OLD LOfiDOJi CITY CHURCHES.
THEIR ORGANS, ORGANISTS
& MUSICAL ASSOCIATIONS
c,. Canlah,
NOTES
OLD LONDON CITY CHURCHES,
Organs, Organists, and Musical Associations,
CHARLES WILLIAM PEARCE,
MUS. D., CANTAB.; F.R.C.O.,
DEAN OF THE FACULTY OF Music IN THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON,
ORGANIST OF S. CLEMENT, EASTCHEAP, WITH S. MARTIN ORGAR,
AND SOMETIME OF S. LUKE, OLD STREET.
Price l-
LONDON :
THE VINCENT MUSIC COMPANY, LIMITED,
60, BERNERS STREET, W.
U.S.A.: T. J. DONLAN, COLONIAL BUILDING, BOSTON, MASS.
DEDICATED
TO THE
MASTER, WARDENS, AND COURT OF ASSISTANTS
OF THE
WORSHIPFUL COMPANY OF MUSICIANS,
ONE OF
THE ANCIENT LIVERY GUILDS OF THE CITY OF LONDON,
WHOSE MEMBERS
STILL DELIGHT IX AND MAXY FOLLOW
THEIR CRAFT :
ALL WORKING TOGETHER
FOR THE SUPPORT AND ADVANCEMENT
OF THE
ART AND MYSTERY
OF
MUSIC.
PREFACE.
(INCE the days of Stow there has been
no lack of literature concerning the old
City Churches of London ; consequently,
some kind of apology is needed for the
adddition of yet another book to the
already lengthy list. But, while previous works
whether in book, article or lecture form have dealt,
more or less fully, with the history and architecture of
these interesting buildings, not one has given but the
barest possible mention of the musical associations
which cling so closely to well-nigh every one of them.
It is hoped that the present volume may serve
as a convenient guide to anyone visiting a City
Church, by giving him a brief digest of its history,
monuments and architectural features ; mentioning its
dimensions, and cost of re-building (if unhappily
destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666) ; and following up
this general information by chronicling as many facts
as could be gleaned about the organs which have
been erected within its walls ; the alterations, enlarge-
ments, modernizations, &c., which have, from time to
time, been effected in these organs ; and, finally,
describing the instrument as it exists at the present
day.
In this way, the history of the organs in the City
Churches will be found to contain a perfect epitome
of the History of the Art of Organ Building in
England since the restoration of the Monarchy. And
in some cases here and there light has been shed
upon Mediaeval Organ Making, by reference to and
quotations from ancient parish records which were
saved from the general destruction at the time of the
Great Fire.
The Organists of the City Parochial Churches
have ever been a distinguished race of musicians ;
2046823
1; PREFACE.
their names constitute quite a roll of honour. Hert
are just a few of them :
Thomas Adams, Dr. Theodore Aylward, Sir Joseph Barnby.
Jonathan Battishill, John Bennett, Dr. Bexfield, Jonas Blewitt,
'Dr. Boyce, Dr, Burney, J. F. Burrows, Dr. E. T. Chipp, J. T.
Cooper, George Cooper, James Coward, Alfred J.Eyre, Dr H.
J. Gauntlett, W. Goodwin, Sir John Goss, Dr. Maurice Greene,
Henry Heron, Dr. James Higgs, Dr. Henry Hiles, Dr. E. J.
Hopkins, Dr. S. Howard, Charles King, Mus. B. Oxon.,
J. F. Lampe, K. Limpus, C. Lockhart, Mrs. Mounsey-Bartho-
lomew, Dr. Stephen Austen Pearce, Dr. W. Rea, W. Russell,
Mus B. Oxon., Sir John Stainer, J. Stanley, Mus. B. Oxon.,
C. E. Stephens, Dr. J. C. Tiley, Dr. E. H.Turpin. H. Westrop,
A. Whichello, Dr. Jobn Worgan and Dr. Henry Wylde
(Gresham Professor).
The author regrets that he has found it impossible to
complete the lists of organists in every parish, for the
reason that in some cases the records of organ appoint-
ments no longer exist. But he desires here to express
his gratitude to those incumbents, organists, vestry-
clerks and other parish officers who have so generously
aided him in his efforts to obtain the names of past
organists with particulars of their appointments.
Another matter for regret is that Nineteenth Century
" restoration " processes should have led to the dis-
appearance of quite a number of ancient sepulchral
inscriptions of musical interest. It is extremely
disappointing after reading in some Eighteenth Cen-
tury account that in such a church such a person
was buried, with an inscription recording his or her
attainments as a musician, to visit the church so
referred to, only to find that the ancient gravestones
are no longer visible, their place being usurped by
some more or less " ornamental tiles " of the encaustic
order suitable, perhaps, for a summer-house or dairy,
or even for a cheap suburban " mission " church, but
scarcely dignified to serve as the pavement of an
ancient parish church in the greatest metropolis of
the world.
It has been the author's privilege to have taken an
active part in the zealous and successful efforts of the
London Section of the Incorporated Society of Musi-
cians to place in two of these City Churches beautiful
memorials of distinguished musicians buried therein,
and whose graves for some reason or another were no
longer marked by any inscription whatever. Visitors
to the Church of S. Stephen, Walbrook, can now see
a monument to John Dunstable (died 1453) with the
original Fifteenth Century Latin epitaph restored ;
and the Church of S. Andrew, Undershaft, now
possesses a mural brass to the memory of Dr. John
Worgan (1724-1790) a former organist. But a very
great deal more remains to be done in this direction.
Injudicious "restoration" may be bad enough in its
way, but the senseless and wanton destruction of City
Churches which has been going on for many years
past, is infinitely worse. It may be consoling to find
that public opinion - when aroused is opposed to this
sacrilegious vandalism ; but how often it happens that
an old historic church is pulled down, and its site
covered by the ugliest of modern commercial premises
before the general public get to know anything of what
has so lamentably taken place ! It may be urged that
the church so destroyed had no regular congregation,
and that consequently some extremely wise person in
" authority " thought it better to pull the building down,
sell its desecrated site, and erect one or more cheap
and repulsive-looking churches in the suburbs with
the proceeds. The old City church, however, occupied
its consecrated site by the right of centuries of lawful
possession ; and it requires more than ordinary logic
to convince the thoughtful layman that several more
or less badly built and thinly attended churches in the
suburbs, can be better than one interesting and well-
built church in the City, which, although comparatively
empty on only one day of the week, could nevertheless
open its doors on the six remaining days to the multi-
tudinous crowds of men and women who throng the
streets of its parish from dawn to sunset.
Nor is the preservation of our old City Churches
a duty to the living only. There is something due to
the dead, and also to our posterity in the future ! John
Ruskin writes in his Seven Lamps of Architecture :
"It is no question of expediency or feeling whether we shall
preserve the buildings of past times or not. We have no right,
whatever, to touch them. They are not ours. They belong partly
to those who built them, and partly to all the generations of
mankind who are to follow us. The dead have still their right
in them. That which they laboured for, the praise of achieve
ment, or the expression of religious feeling, or whatsoever else
it might be which, in those buildings, they intended to be per-
manent, we have no right to obliterate. What we have ourselves
built, we are at liberty to throw down ; but what other men
gave their strength and wealth and life to accomplish, their
right over does not pass away with their death ; still less is the
right to the use of what they have left, vested in us only ; it
belongs to all their successors. It may, hereafter, be a subject
of sorrow, or a cause of injury to millions, that we have consulted
our present convenience by casting down such buildings as we
choose to dispense with. That sorrow, that loss, we have no
right to inflict."
There can be no doubt that the citizens of London
who built these old churches intended them to last for
ever on the sacred spots where they erected and
endowed them, and upon no other spots elsewhere.
Even the Great Fire itself could not wipe out the
love and enthusiasm of Londoners for their old City
Churches which have always been, and still are,
unique specimens of Ecclesiastical Architecture.
The chancels of the mediaeval City Churches those
built before the Fire differed from other English
Parish Churches of the same date and period in three
very important respects : (i) They were not separate
buildings from the nave, (2) the roof was of the same
height as that of the nave, and (3) there was no " chancel
arch." But it should be remembered that the only
essential condition of a chancel is that there should be
some sort of dividing screen (cancellus) between it
and the nave. In the old churches spared by the
Great Fire this screen has either been restored, or its
ancient position can easily be ascertained by the
existence of the turret or the remaining traces
thereof which contained the stairs leading to the
rood loft. Wren himself erected in two of" his churches
(All Hallows, Thames Street, and S. Peter's, Cornhill)
tall handsome screens of the mediaeval type; in his
other churches he invariably marked the division
between nave and chancel by strips of carved open
work which he placed above the level of the pews. In
pre-reformation times the chancel of every London
City Church was called quyre or " choir," as though
speaking of a cathedral ; and the frequent mention
of a quire door proves the existence of some kind of
choir screen. It may be further argued that the
invariable use of the word "choir" proves that it
was intended to indicate a place set apart for Singers.
The Rev. Canon John Jebb in his Choral Service of
the United Church of England and Ireland (1843)
remarks that :
" In ancient times, before the Reformation, as far as can be
collected from the very vague documents of local history, that
mode of service called choral was adopted very generally in
Parish Churches. Many of the greater Parishes had choirs ; as
an instance, we find in the Life of Sir Thomas More, that he
used to put on a surplice and sit with the choir in the chancel
of the church at Chelsea. The difference, indeed, between the
performance of the ordinary Parochial and Cathedral Service
seems to have consisted rather in he degree, than in the
principle."
Bishop Burnet, in his History of the Reformation
informs us that :
" Till 1549, Parish Churches had used the plain chant as well
as Cathedrals ; for at a Visitation this year, complaint was
made that the Priests read the (English) Prayers with the same
tone of voice that they had formerly used in the Latin Service."
A reference to the account of S. Mary Woolnoth,
in the following pages, will show that even after the
Reformation (in 1553) there was in that church a
fully equipped surpliced choir of boys and men who
sang in harmony the ''measured" or barred cathedral
music ot the time, consisting of psalms, anthems and
masses (for the first English Prayer Book of 1549,
termed the Office for Holy Communion the " Mass ") ;
and that on special occasions (weddings, etc.) the
ordinary choir of the church was ' augmented " by the
" children of Powles " (the choristers of S. Paul's
Cathedral) and other paid (adult) singers. The church-
wardens' accounts of other parishes show similar
disbursements for items connected with the various
choral services of the church.
The post reformation maintenance of parochial
music of a Cathedral type only appears to have lasted
for a very short time however,- some ten years or less.
Strype remarks in his Life of Grindal that on :
"The day of September 1559, the new Morning Prayers
began now first at S. Antholin's, in Budge Row, ringing at five
in the morning ; and then a psalm was sung, as was used among
the Protestants of Geneva, all men, women, and young folks
singing together: which custom was about this time brought
also into S. Paul's."
It was this (imported) congregational metrical
psalmody which first killed the Choral Service in out
parish churches, and then re-acted (suicidally) upon
itself by relegating its functions to the children of the
parish schools, who were compelled to sing at the very
top of their voices, without the slightest regard to
" production " or the elementary necessities of time
and tune, and to sing in such numbers as to completely
overwhelm and discourage any unfortunate member of
the congregation who may have been possessed with
some sort of desire to exercise his or her Christian
privileges in the dual direction of praise and suppli-
cation. It is true, that when properly trained, and
heard in large grouped massesat the Annual Parochial
Charity Childrens' Service at S. Paul's Cathedral,
the voices of these little ones could be made both
effective and devotional. Joseph Haydn was affected
to tears when he heard them sing at S. Paul's, where,
writes Joseph Bennett in his Forty years of Music
(1865-1905):-
" It was a wonderful sight to look upon the thousands of boys
and girls, in the queer and varied dresses which parochial
benevolence affected with a view to promote the self-respect of
its young charges, who sat on tiers of seats rising from the
floor to the top of the arches of the dome."
Hector Berlioz was also much impressed by the
unique effect of these thousands of fresh childish
voices singing together in the great metropolitan
cathedral.
But although the choral singing of Cathedral music
came to an untimely end in the City Parochial churches
by the close of the i6th century, it is refreshing to
read in Hatton's New View of London (1708) that at
the beginning of the i8th century Daily Service
was said in no less than twenty-nine churches. The
particulars of these daily services are most interesting :
Daily Matins was said (without Evensong) in
1. S. Andrew, Undershaft, at 6 in the summer and 7 in the
winter.
2. S. Antholin's, Budge Row, with a sermon at 6.
3. S. Bartholomew-the-Great, Smithfield. at n.
PREFACE. IX
4. S. Bartholomew-the-Less, Smithfield, at n.
5. S. Stephen, Coleman Street, at n.
Daily Evensong was said (without Matins) in
6. S. Augustine and S. Faith's, Watling Street, at 3
7. S. Bartholomew-by-the-Exchange, at 7,
8. S. Michael, Bassishaw, at 5.
9. S. Michael, Queenhithe, at 6.
Both Daily Matins and Evensong: were said in
10. S. Botolph, Aldersgate, at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
11. S. Botolph, Aldgate, at ri a.m. and 7 p.m.
12. S. Botolph, Bishopsgate, 8a.m. in summer, 9 a.m. in
winter; 7 p.m. always.
13. S. Bride's, Fleet Street, n a.m. and 8 p.m.
14. Charterhouse Chapel, 10 a.m. always; 2 p.m. in winter ;
5 p m. in summer.
15. Christ Church, Newgate Street, n a.m. always ; 3 p.m.
in winter, 5 p.m. in summer.
16. S. Christopher-le-Stocks, 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.
17. S. Dionis, Backchurch, 8 a.m. in summer, 9 a.m. in
winter ; 5 p.m. always.
18. S. Dunstan-in-the-West, 7 a,m. and 3 p.m.
19. S. Edmund-the-King, n a.m. and 7 p.m.
20. S. Lawrence, Jewry, n a.m. and 8 p.m.
21. S. Martin, Ludgate, n a.m. and 6 p.m.
22. S. Mary-le-bow. 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
23. S. Mary, Woolnoth, n a.m. and 5 p.m.
24. S. Peter, Cornhill, n a.m. and 4 p.m.
25. S. Swithin, London Stone, n a.m. and 5 p.m.
26. The Temple Church, 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Services were held three times daily in
27. S. Andrew, Holborn, Matins 6 and n a.m., Evensong
3 P-m.
28. S, Clement Danes, Matins n a.m., Evensong 3 p.m.
and 8 p.m.
29. S. Sepulchre, Snow Hill, Matins 6.30 a.m. (and on
Wednesdays and Fridays again at n a.m.), Evensong
3.30 p.m.
Two hjindreti years ago then, the church bells were
continually ringing every day from six in the morning
until eight in the evening, with an interval of about
three hours silence in the middle of the day. At the
present time the same bells are mostly heard at mid-
day. There are few churches in which there is not
some kind of short service at about 1.15 on week-days,
so as to attract the multitudes of City men and women
whose luncheon-hour coincides with that time. And
the organists of those churches which possess un-
usually good organs such as S. Stephen Walbrook,
S. Lawrence Jewry, and S. Michael Cornhill are in
the habit of providing admirably selected programmes
of organ and vocal music, which have the effect of
bringing large numbers of music-lovers into the grand
old churches. And on Sundays, in most of the City
churches, a well-rendered Choral Service of the
modern cathedral type can be heard sung by a sur-
pliced choir of men and boys, with more or less
hearty congregational singing of popular hymns
(ancient and modern).
London has always been a foremost centre of
religious life in this country. William Fitzstephen,
a monk of Canterbury, born of worshipful parents in
the City in the reign of Stephen, and who died in
1191, wrote thus in the reign of Henry II :
"There are in London and in the suburbs thirteen larger
conventual churches, besides one hundred and thirty-six lesser
parochial ones. ... I think there is no city in which more
approved customs are observed in attending churches,
honouring God's ordinances, keeping festivals, giving alms,
receiving strangers, confirming espousals, contracting marriages,
celebrating weddings, preparing entertainments, welcoming
guests, and also in the arrangement of the funeral ceremonies,
and the burial of the dead. . . . Almost all the bishops,
abbots, and great men of England are in a manner, citizens and
freemen of London ; as they have magnificent houses there, to
which they resort, spending large sums of money, whenever
they are summoned thither to councils and assemblies by their
king, or their metropolitan, or are compelled to go there by
their own business."
A great deal of this is as true now as when it was
written in Latin more than seven centuries ago;
indeed many of the present day Sunday attendances
at City churches will contrast favourably with the
attendances at suburban churches the proportion of
resident population being duly taken into account.
That our Seventeenth Century ancestors gave most
liberally of their substance for the re-erection after
the Great Fire of these beautiful old buildings which
we see before us to-day, the large sums of money
mentioned in the following pages will most amply
testify. And we should remember that these sums
represent considerably larger amounts in present
money value. In fact nothing but the expenditure of
a large sum upon the rebuilding of their parish churches
would satisfy our forefathers. For years after the
Fire, until these large sums were forthcoming, they
were content to worship in temporary sheds erected
in some corner of the ruins of the old churches, where
a small portion of the blackened walls pathetically
remained as a witness of the former glory of their
desolate Houses of God. They even worshipped for
a time kneeling on the gravestones of their immediate
predecessors, under the dark pillars and arches of
crypts or " undercrofts," which the Fire had left more
or less intact. These pious London citizens, be it
further remembered, willingly and gladly offered of
their best to the glory of God, and for the maintenance
of the Christian Faith at a time when they were
terribly impoverished by the enormous destruction of
their property in the Great Fire. Let us venerate or
at least respect their piety : let us try to preserve what
they in their noble self-denial so generously provided
for us, and for those who will come after us. Let us
also appreciate the ingenuity of Wren's architectural
genius, as shown in the fertility of his invention and
artistic adaptability of structural design to restricted
and embarassing site-conditions ; let us admire the
excellent acoustical properties of these delightful
old Wren churches buildings in which it is a perfect
luxury to speak, to sing, to play the organ, to listen to
music generally ; buildings, too, which can be as
readily adapted to the necessities of the most ornate
ritual as to the bare requirements of the simplest
Evangelical Service.
It was recently pointed out by Mr. Arthur Keen
in a lecture delivered before the Architectural Asso-
ciation that :
" In churches built by Wren there is endless change in the
use of ordinary architectural forms : simple columns carrying
entablatures, columns carrying arches, columns with nrches
between them, piers carrying galleries and running up to form
a nave arcade, and other combinations. And then, again, the
extreme picturesqueness of Wren's interiors : the freedom of
treatment, the breadth of light and shade, the boldness and
dignity of the essential parts, and the general interest of the
composition, together with the beauty of the carved and moulded
oakwork, the quaintness and charm of the old brass chandeliers
and iron sword-rests, the touches of gold on stone and plaster,
all combine to produce delightful subjects for a painter. "
A certain class of people who obviously ought to
be worshipping in their own suburban churches may
now and then stroll into a City church on a Sunday
morning, and possibly find but a small congregation
therein. They contrast the quiet emptiness with the
non-church-going character of the populous suburban
scenes they have just quitted where, perhaps, the
means of grace may be somewhat scantily supplied by
the Church of England and then, when they return
home (instead of trying to do their best to satisfy
their own suburban needs) they indignantly write to
the newspapers, or otherwise publicly propound the
parrot question "What is the use of City churches?"
This oft-repeated question was exceedingly well
answered by the Rev. W. C. E. Newbolt, M.A.,
Canon and Chancellor of S. Paul's Cathedral, who,
preaching at the Church of S. Martin, Ludgate, on the
occasion of the thanksgiving service held there on
August 29th, 1895, for the completion of the work of
repairing and refitting the building, said :
" What is the use of a City church? What do you hope to
do with it? Is it useful? Does it meet a need? How do you
intend to fill it?
1 ' We answer :
" The church is of great use because it is God's House, and it
is always full, because God and His Court occupy it. I am
quite prepared to maintain that the mere existence of a church,
a church of stone with tower and bell, in a street is of great
advantage in itself. Here is a building which, when everything
around it is speaking of man, of business and pleasure, speaks
of God. Here is a building which, as plainly as words can
speak, says, ' There is a God Who is watching over the affairs
of this great city. If you forget Him you cannot prosper. If
you injure Him by sin, you will suffer 'for it. If you keep to
Him He will never forsake you.' Here it is like the shadow of
a great rock in a weary land.
"The church is useful as a quiet place for prayer. Oh, if
clergy only knew of the rest and peace they give, by letting the
simple and the wearied and the sorrowful find shelter, they
would always seek to make the church a sanctuary, a refuge,
where the soul can be alone with God.
" A City church (like every other) is a house of grace. Surely
the day will come, and speedily, when unlimited sermons will
cease to satisfy. There is no mention of sermons in heaven.
Feeding people with sermons is, after all, like feeding men
with perpetual medical prescriptions. They are means to an
end. Grace is what we need. Here in the church are the
PREFACE. X1H
means of grace. Here are clergy not merely to advise, bin to
help. The smallest church is a spiritual dispensary, which it
would be a crime to close."
Many pages could be rilled with anecdotes and
stories of City men who have found the isolation, rest
and quiet of a City church most helpful to them in
dark moments of business trouble, perplexity and
killing anxiety. One such story will suffice. Writing
in the City Press a few years ago, the Rev. Thomas
Moore, M.A., Rector of S. Michael, Paternoster
Royal, stated that :
" A city man of good position one day found himself .suddenly
confronted with a serious crisis in his business affairs. Stunned
and bewildered for the moment, and unable to attend to the
perplexing concerns of his office he went out, and for some time
wandered aimlessly about in the city streets. Passing (by
accident, as it seemed) the open door of the Church of
S. Edmund the King, Lombard Street, he entered the sacred
building and there, kneeling instinctively in prayer, he sought
of God that light and guidance which his difficult crisis so-
urgently needed. Soon he felt assured that his prayer was
heard and answered, for light came to him to such an extent
that he had no misgiving as to the course he ought to take ;
then arid there he came to a decision -what was the best thing to
do. He returned to his office and acted upon the idea which
had occurred to him in the church, with the most successful
results. Those few moments of meditation and prayer in the
quiet old City church were his salvation ! "
The present writer, who has been a City church
organist for thirty-five years, can most thoroughly
endorse the same view ; and he most fervently hopes
that the following pages, mainly devoted to the
musical associations of these delightful old buildings,
may be one more small help towards stemming the
tide of their ruthless and unnecessary desecration and
destruction. The following works have been con-
sulted during the compilation of this volume :
JOHN STOW. A Survey of London (written in 1598), edited
in 1842 by William J. Thorns, F.S.A., Secretary of the
Camden Society.
HATTON. A New View of London, 2 vols, 1708.
THE WORSHIPFUL COMPANY OF PARISH CLERKS. New
Remarks of London, 1732.
HENRY LEFFLER. An Account of Organs and Organ
Builders, MS., 1800-10.
JAMES PELLER MALCOLM, F.S. A. Londinium Redivivum,
4 vols., 1807.
THOMAS ALLEN. A New History of London, 5 vols., 1839.
GEORGE GODWIN, F.S.A. and JOHN BRITTON, F.S.A. The
Churches of London, 2 vols., 1839.
CHARLES KNIGHT. London, 3 vols., 1842.
J. A. HAMILTON. A Catechism of the Organ (Second
Edition, by Joseph Warren), 1842.
E. F. RIMBAULT and E. J. HOPKINS. The Organ, its
History and Construction, 1855.
J. W. BiLLlNGHURST. An Account of the City Church
Organs. MS., 1856.
EDMUND MACRORy- A Few Notes on the Temple Organ,
1861. . . ;
E. F. KiMBAULT.^;fi/>.
142
154
Schreider | organist j 724. See App }
158
Renatus Harris, 1695 Original organ remained unaltered until 1868. ..
121
i i New organ by Noble & Sons, 1902. Rev. S. J.
George England, 1780 \\ Stone (author of "The Church's One
1*0
1 Foundation ") rector here. . . . . )
See App . . I The tower ^till remains in the churchvard
160
Glyn& Parker, 1749. ..
SFine chancel screen now in S. Margaret, \
Lothbury. Dr. Boyce organist 1749. /
Choir and Steeple stood over an arched gate 1
(entrance to Cold Haroour). . . f
158
159
Charles Brindley, 1858. .. "Porch of Priory Church still left
J46
Robert Gray, 1805 Monument to Rev. W. Romaine. See App. ..
i I Rectors : Stillingfleet and Sacheverell. Lord
u H ' K, R t, \A at ! Beaconsfield baptized here. Daniel Pur-
Renatus Harris & Byfield, 1684. -. c . n Dr Greene f j. Stanley and Dr . James
Higgs, organists here J
J Has mediaeval records of organists and organ- 1
1 builders /
*
1 Stow the historian and Dr. W organ buried i
Renatus Harris, 1696. See App.
