in the Walbrook ward of the City of London. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt, although some of its materials were used in the rebuildin ...

St Mary le Bow The Church of St Mary-le-Bow is a Church of England parish church in the City of London. Located on Cheapside, one of the city's oldest and most important thoroughfares, the church was founded in 1080 by Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rebuil ...

St Mary Colechurch St Mary Colechurch was a parish church in the City of London destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt. History The church was situated at the junction of Poultry and the south end of Old Jewry. Named after its first benefac ...

St. Mary Magdalen, Milk Street St Mary Magdalen, Milk Street, was a parish church in the City of London, England, dedicated to Jesus' companion Mary Magdalene. Originally constructed in the 12th century, it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt. T ...

St Mary Magdalen Old Fish Street St. Mary Magdalen Old Fish Street was a church in Castle Baynard ward of the City of London, England, located on the corner of Old Fish Street and Old Change, on land now covered by post-War development. Recorded since the 12th century, the chu ...

, St Mary Mounthaw,

St Mary Somerset St. Mary Somerset was a church in the City of London first recorded in the twelfth century. Destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, it was one of the 51 churches rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher Wren. The tower is located in Upper Thames S ...

, St Mary Staining, St Mary Woolchurch,

St Mary Woolnoth St Mary Woolnoth is an Anglican church in the City of London, located on the corner of Lombard Street and King William Street near Bank junction. The present building is one of the Queen Anne Churches, designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor. The paris ...

, St Matthew Friday Street,

St Michael Bassishaw St Michael Bassishaw, or Basinshaw, was a parish church in Basinghall Street in the City of London, standing on land now occupied by the Barbican Centre complex. Recorded since the 12th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 16 ...

St Michael Cornhill St Michael, Cornhill, is a medieval parish church in the City of London with pre-Norman Conquest parochial foundation. It lies in the ward of Cornhill. The medieval structure was lost in the Great Fire of London, and replaced by the present bui ...

, St Michael Crooked Lane,

St Michael Queenhithe St. Michael Queenhithe was a church in the City of London located in what is now Upper Thames Street. First recorded in the 12th century, the church was destroyed during the Great Fire of London in 1666. Rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher W ...

, St Michael le Querne,

St Michael Paternoster Royal St Michael Paternoster Royal is a church in the City of London. The original building, which was first recorded in the 13th century, was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. The church was rebuilt under the aegis of Sir Christopher Wr ...

, St Michael Wood Street, St Mildred Bread Street, St Mildred Poultry,

St Nicholas Acons 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 situated on the west side of Nicholas Lane in ...

St Nicholas Cole Abbey St Nicholas Cole Abbey is a church in the City of London located on what is now Queen Victoria Street. Recorded from the twelfth century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher W ...

, St Nicholas Olave,

St Olave Hart Street St Olave's Church, Hart Street, is a Church of England church in the City of London, located on the corner of Hart Street and Seething Lane near Fenchurch Street railway station. John Betjeman described St Olave's as "a country church in the wo ...

, St Olave Old Jewry,

St Olave Silver Street St Olave's Church, Silver Street was a church on the south side of Silver Street, off Wood Street in the Aldersgate ward of the City of London. It was dedicated to St Olaf, a Norwegian Christian ally of the English king Ethelred II. The churc ...

, St Pancras Soper Lane, St Peter Cornhill, St Peter Paul's Wharf, St Peter le Poer, St Peter Westcheap, St Sepulchre, St Stephen Coleman Street, St Stephen Walbrook, St Swithin London Stone, St Thomas Apostle,

St Vedast Foster Lane Saint Vedast Foster Lane or Saint Vedast-alias-Foster, a church in Foster Lane, in the City of London, is dedicated to St. Vedast (Foster is an Anglicisation of the name "Vaast", as the saint is known in continental Europe), a French saint whose ...

, Bridewell Precinct (extra-parochial place)

In the Liberties of the Tower of London

Holy Trinity Minories

In the City of Westminster

St Margaret Westminster St Margaret was an ancient parish in the City and Liberty of Westminster and the county of Middlesex. It included the core of modern Westminster, including the Palace of Westminster and the area around, but not including Westminster Abbey. It was ...

In the Borough of Southwark

St George Southwark, St Olave Southwark, St Saviour Southwark, St Thomas Southwark

Out-parishes in Middlesex

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 ...