J here. Holbein, the i6th century painter, 1
j lived in the parish. Dr. Worgan, Dr. W. f
I. Rea and Elizabeth Stirling, organists here. J
79
'obert Gray, 1782
Abraham Jordan, 1733...
/ Geo. Cooper, E J. Westrop and Dr. Henry \
\ Wylde, organists here. /
Vandyck lived in the parish
/ Site marked by a memorial with 6as reliej. \
\ One of Wren's finest steeples f
1 66
1*5
168
Rawlins & Pettier, 1766.
New organ by Henry Willis . 873 . .
169
Byfield, 1740
Byfield, 1740
Richard Bridge, 1731. See App.
Miles Coverdale originally buried here
" Father Ignatius" curate here
{Present organ by Geo. Eng'and, 1765, removed
from S. Stephen's, Walbrook, in 1885.
Priory Church built by Rahere 1123.
172
>73
15
Unknown Builder, 1794.
Ilnigo Jones baptized here. New organ by )
Gray & Davison, 1863. Dr. H. J. Gauntlett \
'73
organist 1872 .. . . 1
Abraham Jordan, 1714
An endowment for organists. Cardinal J. H. \
Newman baptized here 1 801. ..
97
No organ after Great Fire . . 1 " Has mediaeval musical records. See App. '..
75
No.
Name of Church.
Street in which the Church is (or wag)
situated.
55
56
S. Benet (Welsh Church) ..
*S. Benet S here hog
/Paul's Wharf, Upper Thames Street, \
\ Queen Victoria Street /
1 Opposite to Size Laue, Pancras Lane, \
\ Queen Victoria Street /
34
35
33
S. Botolph, Aldersgate
S. Botolph, Aldgate
*.y. Botolph, Billingsgate
Aldersgate Street (close to Post Office).
( Junction of Aldgate High St. and Hounds- \
\ ditch. . . . . . . . }
S. side of Thames St., opposite Boiolph Lane.
33 S. Botolph, Bishopsgate
Bishopsgate Street, opposite Houndsditch. . .
5 ! S. Biide
S. of Fleet Street, W. of Ludgate Circus. ..
6 Christ Church
57 , 5. Christafher-le-S tacks
58 S. Clement Danes
15 S. Clement, Eastcheap
Newgate street
Threadneedle Street
Strand (close to Law Courts). . .
/ Corner of Clement's Lane and King William)
(. Street (close to London Bridge). . . (
.
60
59
S. Dionis Backchurch
S. Duns tan in the East..
S. Ounstan in the West
S.W. corner of Lime Street, Fenchurch Street
1 Between Tower Street and Lower Thames |
Street, at the convergence of S. Dun- [
{ Stan's Hill and Idol Lane. .. )
N. side of Fleet St. (close to Law Courts). . .
M
Dutch Church, Austin Friars
Austin Friars, Old Broad Street
24
32
S. Edmund the King and Martyr . .
S. Ethelburga
Lombard Street, N. of Clement's Lane.
1 Bishopsgate St. Within (close to S. Helen's \
\ Place) /
6.
62
7
*S. Gabriel, Ftnckurch Street
S. George
S. Giles', Cripplegate ..
Fenchurch Street
( Corner of Botolph Lane and George Lane, \
\ Eastcheap /
W. end ol Fore Street, Moorgate Street. . .
63
"5. Gregoty-6y-S. Paul's
Close to the S.W. wall of Old S. Paul's. . .
i3
S. Helen's, Bishopsgate..
Great S. Helen's, Bishopsgate St. Within. ..
*
*
66
65
7
S. James', Duke's Place
S. James 1 , Garlickhythe
*S. John the Bafttst, ufim Wattrook
*S. John the Evangelist
*S.JohnZachary
Aldgate
I E. side of Garlick Hill, Cannon Street, )
' between Maiden Lane and Upper :-
i Thames Street I
W. side o) Cloak Lane, Cannon Street. . .
/Corner of Waning Street and Friday Street, \
\ Cheapside /
N. side of Gresham Street, Aldersgate Street.
69
S. Katharine Coleman ..
S. of Fenchurch Street, E. of Mark Lane. ..
70
S. Katharine Cree
N.E side of Leadenhall Street
Organ originally built by :-
Special Points of Interest.
i
J. C. Bishop, I 8 33
/ Geo. Cooper, James Higgs, and Sir John !
\ Stainer organists here f
175
/ Originally dedicated to S. Osyth, Queen and 1
\ Martyr . . /
1 77
Samuel Green, 1778.
I J. R. Murray (Founder of London Church 1
\ Choir Association) organist 1864. . f
136
Thomas & Renatus Harris, 1676.
Dr. J. Worgan and J. C. Pring organists here...
138
John Byfield, 1764
Renatus Harris. See App. . .
f Sir Paul Pindar and Alieyn (founder of Dulwich V
1 College) buried heie ; Keats baptized here /
I John Weldon, Urs. Howard, Mather, W. B. 1
\ Gilbert, and E. H. Turpin organists here. /
J33
133
21
Renatus Harris, 1690. ..
Mendelssohn played the organ here. See App-..
26
Bishop Pearson, rector, 1660-2.
178
Father Schmidt, 1690. ..
Dr. Johnson used to attend here. See App.
ISO
Renatus Harris, 1695
f Purcell, Battishill, and Whittaker, organists. \
\ Pearson on the Creed. See App. . . )
73
Renatus Harris, 1724. See App.
Father Schmidt
/ The last organ built by Renatus Harris. Dr. 1
X Charles Burney, organist, 1749-51. .. /
1 Present church built by Laing in 1821. Newl
X organ built by Gray in 1821. See App. J
123
186
T. R. Robson, 1834
Present church built by Shaw in 1833
I The Nave of a i4th century Priory Church of i
'83
Hill & Son, 1864
Augustinian Friars. i7th century organ [
99
desiroyed in the fire of 1862. See App. )
Renatus Harris, circa 1695.
/Organ rebuilt by J. C. Bishop in 1833, withX
X Swell compass to EE. .. .. /
108
Elliott, circa. 1790.
Alfred J. Eyre, organist, in 1872
131
/ Stood in the middle of the street. Courtyard X
X still exists in Fen Court. . . . . f
189
Thomas Griffin, circa 1708.
Organ rebuilt by Hill & Son in 1862
189
Renatus Harris, 1680. See Apf>.
(Burial place of Milton, Kox, Frobisher. Oliver X
Cromwell married here in 1620. . . /
3'
Martin Pearson orgai.ist here. (Master of 1
Ravenscroft) /
190
Thomas Griffin, 1744. See App.
i Burial place of Sir John Crosby, Sir Andrew \
Judd, Sir Thomas Gresham, Sir Julius!-
1 Czsar, and Sir William Pickering. . . )
86
Builder unknown, 1815.
/ Built in 1622 out of the ruins of the Priory of \
X the Holy Trinity, Aldgate. See App. }
191
Father Schmidt, 1697. See App.
Organ kept in its original state until 1866.
90
A memorial marks the site . .
!9
Portion of churchyard still remains.
191
/ Portion of churchyard still remains at the S.E. 1
\ corner of Noble Street /
19*
England (?) See App
; Present church built by Home in 1734. Organ |
remains in its i8tn century condition now \
195
in 1909. . .. )
Father Schmidt, 1686. ..
Organ rebuilt in 1886 by Henry Willis 196
XX ' INDEX.
No. Name of Church.
Street in which tht Church is (or was)
situated.
68 S. Katharine by the Tower
Regent's Park
10 S. Lawrence, Jewry
71 { *S. Lawrence, Poulttuy
72 1*5. Leonard, Easlcheaf
73 \*S. Leonard, Foster Lane ..
W. of King Street, Cheapside
Lawrence Poultney Lane, Cannon Street. . .
Fish Street Hill, Eastcheap
Foster Lane, Cheapside.
8 S. Luke, Middlesex
Old Street, S. Luke's
30
S. Magnus the Martyr
S. of Thames Street, London Bridge.
12
S. Margaret, Lothbury
Lothbury (opposite Bank of England).
, \*S. Margaret Moses
S.E. of Friday Street, Cheapside
75
*S. Margaret, New Pith Street . .
Monument Yard (close to London Bridge)..
>6
S. Margaret Pattens
S. E. corner of Rood Lane, Eastcheap.
76
S. Martin, Ludgate
N. of Ludgate Hill to the E. of Old Bailey.
15
77
*.?. Martin, Orgar
S. Martin, Oufwick
E. of Martin's Lane, Cannon Street.
S. E. corner of Threadneed le Street.
78
79
*S. Martin, ternary
*S. Martin, Vintry
E. side of Ironmonger Lane, Cheapside. . .
/ Corner of Queen St. and Upper Thames \
\ St. (close to Southwark Bridge). . \
3*
39
S. Mary, Abchurch
S. Mary, Aldermanbury
Abchurch Lane, Cannon Street
/Aldermanbury, London Wall (N.E. of Love \
X Lane, Wood Street, Cheapside)... ]
38
S. Mary, Aldermary
N. of Queen Victoria St. , corner of Bow Lane.
,,
S. Mary-at-Hill
Love Lane, Eastcheap.
80
*S. Mary Bothaw
S. of Cannon Street. . .
ll
*S. Mary Coleckurch
S. End of Old Jewry, Poultry, Cheapside..
9
S. Mary-le-bow
Bow Lane, Cheapside
82
*S. Mary Mounthaw
W. side of Old Fish St. Hill, Thames Street.
83
84
S. Mary Somerset
S. Mary Staining
( N. Side of Upper Thames Street, at S.E. \
\ corner of Lambeth Hill /
I N. end of Staining Lane, N. side of Oat 1
\ Lane, Wood Street, Cheapside... /
85
5. Mary Woolchurch Haw
Queen Victoria Street
*3
S. Mary Woolnoth
Comer of Lombard St. and King William St.
86
*S. Mary Magdalene, Milk Street . .
S.E. side of Milk Street, Cheapside...
87
88
89
S. Mary Magdalene, OU Fith Street
S. Matthew, Friday Street . .
S. Michael Bassishaw
/ N. side of Knightrider Street, S.W. corner )
\ of Old Change (
N.W. end of Friday St. close to Cheapside.
1 W. side of Basinghall St., London Wall, \
\ N. of Guildhall Library. . .. /
IJ
S. Michael, Cornhill
S. side of Cornhill
90
9i
.S. Michael, Crooked Lane ..
*S. Michael-le-Querne
(At the junction of Cannon Street with\
1 King William Sireet /
I In the middle of Cheapside to the east of \
1 Paternoster Row /
92
S. Michael, Paternoster Royal
| Vintry Ward, E. side of College Hill (which )
\ connects Cannon Street with Uppers
Thames Street)
Organ originally built by :
Samuel Green, 1778.
Renatus Han is, 1687. ..
Jordan & Bridge, 1733...
Abraham Jordan, 1712...
G. P. England, 1801. ..
ca. 1750. ..
Father Schmidt.
Holland
G. P. England, 1805. See App.
J. C. Bishop, 1822.
J. C. Bishop, 1824.
England and Russell, 178:.
; Father Schmidt, 1693. . .
Samuel Green, 1788. ..
'Hugh Russell. i8oa. '.
. J. W. Walker & Sons, 1880.
Unknown Builder.
Father Schmidt, 1681. ..
Samuel Green, 1786. . .
G. England, 1800. See App.
Thomas Griffiin
Renatus Harris, 1684. ..
Unknown Builder.
Special Points of Interest.
I Church destroyed in 1824.
\ at Regent's Park in the
New church huilt I
same year.
Archbishop Tillotson buried here. See App. . .
Part of the churchyard rrmains. ..
One of the first churches burnt in the Great Fire.
Bread dole still remains.
{Henry Smart organist. John Wesley preached 1
here. See App /
First use of the " swelling organ " (Nag's head).
/ Has chancel screen taken from All Hallows, \
\ Thames Street. See App /
Contained many interesting civic monuments. . .
/ Its site is occupied by the Fire Monument. \
\fhsfirst church destroyed in the Great Fire. /
/ Eliza Wesley (sister of Dr. S. S. Wesley) (
1 organist here . . (
/ Bates replaced Father Schmidt's organ by one )
\ of his own in 1848. Rebuilt in 1906 by Lewis /
Used as a French Protestant church after the Fire
Has mediaeval accounts of organists, &c.
( Said to have been originally built in an apple i
1 orchard f
Part of the churchyard remains.
Organ rebuilt by Brindley & Foster, 1875.
Judge Jeffries buried here. See App
Wren "Gothic" (with fan-groining). Milton |
married here to his third wife. Organ built !
by Norman & Beard, 1906. See App. )
Headquarters of the " Church Army." Organ \
Ruins
rebuilt by Hill & Son, 1849. See App.
ned as recently as 1839.
Norman crypt. Peal of twelve bells. See App.
Ruins remained as recently as 1839
i The tower is still standing. Church when de- \
\ stroyed had a small one-manual organ. /
Churchyard still remains
The site is now occupied by the Mansion House.
Newton (author of " Olney Hymns "), rector. . .
Contained tombs of important City dignitaries. .
Author of Ingoldsby Legends buried here.
{Sir Hugh Myddleton buried here. Organ re- t
built by Walker, z862 /
Dr. J. C. Tiley organist here, 1864
Drs. Boyce and Aylward organists here
Sir William Wai worth buried here, 1385.
John Leland (i6thcent. antiquarian) buried here.
j Present organ rebuilt by Hunter in 1873. Lord
Mayor Sir Richard Whittington lies 1 uried
No.
Name of Church.
Street in which the Church is (or was)
situated.
~
.9. Michael, Queenhithe
N. side of Upper Thames Street, opposite \
to Queenhithe .... (
36
93
S. Michael, Wood Street
S. Mildred, Bread Street
Corner of Gresham Street and Wood Street, I
Cheapside, N. of Huggin Lane. . . /
Close to the junction of Cannon Street and I
Queen Victoria Street /
S. Mildred's Court, opposite Mansion |
94
S. Mildred, Poultry
House and junction of Cheapside and >
Queen Victoria Street I
95
*S. Nicholas Aeon
1 W. side of Nicholas Lane between King 1
\ William Street and Lombard Street, f
96
S. Nicholas, Cole-Abbey
(Corner of Queen Victoria Street and\
1 Knightrider btreet. . . . . /
97
*S. Nicholas O lave
W. side of Bread Street Hill
98
S. Olave, Hart Street ..
( Corner of Hart Street and Seething Lane, )
Crutched Friars, close to Fenchurch r
Street Railway Station. . .
99
S.Ola-ue, Jewry
1 W. side of Old Jewry, Cheapside (nearly \
\ opposite Grocers' Hall) /
100
*S. Olave, Silver Street
( S. side of Silver St., Wood St., Cheapside. \
I N.E. end of Noble St /
101
102
*S. Pancras, Soper Lane
S. Peter-ad-Vincula
( Corner of Pancras Lane and Queen St.,\
I Cheapside I
1 Within the Tower of London, N.W. of the \
\ White Tower. .. /
14
S. Peter, Cornhill
Corner of Cornhill and Gracechurch Street.
21
103
S . Peter-le-Poer
*S. Pettr, Paul's Wharf ..
!N. side of Old Broad Street S.E. of 1
Dutch Church, Austin Friarn. .. /
Upper Thames Street, at the bt-ttom of \
Peter's Hill /
36 \*S. Peter, Westcheap
S.W. corner of Wood Street, Che ipside. ..
S. Sepulchre
S. Stephen, Coleman Street
S. Stephen, Walbrook
S. Swithin, London Stone
The Temple Chureh
105 \*S Thomas the Apostle
106 | S. Thomas Acars or Aeons (now the \
Mercers' Chapel).. .. /
108 >*Htly Trinity the Less
107 , Holy Trinity, Minories
25 S. Vedast (alias Foster)
Holborn Viaduct (corner of Snow Hill). ..
/W. side of Coleman Street (close to)
\ Gresham Street end) f
Walbrook (close to Mansion House).
/Cannon Street (oppose South Eastern)
\ Railway Terminus and Hotel). .. (
Fleet Street (close to Chancery Lane).
I Knightrider Street (not far from S. Nicholas \
t Cole Abbey) /
Cheapside
{E. part of Knightrider Street, on the S. side \
(near S. Nicholas Cole Abbey). . . /
I End of Church Street, first turning on the 1
J left out of the Minories, coming from \
( Aldgate
{Foster Lane, Cheapside (close to E. end of 1
Newgate Street). /
INDEX.
Organ originally built by :
Special Points of Interesi.
1
England & Russell, 1779.
Sir Joseph Barnby organist here
Elliott, 1800
Thomas Griffin, 1744. ..
Dr. Henry Hiles organist here
J Organ rebuilt by Gray & Davison. The poet )
1 Shelley married here in 1 816 /
144
f, ,, . , o f Thomas Tusser (i6th century writer and sing- \
George England, c,rc* 1 800. .. U Jng master) v buried here / 6 )
220
Part of churchyard still remains. ..
' Professor H. C. Shuttleworth rector here. \
Organ rebuilt in 1881 by Speechley. .. /
William Blitheman, organist of the Chapel \
Royal, buried here 1591. .. .. /
Samuel Green, 1781 Organ rebuilt by Walker, 1871 and 1906. .
J. W. Walker & Sons, early \ /Dr. Maurice Greene buried here in 1755. The
I9th century.. .. / \ tower still remains
Part of churchyard still remains.
Father Schmidt, 1676
Father Schmidt, 1681
Samuel Green, 1792
Renatus Harris, 1677. ..
John Avery, 1775.
Hill & Son, 1888.
Robert Gray, 1809.
Father Schmidt. ..
Schneider. See App. ..
Bevington, 1882 .....
Builder unknown.
Crang & Hancock, 1774.
Part of churchyard still i
/Burial Place of Sir Thomas Moore, Bishop \
\ Fisher, Queen Anne Boleyn, and others. /
{New organ by Hill, 1840. Mendelssohn played I
here. Set App /
New organ by Henry Willis 1 884
Churchyard still remains
{Part of churchyard still remains with a plane \
tree visible in Cheapside. . . . . /
George Cooper organist here.
Organ rebuilt by Thomas S. Jones & Son, 1907. \
Anthony Munday buried here 1633. . . /
John Dunstable (isth century composer) buried \
here 1453 /
i7th century Musical Epitaph
tanley and Dr. E. J. Hopkins organists \
here I
( Sir Wm. Littlesbery, isth century horn player, \
\ buried here. /
I A collegiate church in connection with the (
Military Order of Knight Templars in the
( reign of Henry II )
Rebuilt shortly bejore the Great Fire
Sir Isaac Newton attended here. .. ..
New organ by Walker 1853
1 John St
\ her
NOTES ON OLD LONDON CHURCHES
AND THEIR ORGANS.
1. THE TEMPLE CHURCH.
^-* HOUGH not the oldest, the Temple Church is the
\*J largest of the four churches in England built by
the Orders of the Knights Templars and the
Knights Hospitallers. Its plan is that of a western
rotunda associated with a rectilinear building resembling the
choir and aisles of a Cathedral Church. The rotunria is said
to owe its shape to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
at Jerusalem, where a dome-covered building still marks, as
it did in the Xllth Century, the traditional site of the Sacred
Tomb. This round part of the church was built about the
year 1185, and its architecture exhibits the transition from
the Norman to that of the " First pointed " or " Early
English " style, in which the eastern portion was afterwards
built. The church was consecrated by Heraclius, Patri-
arch of Jerusalem. After the suppression of the Order of
Knights Templars, which took place early in the XlVth
Century, this church with the adjoining ground, passed into
the hands of the great legal corporation who now possess it,
and which still retains the name of the original founders
being known as "The Temple." This Society, owing to
the increase in the number of its members, was subdivided
in the reign of Henry VI. The church itself is in the
precincts of the Inner Temple ; the other corporation
bears the name of the Middle Temple. The building
luckily escaped the Great Fire of London in 1666 ; and the
"great restoration," which was begun in 1839 and continued
to 1842, cost not less than .70,000. In the rotunda have
been placed nine effigies of " Associate Knights," and an
ornamented stone coffin.
2 THE TEMPLE CHURCH.
The organ was built by Bernard (Father) Smith, in
1683-4. His great rival, Renatus Harris, who resided
in " Wyne Office Court, Fleet Street," having made interest
with the Societies, obtained permission to erect an organ on
the south (Inner Temple) side of the altar at the end of the
church opposite to that occupied by Father Smith's instru-
ment. The two organs were ready by May, 1684, and
were tested alternately and competitively, so that it was not
until 1687 or 8 that the final decision was given in favour of
Father Smith's instrument.
Smith's organ originally consisted of Great, Choir and
Echo organs, and (according to Mr. Edmund Macrory,
M.A., K.C.), the specification ran as follows :
Great (10 stops) Prestand (of mettle), 12 ft. tone; Holflute (of wood
and mettle), 12 ft. tone; Principall (of mettle), 6 ft. tone; Quinta
(of mettle), 4 ft. tone ; Super Octavo, 3 ft. tone; Cornell (of mettle),
11 ranks; Sesquialtera (of mettle), III ranks; Gedackt (of waines-
cott), 6 ft. tone ; Mixture (of mettle), IV ranks ; Trumpett (of mettle),
12 ft. tone.
Choir (6 stops) Gedackt (wainescott), 12 ft. tone ; Holflute (of mettle),
6 ft. tone ; Sadt (of mettle), 3 ft. tone ; Spills flule (of mettle), 3 ft.
tone ; A Violl and Violin (of mettle), 12 ft. tone ; Voice humane (of
mettle), 12 ft. tone.
Ecchos (to middle C only ; 7 stops) Gedackt (of wood), 6 ft. tone ;
Sup. Octavo (of mettle) 3 ft. tone ; Gedackt (of wood), 29 pipes ;
Flute (of mettle), 29 pipes ; Cornell (of mettle), III ranks, 87 pipes ;
Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 105 pipes ; Trumpett, 29 pipes.
" With 3 full sells of keyes, and quarter notes."
Compass FFF to C* in all., omitting FFFJf, GGJf, AAg, and DD J
in ihe Bass.
The "quarter notes" were introduced for the purpose of
rendering the tuning rather more perfect ; they were two in
number, A flat and D sharp, in addition to the ordinary
G sharp and E flat 14 sounds in the octave, instead of 12.
These "quarter notes"' were placed above the black keys,
being less than one half in length; and were produced by the
ordinary G sharp and E flat keys being divided cross-wise,
the back portions of which rose as much above the front
portions, as the latter did above the white naturals.
In 1729-30, Christopher Schreider altered the Echo
to a Swell. In 1741, John Byfield added a new Swell of
six stops to "fiddle G" (the Horn going to "tenor F ").
Byfield's Swell contained :
Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Cornet, IV ranks; Horn; Trumpet;
Hautbois.
In 1810, Mr. Henry Leffler thus specifies the Temple
organ :
" 3 setts of keys from FFF long octaves (no FFF J or GGG J) to D.
Swell to G. The Horn to F. Great and Choir organs have DJ E&;
GJ At? down to Gamut. The Swell has not these quarter tones.
THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 3
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap., 63 pipes; Stop. Diap.. 63 ; Prin., 63;
Flute, 63; 15th, 63; i2th, 63; Sescjuialtera, III ranks, 189;
Mixture, III ranks, 189 ; Cornet to Cg, V ranks, 156; Trumpet, 63.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Cornet,
IV ranks, 128; Trumpet, 32 ft.; Hautboy, 32; Horn, 33.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 63 pipes; Prin., 63 ; Flute, 63; isth, 63 ;
Vox Humana, 63 ; Cremona, 63.
This is the finest organ in London."
Mr. Lefflcr also refers to the following :
Organists. " Mr. Stevens, resigned March 25th, 1810;
Mr. Price elected May, 1814 ; Miss Dowding, elected May
6th, 1796. Salary $o."
In 1843, * ne organ was removed from its original position
(on a screen between the round and oblong churches), to a
new organ chamber built expressly for its reception on the
N. side of the church. The following alterations were then
made :
Great DD J was introduced, and the compass extended upwards to f *
in alt.
Swell was continued down to Tenor C and the quarter tones added.
Choir DD JJ was introduced, and the compass extended upwards to f *
in alt ; a Dulciana was substituted for the Vox Humana.
Pedal-An octave and a half of pedal keys were laid down and an
octave of CCC "return" pedal pipes applied to them.
Couplers Gt. to Ped., Ch. to Ped., Sw. to Gt. were added.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.
Subsequently. Robson removed the FFF pedals and
substituted a pedal board (compass, CCC to tenor f). with
three independent Pedal stops as well as preparation being
made for a fourth.
In 1856, Mr. T. J. F. Robson (of S. Martin's Lane),
reconstructed the organ from the ground, under the direction
of Mr. (afterwards Dr.) E. J. Hopkins. In 1859. the
organ was further enlarged by the introduction of some new
stops made by Edmund Schulze (of Paulinzelle, near
Erfurt), so that in 1861 the specification of the organ stood
thus :
Great (16 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap (smooth and mellow),
8ft.; [Schulze] Op. Dimp. (clear and strong), 8ft.; Stop. Diap.
(metal to Tenor CJ), 8 ft. tone; Hohl Flote (bass octave Gedact),
ft.; [Schulze) Viola de Gamba, 8ft.; Prin. (smooth and mellow),
4 ft.; 8ve (clear and strong), 4 ft.; Nason Flute (stopped), 4 ft. tone;
i2th, 2! ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Full Mixture, III ranks; Sharp Mixture,
V ranks ; Small Trumpet, 8 ft.; Large Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (12 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone ; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Rohr Gedact,
8 ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft.; Rohr FlOte, 4 ft. tone, i2th and isth (as
one stop), 2 and 2 ft.; Mixture, IV ranks; Dble Bassoon, 16 ft.;
French Horn, 8 ft.; Hautboy, 8 ft.; Orchestral Oboe, 8 ft. tone;
Clarion, 4 ft.
4 THE TEMPLE CHURCH.
Choir (n stops) Lieblich Bourdon, 16 ft. tone; [Schulze] Spitz Flote,
3 ft.; Violin Diap., 8 ft.; [Schulze] Dulciana, 8 ft.; Lieblich Gedact,
8 ft. tone ; [Schulze] Flauto Traverse. 8 ft.; [Schulze] Gemshorn
4 ft.; Violin, 4 ft.; Lieblich Fl5fe, 4 ft. tone; [Schulze] Mixture,
III ranks ; Corno di Bassetto, 8 ft. tone.
Pedal (8 stops) Sub Bass, 32 ft. tone ; Op. Bass, 16 ft.; Stop. Bass,
i6ft. tone; Violone, 16 ft.; Quint, io| ft. tone; Violoncello, 3 ft.;
i2th Bass and isth Bass (as one stop), & and 4 ft; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (6)-Sw. to Gt.; Ch. sub Sveto Gt.; Sw. .o Ch.; Gt. to Fed.;
Sw. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.
Accessories 5 comp. peds. acting on Gt. and Fed. organs in com-
bination ; 3 comp. peds. acting on Sw.; " Soft Fed. org." ; Fed.
acting on Sw. to Gt. ; Fed. acting or. Gt. to Fed. ; Tremulant to Sw.
Compass of Man., CG to g * in Alt.: Compass of Fed., CCC to Tenor F.
The organ was blown by tint engines, one for the manuals, the other
for the pedals.
In 1878, the organ was again rebuilt by Messrs.
Forster & Andrews (of Hull), under the direction of
Dr. E. J. Hopkins, when the following additions were
made :
Great None.
Swell- Salicional (metal), 8 ft.; Voix Celestes (metal), 8 ft.; Vouc
Humaine (metal), 8 ft.; the izth and isth were made to draw
separately as two stops, and the Orchestral Oboe was entirely
Choir-None.
Solo (6 stops) Hew Flute Harmonique, 8 ft.; Flute Octaviante, 4 ft ;
Piccolo Harmonique, 2 ft.; Tuba, 8 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.; Orchestral
Oboe, 8 ft.
Pedal Major Bass (wood), 16 ft.; Prin., 8 ft.; and the isth and isth
were made to draw separately as two stops.
Couplers Solo to Gt ; Solo to Fed.; Fed. 8ve.
Blowing 3 sets of feeders worked by hydraulic engines ; a of Joy's
5 inch cylinders, and one of Duncan's 5 inch cylinders.
Subsequently, further alterations were made by Messrs.
Forster & Andrews; so that during the time that the
piesiiu writer was a pupil of Dr. Hopkins, the following
additions, &c., to the organ may be chronicled :
Swell The i2th and isth were made to draw together (as formerly) as
one stop, and a Gairbette 4 ft. was added.
Choir A 4th rank was added to the Mixture.
Pedal The isth appears to have been re-christened "Tenor Solo," 4ft,
seems to have been replaced by a "Treble Solo," z ft.
and the i2th seems to hav
In 1896, shortly before the resignation of Dr. Hopkins,
the organ was rebuilt by Messrs. Norman & Beard ;
the diapasons and reeds being re-voiced, and a new console,
with oblique jambs, pistons, pneumatic action, &c., added.
I am informed by my friend Dr. H. Walford Davies,
the present organist, that upon his appointment in 1898,
the care of the Temple organ was handed over to Mr.
THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 5
Frederick Rothwell (Organ builder), and a little later it
was very thoroughly re voiced by him, and one stop added,
a. fine Echo Dulciana 8 ft. on the Choir organ, " which has
been invaluable ever since." Mr. Rothwell was at one time
at Messrs. Gray & Davison's organ factory, he has at present
the charge of the organ in S. George's Chapel, Windsor, and
is gradually coming to the front as a builder of some
importance.
The organists of the Temple Church have been :
Francis Piggott, 1688-1704.
J. Piggott, 1704-
John Stanley, Mus. B. Oxon.,
1734-1736.
James Vincent, 1737-1749.
John Jones, ^49-1796.
(Vincent & Jones, were colleagues
of John Stanley).
Richard John Samuel Stevens,
1786-1810.
Miss Emily Dowding,
1796-1814.
George Price, 1814-1826.
George Warne, 1826-1843.
Edward John Hopkins,
Mus. D.,Cantuar, F.R.C.O,
1843-1898.
H. Wallord Davies,
Mus. D. Cantab., F.R.C.O.
It should be remarked that John Stanley was also Master
of the Royal Band. John Jones was also organist of
S. Paul's Cathedral, and Richard John Samuel Stevens was'
also organist of the Charterhouse. Those were the days of
pluralists, when the duties could not be performed without
the aid of "Colleagues" or assistants. Mr. John E.
West queries 1837, (the date of Stevens' death), as being
the year that his connection with the Temple Church ceased.
Cathedral service was first established at the Temple
Church in 1842, when the organ was removed from the
gallery between the oblong and round churches to its present
position on the N. side. Dr. Hopkins informed me that at
first the choristers sat in two rows in the gallery in front
of the organ, which arrangement rendered it necessary for
the organ to be placed so far back that its front stood some
five or six feet within the recess. The singers were, however,
soon removed into more appropriate seats provided for them
in the body of the oblong church. The handsome oak case
of the organ was then brought forward into the position it
now so worthily occupies. The choir at present consists-
of six singing men, twelve choristers, and four probationers.
5. ANDREW'S, HOLBORN.
2. S. ANDREW'S, HOLBORN.
*~*~x O record of the date ot the foundation of the old church
f I / of S. Andrew is now extant, nor have we any
description of its architectural plan or features. The
church was not destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666; but it was
at that time in so dilapidated a condition that (when so much
re-building was going on after the Fire) it was taken down with
the exception of the tower. This still remains, but it has
been so "cased and faced" by Wren that it has completely
lost its original appearance. The old masonry forms the
three lower stories of the present tower, the fourth (top)
storey having been added by Wren in 1704, seventeen years
after his rebuilding of the church itself. Stow writes of
old S. Andrew's, "there he monuments in the church of
Thomas Lord Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, buried
1550. Ralph Rokeby, of Lincoln's Inn, Esquire. Master of
S. Katherine's, and one of the Masters of requests to the
Queen's Majesty (Elizabeth) who deceased the 1410 of June,
1596; William Sydnam founded a chantry there." The
character of the situation of the present church has been
greatly changed by the Holborn Viaduct. Now, we have to
descenii some steps to approach the church door, but before
the Viaduct was made, the churchyard was considerably
above the street, owing to its surface having been raised to a
level with the highest part of Holborn "Hill." In those
days the elevation of the chancel, viewed from the street,
was exceedingly lofty ; but half of its height was occupied by
the walls of the catacombs beneath the floor of the church.
Some idea of the original elevation can still be formed if the
church be viewed from the roadway below the present
Holborn Viaduct, where that structure crosses Shoe Lane at
right angles. The ground plan of the building shows a nave,
aisles (with galleries above them), and chancel, with two
small rooms covered with domed roofs, (flanking the chancel
on either side), which are used as vestries. The church was
built in 1687 (twenty-one years after the Fire) at a cost of
^9,000. Its length is 105 ft., its breadth 63 ft., its height
s. ANDREW'S, HOLBORN. 7
43 ft. The tower is no ft. high. The organ is in the
western gallery under the tower, which is pierced on the
N., E., and W. with pointed arches, which clearly prove
that the interior of the lowest section of the tower was
always an integral portion of the body of the church.
The churchwardens' accounts have the following interesting
entries in connection with the organs of S. Andrew's Church
in mediaeval times :
" 1485 (2 Kdward V.). My Lord of Lincoln gave a pair of
organs."
"1518 (9 Henry VIII.). The little organs were made and
bought at the charges of the parish and devotion of good
people, and cost 6."
The organ built by Renatus Harris, and erected in the
Temple Church by him in 1684 in competition against
Father Smith, was (after its rejection by the Benchers)
divided ; a portion of it formed the old organ in the Cathedral
of Christ Church, Dublin, the remainder was erected in
S. Andrew's, Holborn, in 1699. Mr. E. Macrory (in his
Notes on the Temple Organ, p. 26) states that this "remainder"
was actually larger than the instrument retained at the
Temple. He gives the specification as follows :
Great (12 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
1 2th, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Tierce, 52 ; Larigot, 52 ; Sesquialtera, III ranks,
156; Mixture, II ranks, 104; Cornet to C' sharp, V ranks, 130;
Trumpet, 52; Clarion, 52.
Choir (n stops,) Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin., from C in the Tenor,
(these 3 "by communication " from Gt.); Prin. to Tenor C, 38 pipes ;
Flute, 52; Open Flute to middle C, 27; i2th to middle C, 27;
1 5th, 52 ; Tierce, 52 ; Vox Humana, 52 ; Bassoon, 52.
Compass, GG to D, short octaves.
Mr. Leffler states that Harris designed the front of his
famous organ in .Salisbury Cathedral (built in 1710) "exactly
like this organ of his at S. Andrew's, Holborn." Part of
the carving of the Renatus Harris case now adorns the walls
of the Court House, and the crown (also a portion of the
case) is preserved in the Cantoris Choir Vestry. Very little
of Harris's work remains in the present organ ; only the
small open diapason and the stopped diapason of the Great,
a few pipes in the Swell, and some of the Mixtures. The
old pipes are well made, the "stoppers" being somewhat
different from those of modern construction.
To these two manuals by Harris, By field added a Swell
(8 stops) to Fiddle G, consisting of:
Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Principal, 32; Cornell,
IV ranks, 128 ; Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32 ; Clarion, 32 ; Bassoon, ,a.
8 s. ANDREW'S, HOLBORN,
In the first edition of Hopkins & Rimbault, p. 452,
we read : "A new inside was put 10 the instrument shortly
after 1800 by Russell, and in 1841 the whole was entirely
re-modelled, re- voiced, and a new swell added by Hill."
The organ then contained the following 27 stops :
Great do stops)-Dble. Op. Diap., i6ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Clarabella
Treble and Stop. Diap. Bass, 8ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; i2th, ?! ft.; isth,
2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks, if ft.; Mixture, II ranks, | ft.; Trum-
pet, 8 ft. ; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (6 stops) Op. Diap. to Gamut G, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ;
Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft. tone ; isth, 2 ft.; Cremona to Tenor C, 8 ft.
Swell (10 stops)^Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft. tone; Prin., 4ft.; Flageolet, 4 ft.; Doublette, II ranks, 2 ft.;
Hautboy, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Pedal (i stop)-Op. Diap. (CCC to Gamut G), 16 ft. length.
Couplers (3) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.; Ch. to Gt.
Aeeessories-3 comp. peds.
Compass-Gt. and Ch., GG to f * in alt.; Sw., Tenor C to f in alt.;
Fed., 2 8ves.
In 1872 (during the organistship of the late Dr. HiggS),
the church was "restored," i.e., modernized, re-decorated,
re-seated, etc., when the organ was rebuilt, and greatly
enlarged by Messrs. Hill & Sons. The instrument was
at that time divided, so as to open up the west window in
the tower, and the present " Gothic " cases were provided,
which are confessedly at variance with the classical archi
tecture of the church. The organ then contained :
Great(i2 stops) Dble. Diap., wd. and ml., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., ml., 8 ft.;
Op. Diap., No. 2, ml., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., wd., 8 ft.; Prin., ml., 4 ft.;
Harm. Flute, ml., 4ftij i2th, ml., 3 ft,; isth. ml., 2 ft.; Sesquialtera,
III ranks; Mixture, IV ranks; Pusaune, 8 ft.: Clarion, 8 ft.
Choir (9 stops) Lieblich Gedact, wd., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., ml., 8 ft.;
Gamba, ml., 8 ft.; Dulciana, ml., 8 ft.; Claribel, 8 ft.; Prin., ml.,
4 ft.; >uabe Flute, wd., 4ft.; isth, ml., 2 ft.; Clarinet, ten. C, ml.,
8ft.
Swell (13 stops) Bourdon, wd., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., ml., 8 ft.; Viol
d'Amour, ml., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., wd., 8 ft.; Prin., ml., 4 ft.; Wald
Flute, wd., 4 ft.; isth, ml., 2 ft.; Mixture, V ranks; Dble. Trumpet,
16 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 8 ft.
Pedal (8 stops)- Op. Diap., wd., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., wd., 16 ft.; Bourdon,
wd., 16 ft.; Prin., ml., 8 ft.; i2th, ml., 6 ft.; i 5 th, ml., 8 ft.; Trom-
bone, wd., 16 ft.; Trumpet, ml., 8 ft.
Couplers (6) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Gt. (sub 8ve); Ch. toSw.; Gt. to
Fed.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Fed.
Accessories 3 comp. pads, to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.; pneumatic action
to Gt. and couplers.
Compass- Man., CC to G, 56 notes ; Ped.. CCC to F, 30 notes
The organ was reconstructed under the direction of Mr.
F. G. M. Ogbourne (the organist of S. Andrew's) by
Messrs. Hill & Sons, and was re-opened March ist,
.upler;
ell as p<
s. ANDREW'S, HOLBORN. 9
1905, by Mr. Ogbourne. The following additions, etc.,
have been made to Dr. Higgs' specification given above :
Great The stops remain the same, but Op. Diap., No. I, Harm.
Flute, Posaune and Clarion have been placed upon heavier wind
pressure.
Choir Liebiich Gedact, 16 ft., has been renamed Lieblich Bourdon ;
the Suabe Flute has been renamed Stop. Flute; the isth has been
replaced by a Harm. Piccolo. An Orchestral Oboe, 8 ft., and Tuba,
8 ft. (on a heavy pressure), have been added, and the Oboe and
Clarinet are now enclosed in a Swell box.
Swell-A Voix Celeste (Bb) has been added, the Cornopean has been
renamed Horn ; the 8 ft. Trumpet has been taken out, and a Vox
Humana, 8 ft., substituted. All the reeds have been placed on a
Pedal A Sub Bass, wd., 32 ft., 12 pipes (the upper part from Op.
JLtiap., wd.), has been added, the i2th and ijtn have both been
removed, and a Bass Flute, wd., 8 ft., added. The two reeds have
been placed on a heavier wind pressure.
Couplers A Ch. to Ct. and Sw. super 8ve have been added.
Accessories new comprise 4 comp. pistons as well as peds. to Gt. and
Ped.; i adjustable piston to Ped.; 4 comb, pistons to Sw.; i adjust-
able piston to Sw.; 3 pistons to Ch.; i piston to add Gt. to comp.
peds.; Sw. peds. to Sw. and Ch.; Poppet ped. to actuate Gt. to Ped.
Tremulant to Ch. and Sw., both actuated by drawstop as
, ped.
Action Tubular pneumati? throughout ; console detached ; radiating
and concave pedal-board.
CompaSS-Man., CC to C, 5 8ves; Ped., CCC to F.
Blowing Messrs. Watkins & Watson's high pressure hydraulic motor.
S. Andrew's, Holborn, has always been remarkable for
its distinguished preachers. Amongst these were John
Hacket, who became rector in 1624, Dr. Edward
Stillingfleet (afterwards Bishop of Worcester), who was
appointed rector in 1665, and was followed after an interval
by Dr. Sacheverell. I arn indebted to Mr. Ogbourne for
the following list of the organists of S. Andrew's Church :
Daniel Purcell, -1717.
Maurice Greene, Mus. D., Cantab., 1717-1718.
ohn Isham, 1718-1726 (?).
ohn Stanley, Mus, B., Oxon., 1726-1786.
ames Evance, 1786-1811.
ohn Grosvenor, i8r 1-1814.
. Reynolds.
" Boyer, 1867.
James Higgs, Mus. D., Cantuar, F.R.C.O., 1867-1896.
Harold Phillips, M.A., Mus. B., Cantab., 1896-1903.
F. G. M. Ogbourne, 1903-
Of these, Stanley lies buried in S. Andrew's Church.
During his organistship, (which he held in conjunction with
that of the Temple Church), it was no uncommon thing when
10 S. ANDREWS, HOLBORN.
the service at S. Andrew's or the Temple was concluding, to
see forty or fifty organists at the altar rails, waiting to hear
his last voluntary. " Even Mr. Handel himself has been
frequently observed at both these places," remarks a con-
temporary writer.
Mr. Charles Box, in his Present Condition of Church
Music in the Metropolis writes: "Sunday evening, Jan.
l8th, 1882. S Andrew's, Holborn. Prayers partially
intoned. Surpliced choir of 32 voices. Chants to canticles,
no anthem. The congregation a large one joined heartily
in the singing throughout. The charity children contributed
a fair share thereto, and with respect to tune and time sang
with commendable correctness."
S. SEPULCHRE S. HOLBORN VIADUCT.
3. S. SEPULCHRE'S, HOLBORN VIADUCT.
'NV visitor to London in the Middle Ages who
approached the Metropolis by the western end,
through Holborn (or Oldbourne, as it was then
called), must have been greatly impressed by the exceeding
splendour of the ecclesiastical architecture displayed on
every side of him. The glorious domineering pile of Old
S. Paul's, with its spire rising to a height of 520 feet (at least
1 1 6 feet higher than the existing spire of Salisbury Cathedral) ;
the large conventual churches of Greyfriars on the left, and
Blackfriars on the right ; in the distance, the great collegiate
church of S. Martin-le-Grartd (the site of which is now
occupied by the Post Office), to say nothing of countless
towers and spires belonging to the smaller but nevertheless
stately parish churches, must indeed have presented an
overwhelming ensemble of devotional art.
Of all this architectural magnificence which once met the
gaze of mediaeval visitors from the west country to London,
the one remaining object is the Church of S. Sepulchre,
Snow Hill, and even this is greatly changed from its original
appearance. The church is dedicated in honour of the Holy
Sepulchre at Jerusalem, but only its vulgar nickname of
S. Sepulchre's has survived. It is generally believed to have
been founded about the year uoo, at which time particular
attention was being paid to the scenes of our Lord's life in
tho Holy Land. Stow (writing before the Great Fire)
speaks of it as "the fair parish church called S. Sepulchre's
in the Bayly, or by Chamberlain Gate, in a fair churchyard,
though not so large as of old time, for the same is letten out
for buildings and a garden-plot." The church was so
decayed in the reign of Edward IV (1461-1483) as to need
rebuilding. The living appears to have had some connection
with the Diocese of Salisbury ; for in the reign of Henry I,
Roger, Bishop of Salisbury, gave the patronage to the prior
and convent of S. Bartholomew in Smithfield, who established
a perpetual vicarage, and held it until their dissolution, when
it fell to the Crown. King James I (in 1610) granted the
rectory and its appurtenances, and advowson of the vicarage
12 s. SEPULCHRE'S, HOLBORN VIADUCT.
to F. Philips, from whom they were purchased by the
parishioners, who held them under the Crown. Afterwards,
the advowson of the vicarage was purchased by the President
and Fellows of S. John's College, Oxford; who are to this
day patrons of the living. Four parts of the parish lie in
London, and the fifth in Middlesex. The present church
was much damaged by the Great Fire of 1666, but was not
entirely destroyed. Sir Christopher Wren, finding that the
tower and vestibules, with the exterior walls, were fit for use,
retained them, and only rebuilt the interior of the church and
a portion of the eastern end, leaving the mullioned windows
perfect, the tracery of which remained until 1789. In that year
the exterior underwent considerable alteration, the pointed
windows being converted externally into circular-headed ones,
and an entire casing of Portland stone was added to the
old walls, the buttresses being retained in somewhat curtailed
proportions. In the " seventies" of the XlXth Century, the
pointed windows were restored with their original tracery,
and the buttresses were also made to assume their ancient
shape. The tower (which is almost a counterpart of that of
S. Christopher-le-Stocks, a church which formerly stood on
the site of the present Bank of England), retains most of its
original features ; so, too, does the beautiful three-storied
porch. On the north of the church is an extensive side
chapel which now contains the organ ; at the east end of
this chapel the place for the altar still remains. The
dimensions of the church are, length (exclusive of the passage
at the west end), 126 feet; breadth (omitting the side-chapel),
58 feet ; height of nave, 35 feet ; height of tower and
pinnacles, 140 feet.
The organ was built in 1677 by Renatus Harris, and is
thus specified by Mr. Henry Leffler, who wrote in 1800 :
' ' 3 setts of keys, Great and Choir, from GG Short Octaves to D.
Swell to F.
Great (12 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52 ; i sth, 52 ; Tierce, 52 ; Larigot, 52 ; Sesquialtera, III ranks,
156; Mixture, II ranks, 104; Cornet, V ranks to C J, 130;
Trumpet, 52 ; Clarion, 52.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34; Stop. Diap., 34; Cornet, IV ranks,
136; Trumpet, 34; Hautboy, 34; Horn, 34.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; isth, 52; Vox
Humana, 52 ; Cremona, 52.
The reeds in this organ are very fine, but the rest of it is
thin. Organist, Mr. Cooper, died 1799. Salary, ^30.
His son elected, October, 1799."
Dr. Hopkins states that the original Renatus Harris
organ consisted of a Great and Choir organ only, and that
the Swell together with the Trumpet, Clarion, and Open
s. SEPULCHRE'S, HOLBORN VIADUCT. 13
Diap. Bass of the Great organ were added by the elder
By field about the year 1730. In 1817, the compass was
carried up to E'' 1 in alt., and made "long octaves" in the
bass by Mr. Hancock, who also added a second Op. Diap.
to the Great, a Dulciana to the Choir (in place of the Vox
Humana) and an octave of GG pedals with unison pedal
pipes. In the summer of 1828, Mr. Gray extended the
Swell compass to Gamut G, and added two octaves of CCC
pedals, with two couplers, Gt. to Fed., Ch. to Fed. In
1835. Mr. Gray made a further extension of the Swell, and
added to the Pedal organ the 16 feet Diapason which had
been used in the organ erected for the Festival in Westminster
Abbey the previous year (1834). Twenty years later, the
organ was considerably enlarged and improved by Messrs.
Gray & Davison under the direction of Mr. George
Cooper, Organist of the Chapel Royal, of S. Sepulchre's,
and sub-organist of S. Paul's Cathedral, when the specifi-
cation stood as follows :
Compass Manual, GG to E* in alt.; Pedal, CCC to tenor f.
Great (15 stops) Op. Diap., No. i, 8 ft.; Op. Diap., No. 2, 8 ft.; Stop.
Diap. 8 ft.; Clarabella Treble, 8 ft.; Prin., No. i, 4 ft.; Prin., No. 2,
4 ft.; i2th, z3 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Tierce, i? ft.; Larigot, i| ft.; Sesqui-
altera, III ranks, i$ ft.; Mixture, II ranks, ft.; Furniture, III
ranks, if ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (10 stops) Dble. Diap. (Bass), 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop.
Diap., 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks, i\ ft.;
Horn, 8 ft ; Trumpet, 8 ft,; Hautbois, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (7 stops) Stop Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Keraulophon, 8 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (iostops)-Grand Op. Diap. (wd.), 16 ft.; Grand Violon (ml.),
16 ft.: Grand Bourdon, 16 ft.; Grand Prin., 8 ft.; Grand i2th, 6 ft.;
Grand isth, 4 ft.; Grand Mixture, V ranks ; Grand Posaune, 16 ft.;
Grand Trumpet, 8 ft.; Grand Clarion, 4 ft.
Couplers (8) Gt. to Ped. 16 ft. pitch ; Gt. to Ped. 8 ft. pitch ; Ch. to
Ped. 6 ft. pitch ; Sw. to Ped. 16 ft. pitch ; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.;
Ch. Sub-8ve. to Gt.; Sforzando coupler, Gt. to Sw.