St Martin in the Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. It is dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. There has been a church on the site since at least the mediev ...

, St John Baptist Savoy,

St Giles in the Fields St Giles in the Fields is the Anglican parish church of the St Giles district of London. It stands within the London Borough of Camden and belongs to the Diocese of London. The church, named for St Giles the Hermit, began as a monastery and ...

, St James Clerkenwell, St Leonard Shoreditch, St Mary Whitechapel, St Dunstan Stepney, St John at Hackney, St Mary Islington, St Katharine by the Tower (Liberty)

Out-parishes in Surrey

St Mary Magdalen Bermondsey St Mary Magdalen Bermondsey is an Anglican church dedicated to St Mary Magdalen in Bermondsey in the London Borough of Southwark. The majority of the present building is late 17th century and is Grade II* listed. Its parish extends as far a ...

, St Mary Lambeth, St Mary Newington, St Mary Rotherhithe

Additional parishes within the 'bills' of which the parish clerk may be admitted to membership of the Company

St Alban the Martyr, Holborn St Peter ad Vincula (Tower of London), St Anne Soho, St Chad Haggerston, St Clement King Square,

St George Hanover Square St George Hanover Square was a civil parish created in 1724 in the Liberty of Westminster, Middlesex, which was later part of the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish accompanied the building of St George's, Hanove ...

, Holy Redeemer, Clerkenwell Holy Trinity, Hoxton

St James 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 Church of St James, Piccadilly, in 1684. After several failed attempts, the ...

, St John Westminster, St Mary le Strand, St Paul Covent Garden, Christ Church Southwark,

St John Horsleydown St John Horsleydown was the Church of England, Anglican parish church of Horsleydown in Bermondsey, South London. Built for the Commission for Building Fifty New Churches to the designs of Nicholas Hawksmoor and John James (architect), John Jame ...

, All Saints Poplar,

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 ...

, St Anne Limehouse, St George Bloomsbury,

St George in the East St George-in-the-East is an Anglican Church dedicated to Saint George and one of six Hawksmoor churches in London, England. It was built from 1714 to 1729, with funding from the 1711 Act of Parliament. Its name has been used for two forms of p ...

, St George the Martyr Queen Square, St John Clerkenwell, St John Wapping, St John Waterloo

St Luke Old Street St Luke's is a historic Anglican church building in central London, and in the London Borough of Islington. It served as a parish church from 1733 to 1959. It was designed by John James and Nicholas Hawksmoor, and is a Grade I listed building. ...

, St Mark, Clerkenwell St Matthew Bethnal Green, St Matthew, Westminster St Paul Shadwell, St Peter London Docks St Stephen, Westminster St Paul, West Hackney

Coat of arms

The Grant of Arms to the Company of Parish Clerks Ditchfield 1907

Entrance To The Hall Of The Company Of Parish Clerks Ditchfield 1907

The Company was first granted arms on 16 July 1482. The second grant was made in 1582; these were replaced by a new grant on 16 October 1991, which granted supporters in addition to the previous arms,Worshipful Company of Parish Clerks
/ref> blazoned as follows: Arms Azure a

Fleur de lys The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

or, on a chief

gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...

a leopard's head Or between two 'pricksong books' of the same laced

vert Vert or Verts may refer to: * Vert (heraldry), the colour green in heraldry * Vert (music producer) (born 1972), pseudonym of Adam Butler, an English music producer * Vert (river), in southern France * Vert (sport), a competition in extreme vers ...

. Supporters On either side and standing to the front on the capital of an Ionic Column Or and Angel gazing outwards proper winged Or vested of a tunic

Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

garnished Or draped over the interior shoulder with a mantle Azure and holding with the interior hand a Trumpet

baldrick Baldrick is the name of several fictional characters featured in the long-running BBC historic comedy television series '' Blackadder''. Each one serves as Edmund Blackadder's servant and sidekick and acts as a foil to the lead character. Each ...

-wise the bell upwards all gold. Crest On a wreath gules and Azure, a

cubit The cubit is an ancient unit of length based on the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger. It was primarily associated with the Sumerians, Egyptians, and Israelites. The term ''cubit'' is found in the Bible regarding No ...

arm vested Azure cuffed ermine holding an open 'pricksong' book all proper. Motto "Unitas societatis stabilitas"

References

External links

* {{authority control Parish Clerks Bills of mortality