Accessories 7 comp. peds ; pneumatic lever attachment ; 2 horizontal
bellows ; Tremulant to Sw.
The organ lost a great deal of its effectiveness by being
transferred from the west gallery to the north chapel.
By the kindness of my friend Mr. Edgar Pettman, the
present organist of S. Sepulchre's, I am enabled to give the
specification of the organ as it stands at present (1905). The
organ was rebuilt in 1891-2 by Messrs. J. W. Walker
& Sons, under the joint advice and supervision of Dr. E. J.
Hopkins and Mr. E. M. Lott :
Great (14 stops) Dbl. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., No. i, 8 ft.; Op.
Diap., No. 2, 8 ft.; Stop Diap., 8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; Harm. Flute,
4ft.; Prin. ,4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; i2th, 2 ft.; Furniture, HI ranks;
Sesquialtera, IV ranks; Mixture, 111 ranks; Trumpet, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft
14 s. SEPULCHRE'S, HOLBORN VIADUCT.
Swell (i2stops)-Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Keraulophon,
8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks;
Contra Fagotto. 16 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.;
Vox Humana, 8 ft.
Choir (S stops) Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap, 8 ft.; Viol de Gamba. 8 ft.;
Voix Celeste, 8 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; 151)1, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (12 stops) Contra Bourdon, 32 ft.; Violone, ifift.; Op. Diap.,
16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Prin., S ft.; Cello, 8 fr..; Quint. loj ft.; 151(1,
4 ft.; Mixture, V ranks ; Trombone, 16 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion,
4 ft.
Couplers (8) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Fed.; Ch.
to Fed.; Sub-Sw. to Gt.; Super-Sw. to Gt.; Sw. sforzando.
Accessories- 4 pistons to Gt.; 4 pedal pistons to Fed.; 4 comp. peds.
to Gt.; Sw. to Fed., on and off; 6w. to Ch., on and off; Ch. to
Fed. on and off. 4 hand levers for blowing.
Various members of the Cooper family were organists ol
S. Sepulchre's for a considerable number of years. Since
the death of Mr. George Cooper in 1876, the post has been
held by Messrs. James Loaring, Edwin Matthew Lott, and
Edgar Pettman.
The following anecdote, related by a writer in the
Musical World, for Feb. 2ist, 1839, is interesting: "After
Service at S. Paul's, Mr. Attwood and Mr. Cooper the
organists, met Mr. Samuel Wesley at the London
Coffee-house for dinner. The conversation, at my instance,
turned chiefly upon music ; but to Wesley any other subject
seemed more agreeable. After dinner it was proposed that
we should accompany Mr. Cooper to the Evening Service at
S. Sepulchre's, where there is a fine organ. It was
suggested that if I were to ask Mr. Wesley to play at the
conclusion of the service, he probably would. I said the
request would come better from the King's organist than
myself, but, as a stranger, it was urged that I was more
likely to succeed. As we walked together, I said, 'Mr. Wesley,
these gentlemen wish me to ask you to touch the organ at
the conclusion of the service ; you may be a fine organist
that I know nothing about but I am contented with you
as a philosopher and a man of letters, in whose company I
have spent a pleasant day.' I saw, by a cunning leer at the
corner of his eye, that I had pleased him by the remark, .and
the moment the service was over, with a smirk upon his
countenance, he sat down, and began a noble fugue in the
key of C sharp major. It was wonderful with what skill and
dexterity he conducted it through the most eccentric harmo-
nies. The extempore playing was his forte, in which he had
no rivals "
S. BARTHOLOMEW 1HE GREAT, SMITHFiLLD. 15
4. S. BARTHOLOMEW THE GREAT,
SMITHFIELD.
^"^ HE old churches of London naturally divide themselves
\/ into two classes those which escaped the Great Fire
of 1666, and those which did not. Happily, the
trand old Norman pile of S. Bartholomew the Gres.t,
mithfield, belongs to the former class. The story of its
foundation is a romantic one. Rahere, who in 1 103 founded
both the Priory and the Hospital of S. Bartholomew, was a
musician. A man of humble birth, he nevertheless suc-
ceeded by his wit, humour, and minstrelsy in becoming "a
welcome companion of nobles, and a guest at the Court of
King Henry I." Presumably he made much money by the
exercise of his many accomplishments. But, repenting him
of the vanity of this kind of life, he made a pilgrimage to
Rome ; there dreamed a wonderful vision of S. Barthok mew,
and as a result of his "conversion," returned to his native
land, and founded in Smithfield this church and priory of
Augustinian Canons.
The Augustinian Order being famous for its medical skill
and learning, the foundation of the hospital followed as a
natural sequence. By March, 1123, the Priory Church was
partially completed, and the choir (which is all that now
remains) was consecrated by Richard of Beauvais, Bishop of
London. What we now see of S. Bartholomew's is of an
older style of architecture than that of the Temple Church.
In 1133 the church was finished, and King Henry II granted
to the priory the privilege of holding a three days' fair for the
sale of cloth in the precinct still called Cloth Fair. Rahere
was the first prior, and occupied this exalted position for
twenty-two and a half years. At the time of the dissolution
of the religious houses in 1544, the priory buildings, which
included the church and its cloisters, numerous monastic
habitations and offices, refectories, kitchens, stables, granary,
woodsheds, etc., must have occupied a considerable area.
King Henry VIII sold the whole of the buildings to Sir
Richard Rich, the man who was instrumental in the
" execution " of Bishop Fisher and Sir Thomas More ; but it
1 6 S. BARTHOLOMEW THE GREAT, SMITHF1ELD.
was arranged, after destroying the nave of the church, that the
choir should be "a parish church for ever," and tlut the site
once occupied by the nave should become the future parochial
graveyard, which it still is. The original central tower having
been destroyed, was replaced in 1628 at the S.W. corner of
the church by the present nondescript structure of reu brick.
In 1830 a fire did much damage. It destroyed amongst
other things the old Chapter House, which for many years
previously had been incongruously used as a Dissenting
Chapel. The school attached to the extraneous sect which
worshipped there was at that time located in the south
triforium of the church itself. It was not until 1865 that
anything like a restoration was actually begun. By this
time the condition of the church was deplorable ; it is
impossible to imagine a worse state of things. A fringe
factory carried on its business in the Lady Chapel, and
extending over the vaulting of the eastern ambulatory, actually
usurped the east end of the church ; the hideous encroachment
being supported by two iron columns placed within the altar
rails ! A blacksmith's shop occupied the north transept,
offending the ear as well as the eye. It was not until 1883
that the fringe factory was removed, but the smith's forge did
not disappear until several years afterwards. What was left
of Rahere's glorious church after the destructive "dissolution"
may now be said to be in a state of complete restoration and
repair ; and no twentieth century visitor to London should
miss seeing this most beautiful House of God. If it were
possible to transport hither the nave of either Waltham
Abbey or Dunstable Priory Church (from both of which the
choir portion has disappeared), we should then have a
complete church of cathedral proportions, all in the same
style of architecture. Entering from Smithfield, through a
fragment of a pointed arch of early XIHth Century date
(formed of receding arched ribs resting on corbels, and
separated by deep hollows enriched with diagonal-leaved
flowers) the churchyard is approached ; here was Rahere's
nave. At the end of the churchyard is the west front of the
church, built at the dissolution out of the ruins of the priory.
The ugly old western window has been recently replaced by
some arcading, etc., which is much more worthy of the
surroundings. Inside the church we are now able to see
both transepts and the choir, restored to their original
appearance. The organ loft occupies the place of the
ancient Rood Screen, which stretched across the easternmost
bay of the nave, the only one which is still left. East of
that is the space under what was once the great central tower
S. BARTHOLOMEW THE GREAT, SMITH FIELD. 17
of the church, right and left of which are the north and south
transepts. Beyond is the choir and apsidal sacrarium en-
circled by a "processional path" or ambulatory. East of
the choir is the beautiful Lady Chapel (once the fringe
factory) with a crypt beneath. The crypt is now fitted up as
a mortuary chapel with an altar. West of the south transept
is a doorway discovered early in 1905 leading to the
cloisters, of which only two or three bays have as yet been
reclaimed from centuries of secular use. An old door which
had laid in the triforium, unused from time immemorial, was
found to fit this doorway so perfectly that it has been fixed
up once more in what was probably its original position.
The ancient monastic pulpit, which was affixed to one of
the piers on the N. side of the church, remained intact until
June, 1828, when it was unfortunately destroyed by the
clumsiness of a workman in an attempt to remove it.
On the south side of the Choir, and occupying one of the
bays of the triforium, is a semi-hexagonal oriel window,
which formed a screen to the seat of Prior Boltotl (died
1532), "the proper stall in the choir having been deserted
for this more elevated and pompous seat, from whicli the
prior could pass into and from the church without observa-
tion ; so far had the Roman church departed from her own
early use at the period immediately preceding the Refor-
mation " (Allen). On the north side of the chancel is the
beautiful altar tomb of the founder, inscribed HIC JACET
RAHERUS, PRIMUS CANONICUS ET PRIMUS
PRIOR HUJUS EGOLESS.
In 1244, writes Matthew Paris, the Priory Church was
the scene of a tumult, when Boniface, Archbishop of Canter-
bury (highly offended because he was not received with that
extreme respect, which although not due to him he never-
theless expected), so violently assaulted the sub-prior, that
he nearly killed him. Dugdale gives the annual value of
the priory at the time of the dissolution as .653 155.
The ancient seal of the priory was circular, having on one
side S. Bartholomew seated with the deed of foundation in
his right hand, and a knife uplifted in his left ; behind him
an ecclesiastical edifice with finials formed of fleur-de-lys.
The other side had a ship, with an octangular tower and
turreted spire.
The dimensions of the church are as follows : Length oj
Choir, 138 ft.; presumed length of nave, 87 ft.; total length
of church whtn perfect, 225 ft.; total iviath, 84 ft.; internal
height, 46 ft.; height of tower, 138 ft. Hogarth the
painter, was baptized in the church.
I 8 S. BARTHOLOMEW THE GREAT, SMITHFIELD.
An organ was erected in S. Bartholomew's Church by
Richard Bridge, in 1731. According to Mr. Henry
Leffler, this instrument contained :
" Three setts cf keys. Compass GG, short octaves to D in alt. Swell,
Fiddle G to D.
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Tierce, 52 ; Sesquialtera, IV ranks (draws in
halves), 208 ; Trumpet, 52.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Prin., 32;
Cornet, III ranks (a new one in the year 1800), 56 ; Trumpet, 32;
Hautboy, 32.
Choir (4 stops) Stop. Diap.; Prin.; (these two by communication from
the Great) ; Flute, 52 pipes ; Cremona, 52.
A very good organ all through. "
My friend the late Mr. J. W. Billinghurst (formerly
Vestry clerk of S. Margaret's, Lothbury), wrote concerning
this organ in 1855: -"The keys are black, the sharps
having a strip of white inserted. The Diapasons are very
weak, the Cremona very fair ; the effect of the Swell, good."
Some thirty years afterwards, Mr. Billinghurst added the
following remarks: "In 1865, when extensive restorations
took place in the church, this organ was removed to Russell's
factory, where it was lost ! The church being closed for
about six years, Russell died during this period, and by
inadvertence the organ was sold as part of his effects."
A small organ by Gray & Davison, was erected near the
chancel when the church was re-opened for service, and this
inadequate instrument gave place to the organ now over the
Choir screen, which was purchased and removed hither from
S. Stephen's, Walbrook, in 1885. This organ (of which the
original case still remains at S. Stephen's) was built by
George England in 1765, at a cost of about 570, and
(according to Mr. Henry Leffler), contained the following
stops :
" 3 setts of keys, GG long octaves to E. Swell to G.
Great (n stops) Op. Diap., 57 pipes; Stop. Diap., 57; Prin., 57;
Nason, 57 ; i2th, 57 ; i5th, 57 ; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 228 ; Mix-
ture, II ranks, 114; Cornet to C, V ranks, 145; Trumpet, 57;
Clarion, 57.
Swell (8 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes; Stop. Diap., 34; Prin., 34;
German Flute, 34; Cornet, III ranks, 102; Trumpet, 34; Haut-
boy > 34 ! Clarion, 34.
Choir ^6 stops) Dulciana to G, 46 pipes; Stop. Diap., 57; Flute, 57;
1 5th. 57 ; French Horn, 39 ; Vox Humana, 57.
A very good organ"
In 1825, Mr. Gray added a second Open Diapason to
the Great Organ (in place of the V rank Cornet) and an
octave and a half of Unison Pedal pipes with a Great to
Pedal coupler. Many years afterwards tho organ was
S. BARTHOLOMEW THE GREAT, SMITHFIELD. 19
enlarged and improved by Messrs. Hill & Son, as
follows :
Great (n stops) Op. Diap. (No. i), 8 ft.; Op. Diap. (No. 2), 8 ft.;
btop. Diap. (metal treble), 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Naswi (open wood),
4 ft. [this stop is now labelled " Wald Flute "]; lath, 2 ft.; isth,
2 ft.; Mixture, IV ranks; Furniture, III ranks; Trumpet, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell Oi stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; German Flute
(metal grooved to Op. Diap. in bass octave), 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.
(metal treble), 8 ft.; Prin., 4 fi.; i2th and ijth (a and 2 ft.); Mixture,
IV ranks; Dble. Trumpet, 16 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (9 stops) Keraulophon, 8 ft. ; Dulciana (grooved to Keraulophoi.
in bass octave), 8 ft.; btop. Diap. (metal treble), 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft..
Stop. Flute (treble metal open), 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft..
French Horn, 8 ft.; Vox Humana, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (5) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw. to Fed.; Gt. to Ped.
Ch. to Peel.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt. ; 2 ditto to Sw.
Compass Manuals, CC to g in altissimo ; Pedal, CC to f.
Since the organ has been erected in S. Bartholomew's,
the Swell and Choir specifications have been altered as
follows :
Swell (12 stops>-P,ourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; German Flute, 8 ft.;
Vox Angelica, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; izth, 2 ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft.; Mixture,
IV ranks ; the four reeds as before.
Choir (9 sto P s)-Keraulophon, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Hohl Flute, 8 ft.;
Gamba, 4 ft.; Suabe Flute, 8 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; French Horn, 8 ft.;
Clarinet, 8 ft.; Vox Humana, 8 ft.
I played upon this organ on April 2Oth, 1905, and found
the tone very smooth, even, and church-like in character.
The difference of quality between the tone of the two Great
Diapasons is most marked, but they blend well. Gray's
No. 2 Diapason is a charming stop. Contrary to my expec-
tation, the Vox Humana on the Choir Organ proved to be
a very pleasant sounding step in so large and resonant a
building. I had never Ixifore played upon a Vox Humana
stop placed outside a Swell-box, but the effect was certainly
good. The present handsome case was added in 1893 in
memory of Mr. Frederick J. Withers, an amateur
musician, once well known in the city. The cost was
defrayed by a bequest of his brother Henr).
Amongst the organists of S. Bartholomew's may be
mentioned :
Miss M. A. Williams (ir 1855).
[From about that time 10 1885 the post of organist was usually
combined with that of parish schoolmaster. 1
Mr. VV. C. Ling, 1885-1888
Mr. W. A. B. Russell, Mus. B., Lond., 1888-1893.
Mr. Clifford Parker, 1893-
20 S. BARTHOLOMEW THE GREAT, SMITHFIELD.
Mr. Charles Box, who visited S. Bartholomew's on
Sunday morning, March 5th, 1882, writes thus concerning
the service in his Church Music in the Metropolis: "The
choir consisted of twenty school children, who made good
use of their voices. They were, however, overcharged with
work, especially of that kind which required more delicacy
of treatment than they had any idea of." At present (1905)
there is a well-trained surpliced choir, and the choral service
is rendered with good effect.
I am indebted to my friend Mr. John Hope, the Parish
Clerk of S. Bartholomew's, for much of the preceding
information.
s. BRIDE'S, FLEET STREET.
5.-S. BRIDE'S, FLEET STREET.
'V ' BRIEF sketch of the history of this church previous
^J f , to the Great Fire of 1666 is thus given in the
original edition (1603) of Stow's Survey of London :
"The parish church of S. Bridges, or Bride, of old time a
small thing, which now remaineth to be the choir, but since
increased with a large body and side aisles towards the west,
at the charges of William Venor, Esquire, Warden of the
Fleet, about the year 1480. The partition betwixt the old
work and the new (sometime prepared as a screen to be set
up in the Hall of the Duke of Somerset's house at Strand)
was bought for ^160, and set up" in the year 1557 ; one
wilful body began to spoil and break the same in the year
1596, but was by the high commissioners forced to make it
up again, and so it resteth. John Ulsthorpe, William
Evesham, John Wigan, and others, founded chantries there."
The abbot and convent of Westminster were patrons of the
living, which in mediaeval times was a rectory. There was
also a vicarage founded and endowed about the year 1529,
and King Henry VIII, after the dissolution of the convent at
Westminster, having given the rectory and parish church of
S. Bride to the new collegiate foundation of Westminster
established by him, S. Bride's has continued a vicarage in the
gift of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster. In 1610, the
Earl of Dorset gave a piece of ground, on the west side of
Fleet ditch, for a new churchyard ; this was consecrated on
August 2nd, 1610, by the Bishop of London (Dr. George
Abbott). The old church was destroyed in the Great Fire,
1666. The present church was afterwards built in 1680 to
the design of Sir Christopher Wren, and consists of a nave
and side aisles, with a square tower surmounted by a lofty
spire at the west, and a chancel at the east end. The choir-
stalls are placed in the easternmost bay of the nave. The
tower is flanked by apartments containing the stairs to the
galleries which extend round three sides of the building.
The church forms one of the most interesting objects in the
city, as viewed from the river or its bridges ; next to that of
Bow Church, Cheapside, its spire is Wren's most perfect work.
22 S. BRIDES, FLEET STREET.
This beautiful spire (completed Sept. 1703) has undergone
many changes since it left its architect's hands. It was so
damaged by lightning on June i8th, 1764, that no less
than 85 ft. of its stonework was obliged to be taken down ;
it was shortened in height by 8 ft. when rebuilt. Again, in
1803, it was struck by lightning, but far less damage was
done. From June 1822 to April 6th, 1823, the church
underwent complete restoration at the careful hands of Mr.
Dykes. Up to 1824, the church was completely shut in by
houses, but on Nov. I4th of that year, a fire having destroyed
several houses in Fleet Street, the view thus obtained of the
church was deemed of sufficient interest to render a permanent
opening desirable. A Mr. John Blades having taken the
matter in hand, this great improvement was duly carried out,
and the opening still exists. The dimensions of the church
are, external length, 103 ft.; internal length, 99 ft.; breadth,
58 ft.; internal height, 42$ ft. The original height of the
spire from the surface of the earth to the top of the vane was
234^ ft. ; in 1839 it was 229 ft. high. The font was preserved
Irom the old church ; it consists of a white marble basin on a
black pedestal, and bears the following inscription : DEO
ET ECCLRSI/E EX DONO HENRICI HOTHERSALL, ANNO 1615.
The altar consists of a marble slab on gilded supports ; it is
not a wooden table. The east window is filled with a copy
in stained glass of Rubens' " Descent from the cross. " There
are 12 bells in the tower. These are tuned in the key of D,
the weight of the largest (tenor) bell being 28 cwt. The
bells Nos. 3 to 12, forming a peal of ten, were made in 1710,
and Nos. i and 2, making a peal of twelve, were cast in 1719
:by Abraham Rudhall of Gloucester. The 5th and 6th bells
were recast in 1736, t>y Samuel Knight of London. The 1st
and 2nd bells were purchased with the joint subscriptions of
the "College youths" and "London scholars" afterwards
" Cumberlands " for their own practice ; and were kept
secured from the use of other ringing societies some time
afterwards by means of a chain affixed to each bell.
There are numerous literary associations in connection
with the church, Samuel Richardson, Sir Richard
Lovelace, and others, here take their last rest ; and in the
churchyard Milton kept a school. S. Bride's Parish encloses
old Bridewell, which still includes a prison for unruly
apprentice boys, has a hospital, and educates some 250 boys
and 250 girls, and was the origin probably of Bethlehem
Hospital in Westminster Road. The origin of Bridewell
was a palace occupied by Richard II. The ancient parish
appears to have both sacred and secular rights of self-
government.
s. BRIDE'S, FLEET STREET. 23
S. Bride's Church is famous for its Cecilian Celebra-
tions. These were choral services held on Nov. 22nd,
the Feast of S. Cecilia, Patroness of Music, at which
services and anthems (often composed expressly for the
occasion) were impressively performed by an exceptionally
large choir and orchestra of musicians. For these celebrations
Henry Purcell composed his 71? Deum and Jubilate in D for
1692 and Dr. Blow his for 1695. The first celebration was
held in 1683. With three exceptions (1686, 1688, and
1689), these interesting musical meetings were held annually
until 1703, after which they became only occasional. They
were originally instituted by The Musical Society, the
members of which, after attending the service at S. Bride's,
repaired to another place (usually Stationers' Hall) where an
Ode in praise of Music (written and composed for the
occasion) was performed before dinner. It is greatly to be
desired, that at no distant date these Cecilian Celebrations
may be revived at S. Bride's ; with the Guildhall School of
Music within its parish boundaries, such a restoration of an
ancient custom ought not to be a difficult matter.
The bryan, which has fortunately preserved its original
position in the West gallery of the church, was built by
Renatus Harris. Its specification is thus given by Mr.
Henry Leffler in 1800:
" 3 setts of keys from GG to D, short octaves. Swell from F.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 156 ; Mixture, II ranks,
104 ; Cornet from C, V ranks, 135 ; Trumpet, 52.
Swell (6 stops)-Op. Diap., 34; Stop. Diap., 34 ; Prin., 34; Cornet,
1 1 1 ranks, 102 ; Trumpet, 34 ; Hautboy, 34.
ChoiP (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; isth, 52;
The richly carved case is adorned with figures of fame,
mitres, crowns, &c.
Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, who saw the organ on
August 2Oth, 1854, states that the manuals had black keys
for white, and white for black, and that the specification
stood as follows :
"Great, GG to E (8 stops)-Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin.; i2th ;
i5th; Sesquialtera; Mixture; Trumpet.
[ The original five-rank Cornet seems to have disappeared.]
Swell, Tenor C to E (7 stops) Dble. Diap ; Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.
Prin.; Sesquialtera; Trumpet; Hautbols.
Choir, GG to E (5 stops) Stop. Diap.; Prin.; Flute ; isth ; Cremona.
[The original Vox Humana seems to have been re-named 1
Pedal, GG to C (i stop)-Unison pipes, large scale.
Couplers (2) Sw. to Gt.; Gu to Ped.
No composition pedals. "
24 s. BRIDE'S, FLEET STREET.
In 1871, Messrs. J. W. Walker & Sons cleaned and
repaired the organ, replacing the old Great Trumpet with a
new one, putting in new keyboards, and giving additional
"knee-room" to the player by placing the bellows farther back.
The organ was in this year tuned to Equal Temperament.
In 1875 the same firm replaced the Great I2th with a
Harmonic Flute, 4 ft. In 1886 the organ was rebuilt by
Messrs. Gray & Davison to a plan revised by the present
organist, Dr. E. H. Turpin, who took office two years after-
wards. This scheme (which includes some of the original work
of Renatus Harris) is remarkable for the large amount of 8 ft.
work which it contains. At present the organ possesses the
following stops :
Great (10 stops)-- Dble. Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Large Op. Diap.. 8 ft.; Small
Op. Diap., 8ft.; Dulciana, 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft.; Harm. Flute,
4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, II ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (n stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Echo Diap., 8 ft.;
Salicional, 8 ft.; Voix Celestes. S ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4ft.;
1 5th, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks ; Oboe, 8 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.
Choir (7 stops) Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Keraulophon, 8 ft.;
Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) -Contra Bourdon, 32 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., i6ft.
Couplers (7) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch.
to Ped.; Sw. to Gt. (Super 8ve) ; Ped. 8ve coupler.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 2 cpmp. peds. to Sw.; 2 ped.
Compass of Manuals CC to' G.
The names of the following musicians occur in the list of
organists of S. Bride's Church :
John Weldon, 1726 (died 1736).
Samuel Howard, Mus D. , Cantab., 1769 (died 1782).
Dr. Mather (blind), who held the post for many years, and
died in 1854.
Walter Bond Gilbert, Mus. D., Oxon., F.R.C.O. (for a
short time).
Mr. Reynolds. 1854.
Mr. Ernest Kiver, 1882.
Mr. John D. Codner (afterwards organist of S. David's
Cathedral).
Edmund Hart Turpin, 1888, Mus.D., Cantuar, F.R.C.O,
Of these, John Weldon was the pupil of Henry Purcell,
and was also organist and composer to the Chapel Royal.
He was the writer of some thirty-seven anthems, many of
which are sung at the present day, notably " In Thee, O
Lord," "Hear my crying," "O praise God in His holiness."
His solo anthems were written for the counter-tenor singer,
John Elford. Several of his chants also remain in constant
use to this day. Dr. Howard is well known as the author
of the S.M. Hymn Tune called S. Bride's :
S. BRIDE S, FLEET STREET.
This appeared for the first time in Riley's Parochial
Harmony (1762), where it is set to Ps-ilm 130, New Version,
and headed " S. Bridget's Tune, by Mr. Sam Howard."
Dr. Turpin is the well-known genial hon. sec. of the
Royal College of Organists, and Warden of Trinity College,
London. He, too, is the composer of a great quantity of
music, and is the author of the well-known tune "Mansfield "
sung to the hymn " On the Resurrection morning " :
which, like his predecessor's tune "S. Bride's," is likely to go
down to an admiring and remote posterity. Dr. Turpin was
married at S. Bride's on May 2nd, 1905, to Miss Hobbs, who
for many years had been a most ardent church-worker in the
parish. There is now (1905) a surpliced choir in the church,
and a good choral service is rendered ; but on Sunday,
January 29th, 1882, when Mr. Charles Box visited the
church, although the Lord Mayor and Corporation were
present, there was " no choir except a goodly array of charity
children who surrounded the organ and sang Boyce's Te
Deum and Jubilate in A. The psalms were read, but the
glorias were chanted."
I am indebted to my old friend Dr. Turpin for much
valuable assistance in preparing the above account rtf
S. Bride's, Fleet Street.
26 CHRIST CHURCH, NEWGATE STREET.
6. CHRIST CHURCH, NEWGATE STREET.
'//) i'lTH the removal of Christ's Hospital to its fat
\_llA* more suitable position at Horsham in Sussex,
Newgate Street lost its most characteristic
feature. The break in the endless succession of shops, the
row of trees with their fresh green foliage behind the tall iron
gates and railings, the playground beyond with its lively groups
of blue-coated yellow-stockinged boys, the fine old Gothic
hall in the background; nearly all of these once familiar sights
have disappeared. Little is left but the old Parish Church
where the boys used to worship every Sunday, and where they
were wont to assemble for certain other religious observances
more particularly connected with their school life. Christ
Church still rears its stately steeple above the houses on the
North side of that busy thoroughfare, Newgate Street ; yet
who beholding it in its present state of desolate seclusion
would ever dream that it occupies only a comparatively small
portion of a much more extensive site, upon which, five or six
hundred years ago, there stood a magnificent monastic church
of cathedral proportions ; its vaulted roof resounding with
the music of several "Choir offices" sung there daily,
and its pavement covering the sleeping dust of many royal
persons, dignified ecclesiastics, barons, knights, squires and
dames of high degree? This great church of the Greyfriais
or Franciscans was still in existence when Stow published
his Survey of London in 1603. He states that about the
year 1225, ''William Joyner built the choir; Henry Walls
the body of the church [nave] ; Walter Pottle (alderman) the
chapter house ; Gregorie Rokesley the dormitory ; Bartholo-
mew of the Castle made the refectory; Peter De Ileliland
made the infirmary ; Bevis Bond, king of heralds, made the
study, &c. Queen Margaret (second wife of Kdward I),
began the choir of a new church in 1306. John Britaine,
Earl of Richmond, built a new nave ; the famous Richard
Whittington, Lord Mayor of London, founded the library in
1429 this last a great room 129 ft. by 31 ft. Some idea of
the size of the church may be formed from the dimensions
as given by Stow length, 300 ft., breadth, 89 ft., height
(from pavement to roof), 64 It. 2 inches. In other words, it
was within a few feet of the length of Rochester Cathedral,
it was wider than Winchester, Ely, Durham or Salisbury
CHRIST CHURCH, NEWGATE STREET. 2 7
Cathedrals, and within 2 ft. of the height of the nave of
Worcester Cathedral. The new church was consecrated
in 1325, and at the suppression of the religious houses
in 1538, was valued at 32 19 o! After its surrender to
King Henry VIII, the church was closed for eight years,
and applied to secular uses, but in 1546 it was reopened for
Divine Service under its present name, Christ Church. Six
years later, in 1552, the " Greyfriars house" was repaired
and set apart for the reception of poor fatherless children ;
this was the origin and foundation of Christ's Hospital,
or Hlue Coat School, now located in handsome new buildings
at Horsham.
Stow gives a long list of monuments in old Christ Church ;
33 in the choir, 8 in All Hallows Chapel, 12 in the Lady
Chapel, 35 in the Apostles' Chapel, 18 between the choir
and ihe high altar, 23 in the nave, all bearing the names of
distinguished people, men and women of renown; and he
states that " five times so many more have been buried there."
This large and beautiful church perished entirely in the Great
Fire of 1666, after which only the choir was rebuilt with a
tower and spire at the western end. There was no tower to
the old church. The pavement of the original choir still
remains, though gravestones are inserted in it here and there ;
it consists of lozenge shaped piecesof redand grey marble, which
have been recently polished with excellent effect. The present
church consists of a nave separated from its aisles on either
side by five colums of the "composite" order of classic archi-
tecture. Over the aisles are galleries once occupied by the
boys of Christ's Hospital, and still remaining (1905) in empty
desolation, only used upon very exceptional occasions. The
eastern end of the church has been recently converted into
a quasi-chancel, and fitted with modern choir stalls, made
out of some old Wren pews. The organ still occupies its
original place in the West Gallery. Mr. Henry Leffler,
writing in 1800, gives the specification as it then stood as
follows :
" Built by Renatus Harris in 1690.
3 setts of keys. Short Octaves from GG to D. Swell down to Middle C.
Great ( 10 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap.,52; Prin., 52; i2th, 52;
1 5th, 52 ; Tierce, 52; Sesquialtera (III ranks up to D gQl^~~~~ ,
then II ranks to top) 144 pipes ; Furniture (III ranks up to Middle C,
then II ranks to top) 130 pipes ; Cornet (to C), V ranks, 135 pipes ;
Trumpet (down to Middle C, the Bass has been stop'd up) 27 pipes.
Swell (; stops) -Op. Diap., 27; Stop. Diap., 27; Trumpet, 27;
Hautboy, 27 ; Cornet (draws, but does not speak).
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; isth, 52*
Vex Humana (down to Treble C), 27 pipes.
28 CHRIST CHURCH, NEWGATE STREET.
The original organ (like many others by Renatus Harris)
probably consisted of Great and Choir organs only.
The organ was rebuilt by Messrs. Elliott & Hill
early in the XlXth Century, and in 1835 ' ll was entirely
remodalled by Mr. Hill, when all the manuals were
reconstructed to the CC compass, under the direction of
Dr. Gauntlett, to the following specification :
Great (13 stops) Dble. Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., No. i, 8 ft.;
Op. Diap., No. 2, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft.; i2th,
2 ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, V ranks, 2 ft.; Mixture, V ranks,
if ft.; Doublette, II ranks, 2 ft.; Double Trumpet, 16 ft.; Posaune,
8 ft. ; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (n stops) Double Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft.; Flageolet, 4 ft.; i^th, aft.; Mixture, V ranks,
i? ft.; Horn, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (5 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft.;
Stopped Flute, 4 ft. tone ; i5th, 2 ft.
Pedal (10 stops) Great Diap., wood, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., wood. 16 ft.;
Op. Diap., metal, 16 ft.; Prin., 8 ft.; i2th, 5$ ft.; isth, 4 ft.;
Sesquialtera, VI ranks ; Mixture, V ranks ; Posaune, 16 ft ;
Clarion, 8 ft.
Couplers (6) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Ch. to Gt. ; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to
Fed.; Ch. to Ped.
Compass-. Manual, CC to f " in alt. Pedal organ, CCC to CC, one
octave only. Pedal Clavier, CCC to Fiddle G, two octaves and a
half.
It is in connection with this organ, when quite a newly
constructed instrument of only two years standing, that
Christ Church, Newgate Street, has acquired musical
associations which will always render its very name a
memorable one to organists. The story of the wind going
out of the organ at S. Paul's Cathedral, during the perform-
ance of Bach's A minor fugue by Felix Mendelssohn
Bartholdy, on Sunday, September loth, 1837, is as well
known as it is well authenticated. But its sequel is, perhaps,
not so widely known. It became noised abroad, amongst
the disappointed listeners at the Cathedral, that Mendelssohn
intended paying a visit to the fine organ at Christ Church on
the following Tuesday morning, September I2th, and
accordingly a large congregation assembled in that church to
hear the Bach fugue again, but this time without interruption.
Amongst this congregation was the veteran Samuel
Wesley. His daughter Eliza, who accompanied him on
this occasion, told the present writer, that on the way to the
church, her father (who was most anxious to hear Mendel-
ssohn play) said to her, " Do you say this young man plays
more finely than Adams? I think Adams has the finest
finger in Europe ! " She answered, " He is considered to play
more in your style than in that of any other organist ; and I
CHRIST CHURCH, NEWGATE STREET. 29
hope you will play too." "I will do as well as I can," was
his reply, " I have thought of my subject." When Mendel-
ssohn began to play, Wesley turned to his daughter and said,
"This is transcendent playing ! do you think I dare venture
after this?" Mendelssohn seems to have been in great form
that morning, and played no less than six extemporaneous
fantasias in the grandest possible style. When he had
finished, Samuel Wesley was induced to sit down to the
organ. It was the last time he ever touched a musical
instrument in public. The scene as we picture the grey-
headed veteran manipulating the heavy keys, at first with
feeble touch, but gradually with greater vigour as the flame of
his divinely-inspired genius once more kindled within him,
and leaped forth with undiminished brightness is affecting
in the extreme. When Wesley had finished what was to
him a veritable Nunc Dimittis, Mendelssohn, who had
stood by his side in rapt attention, complimented him upon
the excellence of his performance in no measured terms.
But the old man shook his head and smiled, " Ah, Sir ! you
have not heard me play; you should have heard me forty
years ago ! " On his return home, Samuel Wesley hung his
hat on the last peg in the hall saying, " I shall never go out
again alive." Nor did he. On the evening of October nth,
a month after his visit to Christ Church, Newgate Street, he
breathed his last.
In 1867 the organ was entirely reconstructed by Messrs.
Hill & Son, when the following changes were made :
Great The two Mixture stops were re-named Tierce Mixture
(V Ranks) ; Larigot Mixture (V Ranks).
Choir (3 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Lieblich Flute, 4 ft.; Stopped Flute, 4 ft. tone; isth,
2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (i i stops) Sub-Bourdon, 32 ft. tone ; Op. Diap., wood, 16 ft.; Op.
Diap., wood, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., metal, 16 ft.; Stop. Diap., wood,
16 ft. tone ; Prin., 8 ft.; i2th, 5J ft.; isth, 4 ft.; Mixture (V Ranks) ;
Posaune, 16 ft.; Clarion, 8 ft.
Accessories Six comp. peds., 3 to Gt., 3 to Sw. In this rebuild the
izth of the Ped. -organ was all that was left of the former .tz'-r-rank
Sesquialtera. The speaking compass of the Ped. -organ was extended
from one octave only, to Tenor F.
Since the appointment of the Rev. E. H. Pearce, M.A.,
as vicar, the organ has been much improved. In 1900, the
choir organ was enclosed in a swell box, and a Tremulant
was added to the Swell.
The following specification of the organ as it stands at
present has been kindly supplied to me by Mr. Stanley
Marchant, organist of Christ Church :
30 CHRIST CHURCH, NEWGATE STREET.
Compass Both Manuals and Pedal go to F.
Great (13 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.;
Stop. Diap., 3 ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; i2lh,
3ft.; Tierce Mixture, 5 ranks; Larigot Mixture, 5 ranks; Dble.
Trumpet, 16 ft.; Posaune, 8 ft.; 8ve Posaune, 4 ft.
Swell (n stops) Dble. Dulciana, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Flageolet, 4 ft.; 151)1, 2 ft.; Mixture de cinq;
Hautbois, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft .; Corno, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (9 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Lieblich Flute, 4 ft.; Flute, 2 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Clarinet,
8ft.; Orchestral Oboe, 8ft.
Pedal (to stops) Bass Bourdon, 32 ft.; Open wood, 16 ft.; Montre,
i6ft.; Bourdon, 1 6 ft.; Prin., 8ft.; isth, 4 ft.; i2th, 6 ft.; Larigot
Mixture, 5 ranks ; Trombone, i6ft.; 8ve Trombone, 8 ft.
Couplers (6) Sw. toGt.; Ch. toGt.; Gt. toPed.; Sw. toPed.; Ch.
to Fed.; Sw. to Ch.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comb. peds. to Sw.; 3 ditto to Gt.;
Gt. to Ped. on and off by ped.; both Sw. and Ch. in boxes.
The blowing is electric.
Amongst the organists of Christ Church may be
mentioned :
Jonathan Ba'ttishill (died 1800), who held also the organist-
ship of S. Clement's, Eastcheap.
Mr. Davis.
Mr. J. T. Harris (Evening Lecture only).
Henry John Gauntlett, Mus.D., Can tuar, 1836.
Joseph Thomas Cooper, F.R.A.S., died 1879.
Charles Joseph Frost, Mus.D., Cantab . F.R.C.O., 1880-1884.
George Cooper, Junr.
A. E. Thorne, B.A., Cantab.
Manley Marchant.
Mr. Charles Box, who visited Christ Chuich on Sunday
morning, May I4th, 1882, writes: "By far the greater
portion of the worshippers consisted of Christ's Hospital
Scholars or 'Blue Coat Boys.' These put plenty of volume
into the singing, which was purely of a congregational
stamp. As the chants and hymns were easy and well
selected, everybody could join in them, and there must have
been very few who did not." At present (1905) there is a
well trained surpliced choir who sing a good Choral Service
every Sunday.
S. GILES, CR1PPLEGATE. 31
7. S. GILES', CRIPPLEGATE.
^^HIS beautiful old church which happily escaped the
Vz/ Great Fire of i6r>6 stands at the South-west corner
of Fore Street, facing Red Cross Street. Its fine
tower is an interesting feature when viewed from the
Moorgate Street end of Fore Street.
The Saint to whom the church is dedicated was born at
Athens, and was abbot of Nismes in France. He is the
patron saint of cripples, and his Feast Day occurs in our
Church Kalendar, on Sept. ist. The foundation of the
church dates back to about 1090 its founder's name was
Alfune. Writing in 1598, John Stow says: "Without
the postern of Cripplegate (a place so called from cripples
begging there) first is the parish Church of S. Giles, a very
fair and large church, lately repaired ; after that the same
was burnt in the year 1545 (the 37th of Henry VIII) ; by
which mischance the monuments of the dead in this church
are very few : notwithstanding, I have read of these follow-
ing: " [he mentions as many as forty-six, but they are all
forgotten names]. Stow goes on to say, "there was in this
church of old time a fraternity or brotherhood of Our
Blessed Lady, or Corpus Christi, and S. Giles, founded by
John Belancer, in the reign of Edward III, the 35th year
of his reign." The patronage of the church was originally in
private hands, until it descended to one Alemund, a priest,
who granted the same (after his death, and that i-f Hugh, his
own son) to the Dean and Chapter of S. Paul's, whereby
they became not only ordinaries of the parish, but likewise
patrons of the vicarage from that time to the present.
The plan of the building consists of a nave and side aisles,
with a large square tower at the west end of the nave, and
a north porch. The Chancel was destroyed in the bad old
times which followed the Reformation, and a public house
was erected on its site. Upon the expiration of its lease
some years ago this tavern was pulled down, but the site was
not restored to the church ; it is still occupied by a secular
building, and in consequence, the high altar stands in a mere
recess at the east end of the nave, with its XVIIIth century
classical wooden screen behind it. The north side of the
church was (until quite recently) nearly concealed by the
Quest-house, an ugly modern building in debased Gothic
32 S. GILES, CRIPPLEGATE.
style, which completely covered the porch ; this excrescence
is now happily removed, and in its place is a pleasant grass
plot, upon which a statue of Milton was erected last year
(1904), at the expense of Mr. John James Baddeley, Deputy of
the ward of Cripplegate without. In a niche over the North
porch is a beautiful figure of S. Giles in his abbot's robes.
The interior division between the nave and aisles is made
by seven pointed arches, which were evidently not destroyed
by the fire of 1545, as their style and workmanship belong to
a period anterior to that date. Another relic of old S. Giles
was found some time ago in the east end of the north wall
of the present church a Purbeck marble door step of Xlth
century date. On the north side of the entrance to the choir,
is a pavement stone recording the fact that John Milton was
buried "near this spot." On the fourth pillar from the west
on the north side was originally affixed the monument to John
Milton ; this consists of a well-executed bust of the poet,
under which is a tablet bearing the following inscription :
JOHN MILTON,
Author of Paradise Lost.
Born Dec., 1608.
Died Nov., 1674.
His Father, JOHN MILTON,
Died March, 1646.
They were both interred in this Church.
SAMUEL WHITBREAD, fosuit 1793.
This monument is now more appropriately placed under a
handsome Gothic canopy on the south wall of the church,
immediately opposite the entrance from the north porch.
A beautiful stained glass window in the north aisle thankfully
commemorates the preservation of the church from fire on
Nov. igth, 1897.
Among the registers of marriages in S. Giles' Church
appears the following : " 1620, Aug. 22, Oliver Cromwell
and Elizabeth Boucher." Among the interments occurs
the following: "Lordship; John Milton, gentleman,
buried Nov. I2th, 1674; consumption; chancel." Milton
was born in Bread Street, and resided in Jewin Street,
Aldersgate Street, and afterwards in Artillery Walk, where
he died. A monument on the wall of a house in Bread
Street at the corner of Watling Street, which covers the site
of All Hallows Church (where Milton was baptized), still
commemorates the poet's connection with the spot. John
Fox, the author of the Book of Martyrs, was buried in
S. Giles' Church in 1587, "non sine lachrymi," to quote the
inscription on the plain slab at the west end of the north
aisle erected to his memory. Bishop Andrewes was
vicar in 1587. Sir Martin Frobisher (Navigator) was
S. GILES, CRIPPLEGATE. 33
buried here in 1594, and John Speed (the historian), found
here his last re.sung place in 1029. In the parish lived and
died, April 26th, 1731, Daniel Defoe, Author of " Robinson
Crusoe." In the south-west corner of the spacious old
churchyard is a portion of the ancient (Roman) city-wall.
The dimensions of the church are as follows : length, 114 ft.;
breadth, 63 ft.; height, 42 ft.; height of tower, 122 ft. There
are twelve bells in the tower.
The organ originally erected in a west gallery by Renatus
Harris in 1680, is thus described by Mr. Henry Leffler,
who wrote between 1800-1810:
"Three setts of keys from GG to E short octaves. Swell down to G.
Great (13 stops) Op. Diap., 54 pipes; Op. Diap. [new one added by
Hugh Russell (some say by England) in 1791], 54 pipes; Stop.
L>iap., 54; Prin., 54; i2th, 54 ; isth, 54; Tierce, 54; Larigot, 54}
Sesquialtera, IV.ranks. 216 ; French Horn [to D], 39; Trumpet, 54;
Clarion, 54 ; Cornet, IV ranks [to C], 116.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes; Stop. Diap., 34; Prin., 34;
Cornet, III ranks, 102; Trumpet, 34; Hautboy, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Two "by communication." viz., Op. Diap.; Stop.
Diap.; Prin., 54 pipes : Flute, 54 ; Vox Humana, 54.
The Chorus is very noisy, but not very musical. Salary ^30. "
In Malcolm's Londinium Redivivum, Vol. 3, p. 274, we
find the following curious extract from the parish books :
" 1672. Mrs. Charnock shall have thanks given her for
her affection in bestowing a faire organ upon the parish
church of S. Giles : and that some convenient place shall be
found for setting it up."
Dr. Rimbault states that the orean was rebuilt by
Abraham Jordan. Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, writing
on June 24th, 1855, says, "the organ was rebuilt with
considerable additions and improvements by John Gray
(at an expense of ^250) in 1840, who added pedal pipes.
Considerable alterations since ; in 1850 Gray added a separate
wind supply for the pedal pipes. The organ now (1855) is
as follows :
Great (GG with J to E, 13 stops) Op. Diap., No. i ; Op. Diap., No. 2 ;
Stop. Diap.; Prin; nth; isth ; Tierce; Larigot; Sesquialtera;
Trumpet; Horn; Clarion; Clarabella (in place of Cornet).
Swell (Tenor C to E, 9 stops) Dble. Diap.; Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.;
Prin.; isth; Sesquialtera; Trumpet; Hautbois ; Clarion.
Choir (GG with J to E, 5 stops) Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin.;
Flute ; Cremona.
Pedal (CCC to E, 2 octaves, i stop)- Op. Diap., wood 16 ft. (very
large scale).
Couplers (5) Gt. to Fed. (unison from GG); Ch. to Ped ; Ped. 8vc
coupler: Sw. to Gt.; Ch. to Gt. (sub-8ve).
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 2 ditto to Sw.
/ liked the general tone, and also the solo qualities amazingly. "
The organ was tuner) to equal temperament in 1864. In
a subsequent note, Mr. Billinghurst states that the organ was
34 S. GILES, CRIPPLEGATK.
afterwards rebuilt by Messrs. Gray & Davison (in 1879),
and placed at the east end of the north aisle, when the
handsome old case was discarded. He adds, "the organ,
though a fine one, is now somewhat hard in tone." A new
organ, the one now (1905) in use, was built by Messrs.
J. W. Walker & Sons in 1899 to the following speci-
fication :
Compass Manuals, CC to A, 58 notes ; Pedal, CCC to F. 30 notes.
Great (9 stops) Dble. L)iap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap. (large), 8 ft.; Op.
Uiap., 8 ft.; Wald Flute, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.;
J5th, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (9 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., & ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
Echo Gamba (Lieblich Bass), 8 ft.; Voix Celeste (tenor C), 8 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Horn, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft
Choir (5 stops) Gamba, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Lieblich Gedackt, 8 ft.;
Suabe Flute, 4 ft. ; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (4 stops)-Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Prin., ml., 8ft.;
h lute (lowest 18 notes from Bourdon), 8 ft.
Couplers (8) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch.
to Ped.; Sw. 8ve ; Sw. Sub-8ve ; Sw. Unis. off.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt. and Ped.; 3 comp. peds. to Sw.;
i dble. -acting Ped. controlling Gt. to Ped. Coupler; Tubular
Pneumatic Action to Manuals, Pedals and Draw-stops ; Trem.
In order to preserve the view of some important mural
monuments, a large excavation 8 ft. deep has been made at
the east end of the south aisle in which the organ has been
placed. The Pedal pipes are arranged horizontally beneath
the floor of the aisle, and the manual soundboards are con-
siderably below the floor level of the church. The console
is at the western end of the organ, the player facing east,
thus obtaining an excellent view of his choir. A large
blowing chamber under the north aisle accommodates the
hydraulic engines and the feeders. The wind is conveyed
across the church through a tunnel under the chancel. The
hydraulic engines are by Messrs. Watkins & Watson, the
power being derived from the London Hydraulic Power
Company's main at 700 Ibs. pressure to the square inch.
The tonal result of this somewhat unusual arrangement of
the organ is most satisfactory. Parts of the old case are
preserved in this instrument.
Amongst the organists of S. Giles', may be mentioned :
James Brookes, 1682, organist and sexton ; William Miller,
1832-1873 (first organist of the Sacred Harmonic Society);
William Miller (ins son), 1873 ; B. Jackson, organist of the
People's Palace (the present organist).
Mr. Charles Box, who visited S. Giles' Church,
Cripplegate, on Sunday morning, Nov. 6th, 1881, found a
surpliced choir and a hearty congregational service. The
services at the present time (1905) are efficiently maintained
upon the same broad and common-sense lines.
S. LUKES, OLD STREET. 35
8.-S. LUKE'S, OLD STREET.
f>f T. LUKE'S, Middlesex, is an interesting example of
J^5 atl early suburban church. In the first decades of
ihe XVIIIth century, public attention was drawn to
the necessity of providing additional churches for the growing
populous districts which were then rapidly springing up
outside the old City boundaries. As far back as 1711, a
committee was appointed by S. Giles', Cripplegate, to con-
sider the proposed erection of one or more churches in that
parish. Two new churches were deemed desirable, but
eventually it was decided to build one, and accordingly in
1732, S. Luke's (one of fifty churches sanctioned by Queen
Anne's Parliament to meet the need of additional accommo-
dation for public worship in and around London) was built
in Old Street, in the " Lordship" or " Manor" of Fmsbury.
The architect was James* (a pupil of Gibbs) who also
designed S. George's, Hanover Square ; but topographers,
as a rule, only refer to S. Luke's in order to ridicule it.
One says he mentions it only "to call attention to the
steeple, which is in the form of a fluted obelisk." "A
master stroke of absurdity" writes another critic in reference
to the same monstrosity. A third writer (J. P. Malcolm in
Londinium Redivivum, Vol. IV, p. 21) describes the church
as consisting of "four plain walls, with a pedestal at the
west end by way of a tower, on which the architect has
elevated a clumsy imitation of an Egyptian obelisk one of
the most hideous outlines in their fantastic style of building."
No writer has yet explained why, with so advantageous a
site at his disposal, the architect did not exhibit greater taste
and propriety in his design for so important a church. Is it
possible that his artistic fancy was curbed and restrained by
a scarcity of funds ?
S. Luke's, Middlesex, was divided from S. Giles', Cripple-
gate, by a special Act of Parliament, which made the new
parish as free from the old one as though it had never formed
a portion thereof. In 1726, the Rev. Dr. Nichols, who was
Vicar of S. Giles', was instituted as Rector of S. Luke's ;
and he held the two livings until his death in 1774. In 1732
the vestries of the two parishes became separate bodies.
* Some authorities state that Dance was the architect.
36 s. LUKE'S, OLD STREET.
The church was consecrated on S. Luke's Day, October
i8th, 1733, by the Kt. Rev. Dr. Hare, Bishop of Chichester
and Dean of S. Paul's. It is said that six thousand people
were present at the first funeral which took place in the
churchyard, when, in the month of November in the year of
consecration, the widow of Sir Robert Johnston, a naval
commander of the time of George I, was buried. William
Caslon, a well-known printing type-founder, lies buried in
this churchyard.
At the time when S. Luke's was consecrated, a great deal
of the parish was vacant land ; Finsbury Square was not
begun until 1777, and was scarcely finished by the end
of the century. The foundation stone of S. Luke's Hospital
was not laid until July aoth, 1782. The ground upon which
the church stands was found to be of so swampy a character
that, at the time of the erection of the building, a number of
piles had to be driven in, and stout beams laid upon them ;
upon these beams the walls of the church rested. As long as
the beams and piles remained in a moist condition, they were
preserved, but when (by the sinking of wells, and the making
of a sewer in Old Street) the water was drawn away, these
wooden foundations fell into decay ; and by the year 1877
the safety of the building was so much endangered, that it
became necessary to underpin the walls. This was done at
the S.E. corner with concrete; the workmen having to go
down 30 ft. below the surface to secure a solid foundation.
For many years after its separation from the mother-parish
of S. Giles', Cripplegate, S Luke's was inhabited by a well-
to-do church-^oing population. The Journal of the Rev.
John Wesley, M.A., founder of the Society of People
called ** Methodists," contains some interesting mention of
the church and its congregation. He frequently occupied the
pulpit at S. Luke's. Thus we read :
Vol. I, p. 266. Sunday yd Aug., 1740. " At S. Luke's,
our parish church, was such a sight as, I believe, was never
seen there before ; several hundred communicants, from
whose very faces one might judge that they indeed sought
Him Who was crucified "
Vol. IV, p. 134. Stinday 2<)th Dec., 1778. "I was
desired to preach a charity sermon in S. Luke's Church, Old
Street. I doubt whether it was ever so crowded before ;
and the fear of God seemed to possess the whole audience.
In the afternoon I preached at the New Chapel [that in the
City Road, opposite the Artillery Ground], and at seven in
S. Margaret s, Rood Lane; full as much crowded as S. Luke's.
Is then the scandal of the Cross ceased?"
S. LUKES, OLD STREET. 37
Vol. IV, p. 310. Sunday, Nov. 2-jth, 1785. "As soon
as I had concluded my sermon at the new chapel, I hastened
away to preach at S. Luke's, one of the largest parish churches
in London. It was thoroughly filled, as it was seven years
ago, when I preached there before. God enabled me to
speak strong words on the Epistle for the day [Advent
Sunday] ; and I believe some felt it was now ' high time to
awake out of sleep.' "
Vol. IV. p. 458. Sunday, Dec. 27th, 1789. " I preached
in S. Luke's, our parish church, in the afternoon, to a very
numerous congregation, on ' The Spirit and the Bride say,
Come.' So are the tables turned, that I have now more
invitations to preach in churches than I can accept of."
The Rectors of S. Luke's have been :
Dr. W. Nichols, 1726-1744. | Walter Guppy Abboit,
H. Wareing, 1744-1795.
Dr. Farmer, 1796-1813.
1874-1897.
Prebendary G. H. Perry,
1897 .
Trefusis Lovell, 1813-1846.
John Saunders, 1846-1873.
Portraits of the first two rectors still hang in the vestry of
the church ; that of the Rev. H. Wareing was painted by
himself. The continual extension of the metropolis on every
side was bound to materially alter the residential character of
a parish so near the City as S. Luke's. At the time of the
institution of the Rev. W. Q. Abbott, in 1874, the church-
life of the district had reached a very low ebb indeed.
Speaking at a meeting held in Salisbury on July 5, 1875,
Mr. Abbott said : " S. Luke's is the mother church of a
large parish which numbers over 54,000 people. The
parish has been subdivided ; new districts have been formed ;
but still, the small territory, as the Ecclesiastical Commission-
ers term it, which has been left to myself a territory around
which I can walk in twenty minutes contains at least
14,000 souls. Failing health and old age prevented the late
incumbent from doing much work amongst his people ; and
then the old parish church, with its high pews, affords most
insufficient accommodation for the poor. The parish, too, has
been changing its character. Respectable, well-to-do people
have, by degrees, gone to live in the more distant suburbs.
They are not in town on Sundays, and consequently the old
high backed pews remain unoccupied. ... It is a terrible
thing, as one passes through the crowded streets, knowing
that every house teems with human beings, to reflect that the
great majority of those around, care litile or nothing for their
souls." During the twenty-three years of his incumbency, it
was Mr. Abbott's privilege to restore the attendance at the
38 s. LUKE'S, OLD STREET.
services in S. Luke's Church to very nearly the crowded
condition described in the Rev. John Wesley's Journal. In
1877, by dint of great exertion, he restored not merely the
external structure of the church, but greatly beautified the
interior as well, under the direction of Sir Arthur
Blomfield as architect. The old high backed pews were
demolished ; the altar was well elevated ; a quasi-chancel was
formed, furnished with proper choir stalls ; and the windows
weie filled with stained glass. Bright hearty choral services
.(in which the congregation took their part) were instituted,
and a daily celebration of the Holy Eucharist was established.
Since the appointment of the Rev. Prebendary Q. H.
Perry as rector, much further improvement has been made.
A beautifully arranged side chapel, for early celebrations and
.occasional services, has ben formed under the gallery in the
south-east corner of the church, in which there is a properly
vested altar, etc. Mr. Charles Box, who attended service
on Sunday morning, Dec. ?6th, 1883, writes thus of S. Luke's
an his Church Mu*ic in the Metropolis: " Prayers intoned.
A surpliced choir of 24 voices. The singing throughout the
service was of a congregational cast, and well supported by a
.powerful organ, and a Mus.Doc. as organist."
The organ, which was presented to the parish in 1733 by
Mr. Buckley, a brewer, of Old Street, was built by Jordan
& Bridge. The original specification is given thus by
Mr. Henry Leffler:
' 3 setts of keys, from GG to D. Swell to fiddle G, short octaves.
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap, 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52; isth, 52; 1 7th, 52; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 208; Cornet
to Cf, V ranks, 130 ; Trumpet, 52 ; Clarion, 52.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Prin., 32;
Cornet, III ranks, 96 ; Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32.
Choir (6 stops) Three " by communication " from the Great, viz., Op.
Diap., Stop. Diap., Prin.; Flute, 52 ; isth, 52; Cremona, 52.
A very fine organ. Salary .30."
In 1844, the organ was "remodelled, and almost entirely
reconstructed " by Messrs. Gray & Davison, under the
direction of Mr. Henry Smart, the then organist :
Great (14 stops) Sub-8ve stopped, 16 f>. tone ; Prin. Open, 3 ft.; Prin.
Open, 8 ft.; htop. Prin., 8 ft. tone ; 8ve, 4 ft.; Piccolo Flute, 4 ft.;
I2th, 3 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Ottavina, 2 ft. ; lyth, if ft.; Sesquialtera,
II ranks, i* ft.; Mixture, II ranks, ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clari m, 4 ft.
Swell (9 stops) Sub-8ve stopped, 16 ft. tone; Prin., 8 ft.; Concert
Flute, 8ft.; Sve, 4ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks. \\ ft.;
Hautboy, 8 ft.; Cornopean [the gift of certain ladies of the parish],
8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (7 stops) Stopped Flute Treble, 8 ft. tone ; Stopped Bass, 8 ft.
tone; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Sve, 4 ft.; Flageolet, 4 ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft.;
Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Grand Prin., 16 ft.; Grand Sve. 8 ft.
S. LUKE'S, OLD STREET. 39
Couplers (6) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Gt. sub-8ve; Sw. to Gt. super-8ve ;
Gt. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.; bw. to Fed. [The sub super-8ve couplers
were imroduced for the first time into an English church organ.]
Accessories 6 composition peds. to Gt.; Tremulant to Sw. [Dr.
Hopkins states that this was the first church organ in England to
which a tremulant of the modern kind was applied].
Compass-Manual, CC to f :( in alt.; Pedal, CCC to Tenor E.
In 186a, a Grand Trombone, 1 6 li., was arlded to the
Pedal organ by Messrs. Gray & Davison. In 1883,
the i^oth anniversary of the Consecration ot the Church, the
organ was entirely rebuilt by Mr. Henry Willis, under
the direction of the then organist, assisted by Sir John
Stainer, to the following specification :
Great (12 stops) -Dble. Diap., 16 ft. tone ; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Op. Diap.,
8 ft.; Stop. Diap., ti ft. tone; Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; izth, 2jf ft.;
i jth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks ; Tierce, ii> ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 8 ft.
Swell (9 stops)-Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
tone; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Cornopean,
8 ft.; Hautboy, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (6 stops) Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.;
Flute, 4 ft.; 1 5th, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops)- Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Prin., 8 ft.
Couplers (y)-Ch. to Gt.; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. 8ve; Sw. sub-8ve; Sw. to
Ped.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Fed.
Accessories- 3 comp. ped* to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.; Sw. Tremulant.
Compass Manual, CC to f : < in alt.; Pedal, CcC to F.
In 1902, two new stops were added to the Pedal organ
by Messrs. Henry Jones & Sons, of Fulham, viz.,
Bourdon, 16 ft. tone, and Trombone, 16 ft.
The organ still occupies its original position in the west
gallery, and is now blown by a 3 h. p. electric motor.
Amongst the organists of S. Luke's have been :
Joseph Baildon, 1763-1774, song and glee writer.
Henry Smart, 1844-1865 (the post was competed for at
S. Giles', Cripplegate, on Monday, Feb. 5th, 1844, when
Mr. Smart was returned best player and appointed).
A. H. Thouless, A.R.A.M., 1865.
On the resignation of Mr. Thouless, the post was filled
for some years by the S. Luke's Parochial Schoolmaster.
Mr. E. Snoxell. On July 28th, 1874, the post was competed
for at S. Paul's Cathedral, with Dr. (afterwards Sir John)
Stainer, as umpire, when
C. W. Pearce, ^E'a/ts suce xvii (afterwards Mus.D. Cantab.,
F.R.C.O.), 1874-1885, was appointed.
J. D. Wheeler, 1885 (a pupil of the preceding).
Henry Smart organized a west gallery choir for S. Luke's,
and in 1848 compiled his Choral Book for the use of his
choir and congregation. This excellent co/lection of tunes
40 S. LUKE'S, OLD STREET.
was afterwards published by Messrs. Boosey & Co. It con-
tains (amongst many other interesting features) some highly
artistic "giving out " settings of the grand old Psalm Tune
London New. Many of his world-famed organ pieces were
written for, and were first performed by him on the organ in
S. Luke's Church. His organ-playing attracted to S. Luke's
nearly as large congregations as did the preaching of John
Wesley before his day, or the strenuous missionary efforts of
Waller Guppy Abbott in the next generation. Lovers of
music came from all parts of the metropolis and provinces to
hear his masterly extemporaneous performances on the organ.
He greatly excelled in his preludes to the Tate and Brady
Psalms, and in his interludes between the metrical Psalm
verses. It was here at S. Luke's that he succeeded in banishing
the tune Mi/es L/inf from the church services by an ingenious
trick. He caused each interlude to end a semitone higher
than it began, thus gradually carrying the high melodic range
of the tune to an impossible altitude for the congregation to
reach, demonstrating by this means that the dreadful old
Shrubsole melody was absolutely unfit for congregational
use. S. Luke's Church will well repay a visit. The south
churchyard (facing Old Street) is shaded by leafy trees, and
its tombstones are covered with ivy and creeping plants.
The north churchyard is pleasantly laid out with lawns and
flower-beds, with avenues of trees shading its walks. Witft
such vernal surroundings, the ugliness of the obelisk-steeple
is by no means as painfully obtrusive as it once was.
UOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE.
9.- BOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE.
writes in his Survey of London, "This church, in
j-^y the reign of William the Conqueror, being the first in
this city built on arches of stone, was therefore called
New Marie Church, of S. Marie de Arcubus or Le Bow,
in West Cheaping ; as Stratford Bridge, being the first built
(by Matilda the queen, wife to Henry I) with arches of
stone, was called ' Stratford le Bow ' ; which names to the
said church and bridge remaineth to this day. The Court
Of the Arches is kept in this church, and taketh name of
the place, not the place of the court." In Blackstone's
Commentaries, Vol. Ill, cap. 5, I, we read that " the Court
of Arches is an ecclesiastical court of appeal belonging to the
Archbishop of Canterbury, whereof the judge is called the
Dean of the Arches, because he anciently held his court in
the Church of S. Mary le Bow (Sancta Maria de Arcubus'],
though all the principal spiritual courts are now holden at
Doctors' Commons." The Court of Arches is, at the present
time, held at the New Law Courts in the Strand ; but the
ceremony of the "confirmation" of all Bishops of the
Province of Canterbury still takes place at Bow Church.
As the mother church of the thirteen peculiar parishes in
London which belong to the Archbishop of Canterbury's
jurisdiction, and the consequent sitting in ancient times of
the Court of Arches within its walls, S. Mary le Bow has
always enjoyed a pre-eminence among the City churches,
and it has also been equally distinguished by the superiority
of its architecture. Before the Great Fire of 1666, the old
church stood 40 feet back from Cheapside. Wren deter-
mined to bring his new church forward with a frontage to
the street, and the sites of two houses were purchased to make
room for it. In digging the foundations, the workmen came
upon a Roman causeway 18 ft. below the level of the street ;
so firm was this ancient pavement that the architect decided
upon building his superstructure upon it. The Xlth Century
Norman crypt (from which the church derived its name),
was also found to be uninjured, and was retained below
the basement of the present building. Built with Caen stone
42 BOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE.
it still exists, in an incomplete shape, but its plan shows
a centre division divided from two side aisles by partition
walls (of great thickness) pierced with openings ; the central
division being again sub-divided at its eastern extremity into
three aisles by heavy arcades of Norman pillars 8 ft. 2 in. high.
This crypt was for many years used for burial purposes, but,
early in the XlXth Century, many of the bodies were removed;
its south aisle (which still contains coffins) is now walled up.
The ground plan of the church is nearly square, consisting of
a nave with side aisles connected with the tower by a vesti-
bule attached to the north aisle. The dimensions of the
church are as follows : Length, 65^ ft. ; Breadth. 63 ft ;
Total height of steeple from the pavement of the street,
235 ft. This steeple (which consists of a tower and spire,
surmounted by a dragon) is generally ranked as one of
Wren's finest architectural conceptions ; but, owing to the
injudicious use of iron by Sir Christopher, this masterpiece
has undergone considerable repair since its erection in
1671-80. The church itself was finished in 1673. Not to
mention the Great Fire, S. Mary le Bow has suffered from
several serious accidents, and in the rough old times its walls
witnessed more than one scene of violence. In 1090, its roof
was stripped off during a great tempest ; in 1271, a consider-
able portion of the then steeple fell down, killing many
people of both sexes ; and in 1827, a stone fell from the
cornice of the tower. The belfry was prepared for twelve
bells, but at first only ten were placed in it ; these were first
rung as a complete peal on June 4, 1762, the birthday of
the reigning monarch, King George III. The tenor bell,
which weighs 53 cwt. 22 Ib. is tuned to the note C. Mr. T.
Walesby says that "this tenor bell alone is worth going
many miles to hear. It is a magnificent bell, the grandeur
and richness of its tone being truly charming." The number
was made up to twelve in 1881, when two of the bells from
All Mallows', Bread Street, were recast and inserted as the
two trebles in Bow steeple. The " Whittington Chimes"
have been quite recently restored under the direction of
Sir Charles V. Stanford. Mr. J. Q. Clarke, M.A.,
Mus. B., F.R.C.O., the present accomplished organist of Bow
Church, who has very kindly looked through the minute books
of the vestry of S. Mary-le-Bow and of the united parishes,
says there is no evidence to show whether there was an organ
in the old church which was burnt down, with the exception
of its Norman crypt, in the "dreadfull fire." For the next
hundred years after the completion of the rebuilding in
1685, the attention of the vestry was concentrated upon
additions to and repairs of the ordinary church furniture,
BOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE. 43
the famous bells, and the clock. So that in 1747, when
"several gentlemen of the several parishes" offered to pay
for the erection of an organ, if the parishes would maintain
it, provided a convenient place in the church could be found
for the said organ, though the offer was accepted unanimously,
nothing was done, and in 1773 a similar proposal was as
unanimously rejected. However, the difficulty about the
"convenient place" was removed in 1785, when it was
proposed " to inclose the lower part of the church and erect
an organ." Mr. Gwilt (the well-known architect: he placed
the granite pillars in the steeple at about this time) was "to
turn his thoughts to the matter, and look into the Church of
S. Mary, Aldermary, wherein a like improvement has been
made, and to report to the committee his sentiments and
opinions, etc." All this was done. The explanation of the
sudden turn of the scale is probably to be found in a little
excursus into the history of money affairs. The house
known as No. 4 Bow Churchyard was, among others, the
property of the parish. After the fire (in 1668) the ground
on which it stood was let on a long lease "at $ a year to
one Matthew Howard, in consideration of his building a
fresh house upon it." The lease of this house, including,
later on, the two next to it, was renewed twice to members
of the same family until 1798. In 1802 we are introduced,
in connectioa with these houses, to one Thomas Howard,
of Camberwell, " Professor of Music," who, it seems reason-
able to conjeciure, was of the same stock. He made an
offer to the rector and churchwardens, with which, after due
precautions, they closed, to erect an organ upon a gallery of
IO ft. by II ft., and to provide a player during his lifetime,
in return for an annuity of forty guineas, he being then thirty-
three years of age ; and the houses, Nos. 2 and 3, were
settled upon him, through a trustee, to pay this annuity.
The organ had 12 stops, on Great and Swell, and 14 " feet
pedals," though without "pedal pipes."
According to Mr. Henry Leffler, this organ was built
by Hugh Russell in 1802, and was opened on Easter Day
(April 1 8th of that year). It had :
" 2 setts of keys, from GG to F, short octaves. Swell to F.
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., 55 pipes; Stop. Diap., 55; Prin., 55;
lath, 55 ; isth, 55 ; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 165 ; Mixture, II ranks,
no; Trumpet, 55.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap. ,37; Stop. Diap., 37 ; Prin., 37 ; Trumpet, 37.
Organist, Mr. Howard."
The next organist mentioned in the vestry minutes, John
Joseph Strickland, held the appointment on the same
terms with the additional gratuity of 10 a year in respect
44 BOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE.
of the Tuesday evening lectures, from 1838 to 1866. In his
time began the depopulation of the City, with its curious con-
sequence, the regeneration of the church choirs. The charity
children became fewer and fewer, and their "psalmody"
eventually so intolerable that in 1864 a committee of the
vestry "resolved to try the experiment " of appointing a lady
at a salary of 1$ as leader. Mrs. Parsons was assisted by
several friends (members of her Bible class), and "the im-
provement thus effected gave general satisfaction to the
parishes." Strickland was succeeded after an interval, in
1867, by William Thomas Bayne, who had acted as his
deputy for the previous seven years. In this year the organ
had been rebuilt, enlarged and re-erected in the south-east
corner of the church by Mr. Q. M. Holditch, at an
expense of 312, and musicians spoke in very favourable
terms of the result. The following was the specification:
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., No. i, 8 ft.; Op. Diap., No. 2, 8 ft.; Stop.
Diap., 8 ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft.; izth, z ft.; i5th, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera,
III ranks; Trumpet. 8ft.
Swell (9 stops) Bourdon and Dble. Dulciana, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 3 ft.;
Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, II ranks;
Cornopean (drew in halves, Treble and Bass), 8 ft.; Hautboy, 3 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (5 stops) Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft. tone; Flute, 4ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Cremona (to Tenor C), 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (6) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; 6w. to Gt; Sw.
to Ch.; also Diocton, a Sw. Super-8ve coupler.
Accessories 4 comp. peds.
Compass Manual, CC to G. Pedal, CCC to E.
This organ had two fronts with gilded pipes. The pedal-board was
radiating.
In 1869, the rector and churchwardens were empowered
to select choirboys elsewhere than from the charity school,
provided they had sufficient musical attainments. In 1870
it was voted that the sum of ^50 be placed at the
disposal of the Rector and Churchwardens for the
purposes of the choir during the next year. In 1871
the organist's salary was increased to sixty guineas. On
Bayne's death in 1873, an open competition was held.
Dr. Hopkins, of the Temple, was the "umpire," and
Mr. Paul Jerrard (of S. Paul's, Lorrimore Square,
Walworth, S.E.) was selected from among thirty-six candi-
dates, some of whose names are well known. In 1878,
owing to the demolition of All Hallows', Bread Street, new
resources came into the hands of the vestry of the five united
parishes, among the visible results of which are the organ
(then entirely new), completed in 1880 by Messrs. J. W.
Walker & Sons, at a total cost of /iio8 55. The old.
BOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE. 45
organ was bought by Messrs. Walker lor ,255. The present
instrument is built to the following specification :
Great (10 stops) Dble. Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Horn
Diap., 8 ft.; Wald Flute and Stop. Bass, 8ft.; Prin., 4ft.; Harm.
Flute, 4 ft. tone; izth, 2 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks;
Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (12 stops) Dble. Diap. (Bourdon), 16 ft. tone ; Op. Diap., 8 ft.;
Echo Gamba, 8 ft.; Vox Angelica, Tenor C (undulating with Echo
Gamba), 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Prin. 411.; Spitzflote, 4ft.
tone; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Horn, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
ChoiP (7 stops)- Salicional, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Lieblich Gedackt,
A ft. tone; Gemshorn, 4ft.; Flute, 4ft. tone; Piccolo, 2 ft. ; Clarinet
and Bassoon, 8 ft. tone.
Pedal (4 stops) Op. Uiap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft. tone ; Quint (Open),
12 ft.; Prin, 8ft.
Couplers (5) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Fed.; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Ped.;
Ch. to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 3 comp. peds. to Sw.; Tremulant
to Sw.
Compass Manual, CC to A ; Pedal, CCC to G.
Tracker action throughout. One uniform pressure of wind through-
out. Concave and radiating pedal-board. The case is a handsome one,
designed after an ancient model, with two fronts of gilded speaking
pipes facing south and west.
No further alteration or addition has been made to the organ since
1880. The Blowing installation is by the Kinetic S wanton Company,
1904. The fan system is in use, with an electric motor, all the machinery
being in the crypt.
The absence of an organ in Bow Church for a consider-
able period of years would seem to have resulted in the
establishment of unworthy musical traditions. Mr. Charles
Box, who visited the church on Sunday evening, March
26th, 1882, is somewhat severe in his criticism of the
musical service he then heard there. On pp. 153-4 of
his Church Music in the Metropolis, he says: "Prayers
feebly intoned. Responses more decided. Psalms chanted.
Service settings to Canticles. Anthem selection of Passion
Music from the Messiah, sung by a choir of four male
and five female voices, who, with the exception of one
singer, gave an inadequate rendering of the music. Very
small congregation, twenty-five all told, made up of thirteen
adult females, four males, five children and three attendants.
Four parishes are united with S. Mary. Gross income of
the living, ^758."
The church services are infinitely better rendered at the
present day. The constitution of the choir is a mixed one
of four sopranos, two contraltos, two tenors and two basses.
The Sunday morning service at II o'clock consists of
Matins (slightly shortened) and Communion. These offices
are fully choral, except that there is no monotoning, the
Benedictus Canticle is sung to a chant rather than a setting,
46 BOW CHURCH, CHEAPSIDE.
and the Nicene Creed is said. The evening service, which
is musically of the same kind, is followed by a solo and an
anthem. The ladies of the choir do not affect any uniform,
but the men wear the gown of a now extinct Italian fraternity,
selected for its correspondence with the date of the church.
At the mid-day recitals on Wednesdays there are vocal and
instrumental (usually violin) solos both before and after the
rector's address. Unusually good congregational singing is
generally heard at this and the other mid-day services. The
present organist, Mr. J. Q. Clarke (to whom I owe much
of the preceding information), succeeded Mr. Paul Jerrard
in 1903.
S. LAWRENCE, JEWRY. 47
10.- S. LAWRENCE, JEWRY.
^~*HIS fine church, the eastern facade of which may be
V*/ ranked amongst Wren's happiest efforts, stands at the
south-east corner of Guildhall Yard. It is dedicated
to S. Lawrence, who was born at Huesca, in the kingdom
of Arragon, Spain, and who became treasurer of the Church
at Rome, being deacon to Pope Sixtus, circa A.D. 259. In
the persecution under the Emperor Valerian, S. Lawrence
underwent martyrdom by being laid on a gridiron and
broiled alive over a slow fire. His Feast Day, August loth,
appears in our English Church Kalendar. Stow says, in
his Survey of Lonaon, that the epithet "Jewry " was applied
"because of old time (since the reign of William the Con-
queror, who first brought Jews into this realm) many Jews
inhabited there about." Allen, in his New History of
London, 1839, states that " S. Lawrence, Jewry, was
anciently a rectory, but being given by Hugo de Wicken-
foroke to Baliol College, Oxford, A.D. 1294, the rectory
ceased ; wjierefore Richard, Bishop of London, converted it
into a vicarage, the patronage of which still continues in the
Master and Scholars of Baliol alternately with the Dean and
Chapter of S. Paul's." Stow says of the old church, " it is
fair and large, and hath some monuments." He enumerates
as many as thirty -eight, including those of seven Lord Mayors,
several sheriffs, and other worthy citizens, whose names are
now forgotten ; but he transcribes for us one of the beautiful
old Latin epitaphs that which he saw engraved on the
tomb of Richard Rich (Sheriff) who died in 1499 :
RESPICE, QVOD OPVS EST PR^SENTIS TEMPORIS jEVVM,
OMNE QVOD EST, NIHIL KST PR/ETER AMARE DEVM.
J. P. Malcolm, in Vol. IV of his Londinium Redivivum,
gives a list of nine chantries which existed in old S. Lawrence's
Church. Two of these both of a musical character we
quote :
"William Myldreth, test, 24 Henry VI, gave, to find
a singing man and one obit, an annual rent from the six
butts in Milk Lane and Lad Lane/^r annum, "] 6s. 8d."
48 S. LAWRENCE, JEWRY.
"Thomas Burgoyne gave, to find thirty priests to
sing thirty dirges and thirty masses, all his lands in Grub
Street, S Lawrence, Greenhithe, and S. Mary, Somerset,
per annum, 10. l6s. 8d."
There were several curious things preserved iu the old
church. Stow mentions "the tooth of some monstrous fish,
of a very great bigness, hanged up for show in chains of
iron upon a pillar of stone," but this had disappeared by the
time he wrote his Survey. Another object of interest which
was still to be seen in S. Lawrence, Jewry, in 1598, was a
long shank-bone, 25 in. in length, "of a man, as is said, but
might be of an elephant," writes Stow. It appears to have
been remarkable not so much for its length, as for " the thick-
ness, hardness, and strength thereof." All these mediaeval
memorials, etc., perished with the old church itself in the
Great Fire of 1666. The present church was begun in 1677,
and completed in 1706 at a cost of .11,870 is. gd. the
architect being Sir Christopher Wren. Its dimensions
are '.Length, 81 ft. ; breadth, 68 ft. ; height of roof, 40 ft. ;
height of steeple, 130 ft. The ground plan of the church is
a parallelogram increased in breadth by two aisles attached
to the northern side, one of which does not quite extend to
the eastern end of the building. The tower occupies the
centre of the west front, and is surmounted by a wooden
spire which has for a finial a vane in the form of a gridiron.
Over the altar was formerly a picture of the martyrdom of
S. Lawrence. At the time of the great fire of 1666, this
picture was cut out of its frame before the conflagration
reached the church, and was by this means preserved from
destruction. It now hangs in the present vestry. '1 here are
eight bells in the tower. There is a monument to Arch-
bishop Tillotson (died 1694) in the chancel.
I am indebted to the kindness of the present Vicar of
S. Lawrence (the Rev. J. Stephen Barrass) and also of
my friend Mr. W. F. Kingdon, Mus. B., Oxon., the
present Organist and Choirmaster, for the following extracts
from the Vestry Minutes :
March, 1683. "The committee having seen drafts and
proposals ot Mr. Harris and Mr. Smith for the organ,
and how it should be made, and being satisfied that they are
both good workmen, it was put to the vote whether of them
should make the organ, and it was speedily carried that
Mr. Harris should make the same, which is ordered to be
done by Mr. Harris accordingly. After Mr. Harris was
ordered to be che maker of the organ as by the order above,
it was agreed by Mr. Harris that he would make the same
according to his proposals, and that he would not expect any
S. LAWRENCE, JEWRY. 49
money until the organ is finished and approved by the
Parish. If the same was not approved, he would take it
away ; and he would finish the organ within three months
after the joiner and carver should finish their work." A
vestry minute shortly after states that Harris was given 100
to go on with, and had to find security for repayment if the
work was not approved of. Harris was afterwards paid
^300. The carver and joiner received some ^28^ for their
work, but the Vestry considered that this price was excessive.
1685. "Ordered that Mr. Browne shall proceed in
playing the organ in the Parish Church, and be organist for
one year from the time he began to play the same, he having
for his satisfaction left himself to the goodwill and kindness
of the Parish." Possibly Mr. Browne was not satisfied to
leave himself in the hands of the Parish, for he was after-
wards given a salary of 20.
The organ completed by Renatus Harris in 1685 still
occupies its original position at the west end of the church, in
a gallery sustained on Corinthian columns; its case is richly
carved (by Grinling Gibbons) with representations of
musical instruments, palm branches and other foliage. The
specification (as existing in 1800) is thus recorded by
Mr. Henry Leffler:
" 3 setts of keys from GG to C short octaves. Swell from Fiddle G to D
by Byfield.
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap., 50 pipes; Stop. Diap., 50; Prin., 50;
i2th, 50; isth, 50 ; Tierce, 50 ; Larigot, 50; Sesquialtera, IV ranks,
200 ; Cornet to C j, V ranks, 120 ; Trumpet, 50.
Swell (7 stops) Stop. Diap., 32; Stop. Diap., 32 ; Prin., 32 ; Cornet,
III ranks, 96 ; Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32 ; Vox Humana, 32.
Choir (3 stops) Stop. Diap., 50; Prin., 50; Flute, 50.
Salary 30: Organist, Mr. Chickeley, died Af.n, 1805 ; succeeded by
Mr. Banner, May, 1805."
The Choir organ was enclosed in a separate case in front.
The specification of the instrument is not given in the first
edition (1855) of Hopkins & Rimbault's Organ Book. Mr.
J. W. Billinghurst (writing in 1855) states that the
organ was largely rebuilt by Russell, and was subsequently
enlarged nominally by Keith, Prowse & Co., practically by
Henry Jones, of Brompton. In 1875, a new organ was
built by Messrs. Gray & Davison, the handsome old
Harris and Grinling Gibbons case being retained. The
following was the specification :
Great (10 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., No. i, 8 ft.; Op.
Diap., No. 2, 3 ft.; Clarabella, 8 ft. ; 8ve, 4 ft.; Flute Octaviante,
4 ft.; Quint, 2ooo."
It has been justly remarked by more than one topographer, that
the exterior of the present Church of S. Stephen has little to
recommend it. The ground plan of the church is a parallello-
gram with a tower, vestry and porch at the west end. The
west front, which abuts on the footpath of the street called
Walbrook, is concealed by adjacent buildings, of which a
bookseller's shop, built against the north side of the tower, is
at present (1905) the most prominent feature. The tower
and porch are the only portions of the western end of the
church which are visible. But the interior is surpassingly
beautiful; "its praise," writes Thomas Allen in 1839,
"is not confined to this country, it is the admiration of the
world. " There are four rows of Corinthian columns, but
within one intercolumniation from the east end, two columns
from each of the two centre rows are omitted, and the area
thus formed is covered by a cupola or dwarfed dome
surmounted by a lantern. This cupola, which is profusely
decorated with Renaissance ornamentation, is supported on
eight arches which spring from the entablature of the columns.
On a small scale, this beautiful cupola is an imitation of the
Pantheon at Rome, and may be described as a kind of
probationary trial previous to that consummation of the
architect's skill, his gigantic dome at S. Paul's. The aisle
ceilings are flat, but the vaulting of the nave consists of
intersected arches with clerestory windows inserted above the
reat entablature. Benjamin West's large picture, " The
Entombment of S. Stephen," which represents the saint's
fellow Christians bearing his body away after the martyrdom,
still occupies an honoured place on the north wall of the
church ; it was originally placed over the altar. The follow-
ing are the dimensions of the church : Exterior length,
87 ft, 10 ins. ; Exterior breadth, 64 ft. 10 ins. ; Interior
length, 82$ ft. ; Interior breadth, 59^ ft. The old church
was therefore considerably larger than the present building,
being more than 40 feet longer and more than 7 feet wider.
The organ remains in its original position in a west-end
gallery, supported by two composite pillars, in the inter-
56 s. STEPHEN'S, WALBROOK.
columniation of which is the arched entrance to the nave
from the porch ; " its elegant case (made by England in
1765) and ornaments make a grand termination for the
middle aisle, almost incapable of improvement " (James
Pellor Malcolm in Londinium Redivivum, Vol. IV, p. 613).
But it is only the case ot the original organ which remains ;
the instrument itself was removed to the Church of S. Bar-
tholomew the Great, Smithfield, in 1887. It was paid for
out of funds raised by subscription, and (writes Dr. E. J.
Hopkins) "the quality of tone of the instrument was very
good throughout, it was esteemed the best of England's
make in London." It was repaired and enlarged by Gray
in 1825, and afterwards rebuilt by Hill in 1872 at a cost of
.500, under the direction of Dr. E. J. Hopkins. The
original and subsequent specifications have already been given
in the account of the organ in S. Bartholomew the Great.*
In 1888, an entirely new organ was put into the old
England case by Messrs. W. Hill & Son. The following
is the specification, which was prepared by Mr. H. J.
White, the organist of the church :
Great (9 stops on 34 in. wind) Contra Bass, ml., 16 ft.; Op. Diap.,
No. i, ml., 8ft.; Op. Diap., No. 2, ml., 8ft ; Hohl Flute, wd., 8ft.;
8ve, ml., 4 ft.; Harm. Flute, ml., 4 ft.; Flautina, ml., 2 ft.; Mixture,
ml., 3 ranks ; Posaune, ml., 8ft.
Swell (12 stops on a 3 in. wind) Bourdon, wd., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., ml.,
8 ft.; Salicional, ml., 8 ft.; Vox Angelica (C), ml., 8 ft.; Rohr Flute,
ml. (wood bass), 8 ft.; 8ve, ml., 8 ft.; Sahcet, ml., 4 ft.; Mixture,
ml., 4 ranks; Contra Tromba, ml., 16 ft.; Horn, ml., 8 ft.; Oboe,
ml., 8 ft.; Clarion, ml., 4 ft.
Choir (6 stops on a 3 in. wind) Gamba, ml., 8 ft.; Dulciana, ml., 8 ft.;
Lieblich Gedact, ml. (wood bass), 8 ft.; Flauto Traverso, ml., 4 ft.;
Clarinet, ml., 8 ft.; Orchestral Oboe, ml., 8 ft.
Pedal (4 stops on 3 and 4 in. wind) Contra Bourdon (Quint Bass), wd.,
32 ft.; Op. Diap., wd., 16 ft.; Violone, wd., 16 ft.; Bombardon
(4 in.), ml., 16 ft.
Couplers (8) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. 8ve to Gt.; Sw. sub-8ve to Gt.; Sw. to
Ch.; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Ch. to Gt.
Accessories 6 pneumatic comb, pistons to Sw. (one variable) ; 4 comp.
ow Gt.
peds. to Gt.; 3 pneumatic pisions (acting on couplers) below
al ; double-acting ped. controlling Gt. to Ped. coupler.
This magnificent instrument the finest of the City Church organs
(although comparatively small), contains i,8S8 pipes, of which 1,576 are
of fine spotted metal, 231 of wood, and 81 of zinc. Every conceivable
gradation of tone is obtainable. The soft stops are of great beauty ; the
Diapasons full, smooth, and weighty, and quite free from the Gamba
quality ; the more powerful combinations are massive and rich ; and the
Full Organ grand in the extreme and perfectly balanced. The Pneumatic
Lever is applied to the Gt. manual and its four attendant couplers.
Tubalar-pneumatic ped. Pneumatic drawstop action to Sw. It is
hoped to carry this action through the entire instrument at some future
date. There are several internal reservoirs, the main bellows being in
the tower, and driven, from the Hydraulic Power Company's mains, at a
* See pp. 18 ir.d 79.
S. STEPHEN'S, WALBROOK. 57
pressure of 700 Ibs. to the inch, by a Brotherhood engine, having three
radial cylinders of if in. diameter and 2^ in. stroke. The interior of the
engine is automatically oiled by one of Thornton's Patent Lubricators.
This was the only engine available at the time (1888); it has a low
efficiency, but the great advantage of running without any concussion
at speed ; the wind is therefore particularly steady.
I am indebted to the kindness of rny old friend Mr. H. J.
White for the following : G. P. England's organ was
opened by Dr. Worgan on Sunday, June 9th, 1765. There
does not appear to have been any organ in the present church
before this date. A mezzotint view of the church in the
vestry shows the organless loft crowded with people. A
faculty was obtained from the Bishop of London for the
erection of the organ. There were four candidates for the
organist's appointment, viz., Treemain, Casson, Evance and
Lowe. These, having played before the parishioners on
June 26th, 1/65, Lowe was elected by ballot at a salary of ^30.
At the same time the blower received 2, and the tuner ^4.
These payments were increased at Easter, 1768, to blower,
3 guineas, tuner, 6 guineas. Lowe died in 1793. At a compe-
tition forthe vacant post there were four candidates, viz., Lowe,
Jun. , Showell, Norman and Purkis. The last three played
before the parishioners on March 8th, 1793. Result of ballot,
Showell 58, Norman 22, Furkis 6. Showell elected. The
following extracts from the vestry minutes are interesting :
April 2jth, 1804. The Churchwarden reported that he had
retained the last half-year's organist's salary in consequence
of complaints made of that gentleman's great neglect of duty.
Resolved " that the vestry clerk should write stating that his
better attendance is required, and insisting on his answer."
April 17th, i&i2. Showell applied for an increase of salary,
but this application was referred to a future meeting of the joint
vestry. April 22nd, 1813. Showell applied again with a
similar result. May 6tA, 1813. Showell's application refused
on the ground of inattention to duty. April i2th, 1814.
Organist's salary raised to .42, "on condition that he do in
future play a Voluntary previously to the commencement of
the Morning and Evening Service, and do attend whenever
sermons are preached on week days."
Showell died in 1825 leaving his wife and young family
almost destitute. A subscription was raised in the parish for
their relief, March sdth, 1826. The vacant appointment was
advertised on Nov. i6th, 1825, in "Times," "New Times"
and "Morning Herald." The candidates chosen were
required "to perform in person and not by deputy." There
were twenty-five applicants ; eleven were chosen to compete.
The competition took place on Dec. I4th, 1825. Umpire,
Rev. Mr. Latrobe, probably John Antes (1792-1878).
58 s. STEPHEN'S, WALBROOK.
Eight played; the umpire returned Miss Elizabeth
Kingston Probyn (alterwards Mrs. Cooper, stepmother to
the well-known organist George Cooper), John George
Emett and Edward Sturgess. The final selection was decided
by a poll of the parish on Dec. i6th. Result, Miss Probyn,
45) Emett, 10, Sturgess, I ; Miss Probyn elected.
Mrs. Cooper retired at Easter, 1868 (after forty-three years'
service), on full salary. The appointment being advertised,
fifty-two candidates applied and eight were chosen. The
competition was held at S. Matthew's, Friday Street,
S. Stephen's organ beimr, at that time, practically unplayable.
Umpire, Mr. George Cooper, who returned H. J. White,
I, Bryon, 2, Harris, 3. White (act 20) and Bryon (aet 26)
were subsequently disqualified on account of their youth, and
Harris was elected by the unanimous vote of the vestry,
June 4, 1868. Mr. H. J. White, the present organist was
elected unanimously on April 24th, 1873.
Many self constituted ''authorities" criticised adversely
Mr. White's specification of the present organ, but no one
complains of the effect in the church, which is truly admir-
able, if not astounding. With limited funds, the idea was to
get the greatest possible effect in the building for which the
organ was specially constructed.
Sir Walter Besant has described with painful accuracy
a Sunday morning service at S. Stephen's, Walbrook, at the
commencement of the XlXth Century. Before the service
the church was filled with a buzz of conversation, and when
the worship began, a great many people repeated aloud
everything assigned to the clergyman alone, even to the
Absolution (!), Lessons, Epistle and Gospel. The musical
portion of the service consisted of only one metrical psalm,
during the singing of which most of the people sat down.
When Mr. Charles Box visited S. Stephen's in 1881
and 1882 for the purpose of recording his impressions of the
service in the pages of his interesting Church Musit in the
Metropolis , he found only " a small choir of two male and
four female voices," and only a partially choral service. At
the present time there is an extremely well-rendered full
choral service by a surpliced choir of men and boys under
the able direction of the accomplished organist, Mr. H. J.
White, a former pupil of George Perry and W. H. Adams.
An interesting ceremony took place in S. Stephen's Church
on the afternoon of Oct. 8th, 1904, when the rector, the
Rev. R. S. de Courcy Laffan, M. A., unveiled the mural
tablet erected by the London Section of the Incorporated
Society of Musicians in memory of John Dunstable on
the south-west wall of the church. This tablet, which is of
S. STEPHEN'S, WALBROOK. 59
beautiful glass mosaic, reproduces in its lower panel the
restored Latin inscription (given above) which " perished in
the destruction of the church by the Great Fire, 1666." In
the upper panel there are three figures of angel musicians
against a starry sky, symbolizing the greatness of Dunstable
(who died on Christmas Eve, 1453) both as a musician and
an astronomer. The following was the order of service :
Introductory Voluntary, Pastoral Symphony (Christmas Eve)
From "The Light of the World." Sir Arthur S. Sullivan
Processional Hymn, " O God, our help in ages past " Turn, S.Ann't
Preces 5. Stephen's Use
Proper Psalms, Domine Deus noster ; Te decet hymnus
(A portion of the second psalm was sung as the Introit at the
funeral of John Dunstable m 1453).
Proper Lesson.
Nunc Dtmitiis, . . Service Setting in B b .. Henry Smart
Ant kern, " Let us now praise famous men" Dr. S. S. Wesley
The Unveiling.
Hymn, .. " O worship the King " Tvnf, " Hanover "
fhe Blessing.
Organ Voluntaries
(a) Choral Prelude, " Angelas ad Virginem " Dr. C. W. Pearce
(&) Chorus, " I will sing unto the Lord" . . . . Handel
From " Israel in Egypt."
The choral music was beautifully rendered by the choir of
the church under the direction of Mr. H. J. White, who
presided at the organ.
John Dunstable, the contemporary of Dufay, and the
greatest English musician of the day, was renowned through-
out Europe for the excellence of his compositions. A French
poet of the time, Martin le Franc (who wrote between 1436
and 1439), mentions the names of the then most popular
composers in Paris, and says that " their music is so ex-
quisitely melodious because they have introduced new
harmonies in their part-writing, and have made improve-
ments in the use of accidentals, of rests, and of mutations,
and they have adopted the English style and taken Dunstable
as tueir pattern. Consequently their music is marvellously
bright and attractive, and will stand the test of time." This
poem, entitled " Le Champion des Dames," was first printed
in 1500, although internal evidence shows that it was written
sixty years earlier. Sir John Stainer quotes the whole of the
particular canto of this poem (which is devoted to music) in
his invaluable book, Dufay and his Contemporaries.
Professor Wooldridge (Oxford History of Music, Vol. II,
p. 154), says, "the .oreign musicians now for the first time
perceived the possibility of a continuous flow of suave sound,
divided into manageable phrases, and harmonized almost
entirely in the mellifluous imperfect consonances ; not cloying
the ear, but by a constant interchange of 3rds and 6ths,
refreshing it, and exciting its interest '
60 S. MARGARET'S, LOTHBURY.
I2.-S. MARGARET'S, LOTHBURY.
ON the north side of Lothbury, opposite to the Bank
of England, is the parish church dedicated to
S. Margaret, a Virgin Saint of Antioch (daughter
of a heathen priest), who suffered martyrdom A. D. 278, in the
reign of the Emperor Decius, and whose Feast Day appears
in the Kalendar of the English Church on aoth July. The
Eastern or Greek Church celebrates her memory under the
name of Marina. The story of her triumphant witness
for the Faith is picturesquely given in Dean Milman's
poem The Martyr of Antioch, portions of which were set
to music by Sir Arthur Sullivan for the Leeds Festival
of 1880.
The rectory is of great antiquity ; we hear of John de
Haslingfield, having been presented to it in August, 1303,
by the abbess and convent of Barking in Essex, in whose
patronage the living continued until the suppression of the
religious houses in the reign of Henry VIII, when it lapsed
to the Crown, in whose gift it still continues, in alternation
with the Bishop of London. The original building being
greatly decayed by time, this church (like that of S. Stephen,
Walbrook) seems to have been rebuilt about the year 1440
on a site adjoining the same brook-side. Stow states that
" Robert Large (Lord Mayor in 1438) gave to the choir
of S. Margaret's one hundred shillings and twenty pounds
for ornaments," and to have expended the sum of two
hundred marks upon the "vaulting-over the water-course of
Walbrook running close by the said church." Twelve
monuments in old S. Margaret's Church are mentioned by
Stow, and he gives in full the epitaph on the tomb of Sir
John Leigh, 1564. This XVth Century church was com-
pletely destroyed in the Great Fire, and the present building
was erected by Sir Christopher Wren, and finished in
1690 at a cost of .5,340 8s. id. The ground plan consists
of a nave and south aisle ; the latter, which is separated from
the nave by a beautiful open screen of oak, is now fitted up
as a side chapel with an altar. There is a tower (surmounted
S. MARGARET'S, LOTHBURY. 6l
by a spire) at the west end. The columns between the nave
and aisle are of the Corinthian order. The marble font
(said to have been sculptured by Grinling Gibbons him-
self), is well worth seeing, these four scriptural subjects being
admirably treated by that great artist : Adam and Eve
partaking of the forbidden fruit, the salvation of Noah and
his family in the Ark, the baptism of Christ in the Jordan,
and S. Philip baptizing the eunuch. There is also to be
seen a brass bust of a knight in armour, preserved from the
neighbouring (destroyed) church of S. Christopher-le-Stocks,
bearing this inscription :
PETRVS LE MAIRE .EQVES AVRATVS M SVAE 88, 163!.
The dimensions of the church are : Length, 60 ft. ; breadth,
64 ft, ; height, 36 ft. ; height of steeple, 140 ft.
A finely carved Flemish rood-screen, with twisted columns,
separates the chancel from the nave ; this was taken from
the (destroyed) church of All Hallows, Thames Street.
S. Margaret's is admirably arranged, containing as it does
every necessary adjunct for a well rendered Catholic service.
The organ and its west gallery were both set up in 1801,
the organ, which was the work of G. P. England, having
been opened on Easter Day of that year. The instrument
originally consisted of Great and Swell manuals only, but a
Choir organ and \\ octaves of pedal pipes were afterwards
added. The specification is thus given by the late
Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, for many years vestry clerk of
S. Margaret's :
"Great (GG to F, No Gjt, 7 stops) Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin.;
i zth ; i sth ; Sesquialtera (draws in halves) ; Trumpet.
Swell (Gamut G to F, 6 stops) Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin.; isth
(formerly in the Choir) ; Hautbois ; Trumpet.
Choir (GG to F, No G j, 5 stops) Stop. Diap.; Dulciana; Prin.;
Flute ; Cremona.
Pedal (GG to C) Wood open unison pipes.
Couplers (4) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Gt.; Ch. sub-8ve to Gt.
The last two were added by Walker in 1854.
A very nia toned instrument. The pedals pull down the
keys of the Choir organ manual. There are three shitting
movements to the Great organ, and two to the Swell."
The organ was cleaned and the pipes regilded by J. Butler
(organ builder) in 1845, and in 1850 and 1862 it was
repaired and enlareed. Afterwards (in 1879) the organ was
taken in hand by Messrs. Bryceson & Son, who removed
it from the west gallery to a platform at the eastern end of
the south aisle, when the specification is thus given by Mr.
J. W. Billinghurst (favoured by the organist, Mr. Eicke) :
62 S. MARGARET'S, LOTHBURY.
Great (7 stops) Op. Diap.; Rohr Flute; Prin.; i2th ; isth; Mixture,
HI ranks; Trumpet.
Swell (7 stops) Dble. Diap.; Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin.; isth;
Oboe ; Cornopean.
Choir (5 stops) Dulciana ; Lieblich Gedact ; Prin.; Flute ; Clarinet.
Pedal (2 stops) Sub-bass ; Op. Diap.
Couplers (5) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. toCh.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch.
to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt. ; 2 ditto, to Sw.
Compass-Manuals, CC to F ; Pedal, CCC to F.
This is the specification of the organ as it stands at present.
In 1891 the instrument was restored to its original position in
the west gallery by Messrs. Henry Jones & Sons (of
Fulham). At first sight of the specification one is struck by
the apparent lack of foundation tone, especially on the Great ;
but the voicing of the Mixture, Twelfth and Fifteenth, is
such that in effect a perfect balance of tone is obtained
being a good instance of the old "Chorus Great," for which
the Englands were famous. From the modern point of view,
the organ as a whole suffers from the need of a second
Diapason and a Harmonic Flute on the Great, the want of
which is much felt, particularly in accompaniment.
Mr. Billinghurst gives the following list of organists :
Mr. Jonathan Perkins, 1801- i Mr. R. D. Eicke, 1884-1894.
1806. i Mr. G. W. Dunn, 1894-1899.
Mr. William Light, 1806-1847. | Mr. Marcus, 1899-1901.
Mr. Charles Batt, 1847-1866. Mr. F.J.Shaw,B.A.,F.R.C.O.,
Mr. W. Cornish, 1866-1882.
1901-1905.
Mr. A. Wheeler, 1882-1884. I Mr. R. D. Eicke, 1905-
The present able organist (Mr. Eicke), to whom I am
indebted for much of the preceding information, was re-
appointed after a lapse of eleven years, when he had the
probably unique experience of finding most of his former
boy trebles reinstated very efficiently in the choir as altos,
tenors and basses.
s. MICHAEL'S, CORNHILL. 63
13.- S. MICHAEL'S, CORNHILL.
arish church of S. Michael the Archangel on the
south side of Cornhill is of ancient foundation. Stow
says that "in 1133 AInothus the priest gave it to
the Abbot (Reynold) and Convent of Evesham in Worcester-
shire.'' On Dec. 3, 1503, the advowson was transferred to
the Drapers' Company, in whose patronage the living has
remained ever since. The old church, " fair and beautiful"
(destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666), possessed many
features of interest :(i) a three-storied tower (with a lofty
pinnacle at each of its four corners) surmounted by a grace-
ful spire; (21 a "proper cloister" on the south side; (3) a
"fair churchyard " on its south side, containing (4) a pulpit
cross "not much unlike to that in Paule's church yard,"
says Stow. This pulpit cross was erected by Sir John
Rudstone (Lord Mayor in 1528), who was buried (1531) in
a vault beneath it ; he appointed sermons to be preached
there, which were discontinued after t^ie "Reformation."
The same generous churchman built "proper houses in the
churchyard for the lodging of choir men, such as at that time
were assistants to Divine Service, then daily sung by note in
that church." At the general dissolution of the religious
life in England, S. Michael's choir was disbanded, and the
choristers' houses or lodgings were converted to the use of
"ancient, decayed parishioners." The old church was, on
its north side, open to the street, from which it was separated
by a small green churchyard ; its west front was (as now)
divided from the adjoining houses by " S. Michael's Alley,"
called in those days Longt-alley. The plan consisted of a
nave and choir, both with side aisles, a Lady chapel, a
chapel of S. Catherine, and other chapels. Much of the
mediaeval church plate, ornaments, etc., were of consider-
able value. John Stow (the historian) was born in the
parish of S. Michael, in 1525 ; his father was a tailor.
The mediaeval churchwardens' accounts of S. Michael's,
Cornhill, contain some interesting references to the organs
of the period. Thus :
64 s. MICHAEL'S, CORNHILL.
1459. "It'm to the Orgon maker lor amendynge of the
Orgons, w h ]d. spendid in ale ... ... \d. "
'473- " It'm, for mendying of the orgelles ... ]d.'~
1473. " It'm, payde to the orgel player iiys vijaP'
Dr. E. J. Hopkins comments upon the use of the German
word for organs in this record, which he thinks seems to
point to the influence of some foreign maker who might have
been at that time trying his fortune in "good London town."
The following three items show at a glance how the necessary
funds in connection with the ordering and erection of a XVth
Century organ in S. Michael's Church were obtained :
1475. " Receyved owte of the Church Aley bagge ffor a
peyer of new orgones as hyt aperyth in y e paymetes
[payments] by y e wille of all y e pyshons [parish-
ioners]. ... ... ... ... ... ... ix/z."
1475. " Payd to Myghell Glancets, organes maker, ffor a
pre [pair] of newe organes, and also bargayned w h hym
ffor our olde organes to have them [in part payment]
and besyde them, in money payd ... ... ix/z."
1475. "Payd to Robert Crossley, carpet [carpenter] ffor
V gystes [jois's] and C burde [boards] ij fellettes, and
iij ledges, and for rebatyng of y e seid burdes and work-
manshyppe of y e same in the Rodelofte to enhawse {i.e.,
enhance or raise\ hyt, and to make stondyng ffor the
seyd organes vs. \i]d "
Nearly a century later we come upon a very sad entry :
1572, 3Oth November. " It is agreed att this present vestre
that the two pare of organes shall be sold for the bcste
prysse that may be had ffor them ; and thatt there shal
be towe pewes buylded in the plasse where the sayd
organes do now stand."
How the history of our country and of its religion can be
read through t.he lines of the churchwardens' accounts con-
nected with the old City churches !
The present church was erected on the site of the former
in 1672 (six years after the Great Fire) by Sir Christopher
Wren, but the tower was not finished until 1721. With
the exception of the spire, the present tower (which contains a
fine peal of twelve bells) bears a passing resemblance to a pen
and ink drawing of its predecessor, which is preserved in the
vestiy and dated 1421. This old tower was saved from the
disastrous effects of the Great Fire, and was still standing at
the beginning of the XVIIIth Century ; the present one is
a free imitation of the Tower of Magdalen College, Oxfoid.
One of the finest glimpses of S. Michael's tower is to be seen
s. MICHAEL'S, CORNHILL. 65
from the pavement on the left-hand side of Clement's Lane,
looking towards Lombard Street. Viewed from this spot
(about half way up the lane) the upper story of this beautiful
tower surmounted with its four pinnacles blends harmoni-
ously with the western facade of the church of S. Edmund
the King, Lombard Street ; the tout ensemble resembling
certain Oxford architectural combinations, paiticularly when
on a summer evening the stonework takes a roseate hue,
reflected from the sunset of the western sky. The dimen-
sions of the church are : Length, 70 ft. ; breadth, 60 ft. ;
height of tower, 130 ft. Magdalen College tower is 145 ft.
high. The cost of rebuilding the church was .4,686 55. lid.,
and for reconstructing the tower, ^6,126 155.
The church was restored and beautified by Sir Q. Q.
Scott in 1860; the interior has a dignified effect. The
organ was built by Renatus Harris in 1684, and at first
consisted of Great and Choir manuals only. In 1790 it was
"repaired and enlarged" by Green, who added a Swell.
Mr. Leffler (writing at the very beginning of the XlXth
Century) gives the specification thus :
" 3 setts of keys, long octaves GG to E ; Swell to F.
Great (n stops)-Op. Diap., 57 pipes ; Op. Diap., 57 ; Stop. Diap., 57 ;
Prin., 57 ; i2th, 57 ; isth, 57 ; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 171 ; Mixture,
II ranks, 114 ; Trumpet, 57; Clarion, 57 ; Cornet to C, V ranks, 145.
Swell (7 stops) Op. Diap., 36; Stop. Diap., 36; Dulciana, 36; Prin.,
36; Cornet, III ranks, 108 ; Trumpet, 36; Hautboy, 36.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 57; Dulciana (through;, 57; Prin., 57;
Flute, 57; Bassoon, 57.
Pedals to C."
At a competition held on May nth, 1810, for the post of
organist (vacated by the resignation of Mr. Stevens), the
following was the result of the poll : Arnull, 29 votes ;
H. Dale, 26 ; Miss Rodd, 18 ; Mr. Nightingale, i ;
Mr. Nichols, o. This is recorded by Mr. Leffler, who was
present at the competition.
In 1849, the organ was reconstructed by Robson, under
the direction of Mr. Richard Li m pus, the then organist,
when the specification stood thus :
Great (12 stops) -Dble. Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Large Op. Diap., 16 ft;
Small Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diao., 8ft. tone; Prin., 4ft.; Wald
Flute, 4ft.; izth, 3ft.; isth, aft.; Stviuialtera, IV ranks ; Mixture,
IV ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (12 stops^Dble. Diap., t6 ft. tone; Op Diap., 5 ft.; Dulciana,
8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, a ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft.;
Sesquialtera, III ranks, ijj ft.; Mixture, II ranks, jj ft.; Oboe, 8 ft ;
Ho-n. 8ft.; Clarion, 4ft.
Choir (8 stops) -Dulciana, 8 ft.; Viol di Gamba, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 3 ft.
tone; Prin., 4 ft.; Flute (metal), 4 ft. tone; isth, 2 ft.; Bassoon,
8ft.; Clarinet, 8ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Stop. Diap., 16 ft. tone: Trom-
bone, 16 ft.
66 s. MICHAEL'S, CORNHILL.
Couplers (6)-Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.;
Sw. to Fed. ; 3ve Fed.
Accessories 4 comp. peds.
Compass-All the Manuals, CC to G s . Pedal, CCC to Tenor F.
Electric action was afterwards applied to the organ by
Bryceson in 1868, which was subsequently removed by
Messrs. Hill & Son, who rebuilt the organ in 1885-6,
and again in 1901. I am indebted to the kindness of my
friend, Mr. George F. Vincent, the present gifted
organist of the church, for the specification of the organ as
it now stands (1906) :
Great (12 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Horn Diap.,
8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft. (formerly in Swell); Rohr Flute, 8 ft.; Wald
Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; nth, z ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks ;
Posaune, 8 ft. ; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (12 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Viola di Gamba,
8 ft. (new in 1901); Voix Celeste, 8 ft. (netv in 1901); Stop. Diap.,
8ft.; Prin., 4ft.; I5th, 2ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Dble. 1'rumpet,
16 ft.; Horn, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (9 stops) Echo Gamba, 8ft.; Dolce, 8ft.; Vox Angelica, 8ft.
(formerly in Swell); Lieblich Gedact, 8ft.; Echo Gamba, 4ft.;
Stop. Flute, 4 ft.; Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; Flageolet, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
The Choir organ is enclosed in a. Swell box with a Balanced Pedal.
Pedal (5 stops) Op. Diap., i6ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Violoncello, 8ft.;
Trombone, 16 ft.; Bassoon, 8 ft.
Couplers (?} Sw. to Fed.; Gt. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.; Sw. to Ch.;
Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Gt. sub-8ve ; Sw. to Gt. super-8ve.
Accessories- Tremulant to Sw. ; 5 comp. pistons to Gt.; 5 ditto to
Sw.; 3 ditto to Ch.; Sforzando Fed.; 5 comp. pedals.
Compass Manuals.CC to G ; Pedal, CCC to F.
The Diapason work of this organ is remarkably good.
It is interesting to observe how the musical traditions of
S. Michael's firmly established ana adequately maintained
in mediaeval times have survived the devastating influence
of the Reformation. The " lodgings for the choristers " have
long since disappeared, but the choral service remains even
yet. Many illustrious musicians have presided at the organ,
and the choir-singing from time immemorial has been of the
best.
Amongst the organists of this church may be mentioned :
Obadiah Shuttleworth. died 1735.
Philip Hart, died 1719.
Abiell Whichello, Deputy Organist, died 1745.
Joseph Kelway, 1734-1736.
William Boyce, Mus. D. Cantab., 1736-1758.
Theodore Aylward, Mus. D. Oxon., 1768-1788.
Stevens, 1810
Arnull, 1810 .
Richard D. Limpus, 1875.
Edward Henry Thome, F.R.C.O., 1875-1891,
Williamson John Reynolds, Mus. D. Lond., 1891-1900.
George Frederick Vincent, 1900
s. MICHAEL'S, CORNHILL.
67
Obadiah Shuttleworth was also a first-rate violinist and
leader at the Swan Tavern Concerts in Cornhill (1728).
Philip Hart was also a lay-vicar of Westminster Abbey and
a gentleman of the Chapel Royal. He was the composer of
several psalm tunes, one of which has survived (in the new
Edition of Hymns, Ancient and Modern] to this day :
He must not be confused with Andro Hart, a famous
Psalter Editor, who lived a century earlier. Abiell V\ hichello
was for many years a fashionable teacher of the harpsichord
in London, and composed many Lessons for his instrument.
Kelway successfully competed for the post in 1734 against
Drs. Boyce and Worgan and Messrs. Flud and Young all
good players in their time. Shuttleworth, Hart, Whichello,
and Kelway, each appear to have officiated at S. Michael's
but a short time. Kelway was a pupil of Geminiani, and
taught the harpsichord to Queen Charlotte. Dr. Boyce, a
pupil of Dr. Greene, of S. Paul's, was composer to the Chapel
Royal, and editor of the famous collection of Cathedral Music
(3 vols., 1760-1778). Dr. Aylward left S. Michael's to
become organist of S. George's Chapel, Windsor.
Richard Limpus was the founder of the (now Royal) College
of Organists in 1864, and its first Hon. Secretary. Messrs.
Thome and Reynolds are well-known living musicians, and
the present holder of the post very adequately sustains the
high standard of the traditions associated with his appoint-
ment. There are frequent organ recitals during the luncheon-
hour on week days at S. Michael's, when the church is well
worth a visit.
68 S. PETER-ON-COKNHILL.
14. S, PETER-ON-CORNHILL.
^'HIS church, on the south side of Cornhill, at the
\J south-east angle, properly styled S. Yeter-super-
Cornhill (i.e., above, or at the fop of Cornhill), is of
very ancient foundation. It is said to have been founded by
Lucius, the first Christian King in this island, about the
year A.D. 179, who dedicated it to S. Peter, erected in it an
archbishop's see, and that this Church of S. Peter-on-Cornhill
was, and continued to be, the metropolitan and chief church
in this nation for 400 years, when S. Augustine removed
the archiepiscopal chair to Canterbury. Stow says of this
tradition, "Archbishops of London, hard to be proved, and
therefore not to be affirmed" ; it has since been rejected with
the common consent of antiquaries. In 1309, the patronage
of S. Peter's was transferred from the Nevil family (lords of
the manor of Leadenhall) to Robert Pykeham, of Essex, and
Margaret, his wife, who after holding the same for nine
years, made it over to Sir Richard Whittington and the
citizens of London in 1408. '1 he Lord Mayor, Aldermen
and Common Council have presented to S. Peter's since
1411. Stow in his Survey gives us no idea of what the old
church was like. Thomas Allen, writing in 1839, says of
the present church, which, in 1681, replaced the old building
destroyed by the Great Fire, "it is not easy to conjecture
why one of the meanest exteriors should have been given to a
church which forms a distinguished object in the principal street
of the city . . . nor why the architect (Sir Christopher
Wren) should have given the church an unsightly steeple of
brick-work excusable in the few other instances in which
brick towers were erected by him, as they are attached
to structures whose obscurity and situation warrant the
addition."
The interior of the church is conceived in a much better
style. It consists of a nave and choir (each with aisles)
separated the one from the other by a handsome (original)
oak screen of open work a rare specimen (for the time of
its erection) of this ancient method of dividing a church.
The Choir- Screen, which is fairly lofty, consists of three
S. PETER-ON-CORNH1LL. 69
arches flanked with Corinthian pilasters, corresponding in
size and situation with those on the columns which separate
the nave and choir from the aisles. The spaces between
these main arches of the screen are occupied by a smaller
arcade (the arches of which are alternately pendant) supported
by small fluted pillars. The whole screen is finished by a
frieze of acanthus leaves and a cornice, above the centre of
which, over the "quire-door" where the Crucifix should
be is a shield bearing the royal arms of King Charles II.
Nor is this unique and quasi rood-screen the only survival of
Catholic custom and usage at S. Peter's ; the church, from
time immemorial, has always been decorated with flowers
on certain Sundays in the Christian year. The fact that
Bishop Beveridge was Rector of S. Peter's at the time of
the re-building of the church may possibly account for these
lingering traces of good churchmanship.
The musical associations of S. Peter's, Cornhill, both
mediaeval and modern, are noteworthy. The following Items
are contained in the Churchwardens' Inventories and Accounts,
ordered to be taken of the church goods, plate, vestments,
&c. (1548-9):
Item (solde) by the saide Edwarde ffowler and Randolphe
atkynson (late churchwardens) to John Stockmede the
rode loft iij tonnes wt. the orgaines xviij ii (^18. 2s).
Item paid to the organmaker for his fee ending at mighelmas
for a yere (1550) 2s.
Item (sold) more to a portingall a paire of smale
orgaines 305.
,, Paid for borrowing a pair of regalls ... 5 s -
,, for carriage of them to and fro ... is. 2d.
Item for blowing the regalls ... ... ... 2d.
,, Paid for playing the regalls to the conduit is. (when-
the King came, and a shilling was paid for ringing all
the bells).
Item Paid to the organmaker for his fee for 2 yeres ending
at the same feast 8s.
Item paid to the goodman howe and his sonne to sell the
little orgaines 35.
It may be mentioned here that Regals was the name given
to a small portable organ containing one set of reed pipes
(double regals had two such sets). This distinguished the
instrument from the Portative, which consisted of flue pipes
only. Howe was the name of a well-known " organ maker "
of London, whose name continually appears in the church-
wardens' accounts of the various City parishes in the XVIth
Century. Regals were frequently used in out-of-door pageants
70 S. PETER-ON-CORNHILL.
for sustaining or "giving out" the Plainsong melody. In the
Inventory of goods, July, 1552, occur:
Item a pair of orgaines in the quier.
,, for wyne in the quier ... . ... 6d.
Paid to a minister on Or lady daye ... ... 8d.
,, to the preacher of a sermon 35. 4d.
At the rebuilding of the church after the Great Fire, the
organ was built in 1681 by Father Schmidt. Mr. Henry
Leff ler (writing in 1800) gives the specification thus :
"3 setts of keys. Compass GG short octaves to D. Swell (added by
Mr. Crang) to F in the Tenor.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
izth, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 156 ; Mixture, II ranks,
104 ; Cornet to CS, V ranks, 130 ; Trumpet, 52.
Swell (6 stops)-Op. Diap., 34; Stop. Diap., 34 ; Prin., 34; Comet,
II ranks, 68 ; Trumpet, 34 ; Hautboy, 34.
Choir (4 stops) Stop. Diap., 52 ; Prin., 52 ; isth, 52 ; Cremona, 52.
The Chorus was a very fine one, but has been in bad hands.
Organist, Mr. W. Adams. Salary, 20."
The cost of the original organ (Gt. and Ch. manuals only)
was 210, inclusive of painting and gilding. In 1840, at
the request of the then Rector, the Rev. Sir John Page Wood,
grandfather of Lieutenant-General Sir Evelyn Wood, the
present Commander of the Second Army Corps, the carved
figures of angels which were on the case of Father Schmidt's
old organ were preserved and placed at the end of the choir
stalls, where they are to be seen at the present time (1906).
Upon the erection of a new organ by Hill in 1840, under the
superintendence of Dr. H. J. Gauntlett, the old organ
was found to contain many wooden pipes of Schmidt's
construction, which the mellowing hand of time had rendered
of more than ordinary value. These were retained in the
new instrument, which was the first CC organ erected
in England. It was opened on Sunday, July I2th, 1840.
The following was its specification :
'Great (19 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Tenoroon Diap., 8 ft.; Op. Diap.,
8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone (drew in halves, Treble and Bass);
Prin., 4 ft.; i2th, 2 ft.; isth, a ft.; Tierce, if ft.; Sesquialtera,
II ranks ; Mixture, II ranks; Doublette, II ranks ; Corno-trombone,
S ft.; Corno-clarion, 4 ft.; [the remaining six stops formed as it were
a Choir organ played from the Gt. manual] ; Claribel-flute, 8 ft. ;
Oboe-flute, 8 ft.; Wald Flute, 8 ft.; Stopped-flute, 8 ft ; Dulckna,
8ft.; Cromorne, 8ft.
Swell (18 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Tenoroon Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft. tone (drew in halves, Treble and Bass); Op. Diap., 8 ft.;
Dulciana, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft; Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; Flageolet, 4 ft.;
i2th, 2 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft; Sesquialtera, III ranks;
Mixture, II ranks; Cornopean, 8 ft; Tromba. 8 ft; Oboe, 8 ft;
Clarion, 4 ft; Echo Dulciana Cornet, V ranks.
S. TETER-ON-CORNHILL. 7 1
Pedal (2 stops> Principal Diapason, 16 ft.; Contra Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (4) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Fed.; 8ve Fed.
Accessories 4 comp. ped. movements.
Compass- Both manuals, CC to f, 54 notes ; Pedal, CCC to D, two
octaves and two notes.
The stop-handles as large as door-handles were of ebony
inlaid with mother-of-pearl centres. The name of each stop
was inscribed not on the knob itself, but on a zinc plate
above the knob, fixed to the "jamb." The keys were
inlaid with tortoiseshell, ivory and ebony. At that time
(1840) the Swell at S. Peter's had the largest number of
stops in any English organ save that at Christ Church,
Newgate Street, and it must be remembered too, that in
those days the Great manual in the Birmingham Town Hall
organ contained only 17 stops, and that in York Minster, 24.
On this organ, as here specified, Felix Mendelssohn
Bartholdy played more than once. On one visit to
S. Peter's (Sept. 3Oth, 1840) he played Bach's Prelude and
Fugue in E minor, his own in C minor (Op. 37, No. l), yet
another of his own in F minor, beginning :
and other pieces, concluding with Bach's Passacaglia. Of
this last, he wrote a few bars as a memento, which to this
day (1906) can still be seen in the Vestry-room, together
with the stop-handles and keyboards he then played upon.
On another occasion (Sunday morning, June I3th, 1842) he
came into the church during the service and waited in the
vestry until the preaching was over. The concluding hymn
was sung to Haydn's well-known tune, "Austria" :
This he took for the subject of the concluding voluntary he
was asked to play, and, for a considerable time, he varied and
treated the theme extemporaneously with the happiest possible
effect, concluding with a well developed fugue on the same
subject. S. Peter's, Cornhill, is therefore well worth a visit
if only for these Mendelssohnian associations.
Further alterations and additions were made by Hill in
1867 and 1882. The instrument was rebuilt by Messrs.
Hill & Sons in 1891 with pneumatic action and the Choir
organ added ; it was opened on Sunday, Sept. 7th, in that
year by Mr. Joseph T. Smith, the present organist, to
72 S. PETER-ON-CORNH1LL.
whom I am indebted for the present specification, which
runs as follows :
Great (17 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Tenoroon DuHana, 16 ft.; Op,
Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Claribel Flute, 8 ft.
Prin.,4ft.; Wald Flute, 4 ft.; Oboe Flute, 4 ft.; i2th, 23 ft.; isth
2 ft.; Tierce, if ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Mixture, II ranks
Doublette, II ranks ; Corno Trombone, 8 ft.; Corno Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (18 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Tenoroon Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap.
8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; Voix Celeste
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; 12th, 3 ft.; ijth, 2 ft.; Piccolo
2 ft.; Sesquialtera, IV ranks ; Mixture. II ranks ; Cornopean, 8 ft.
Tromba, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (7 stops) -Lieblich Gedact, 8ft.; Dulciana. 8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.;
Gamba, 4 ft.; Stop. Flute (from aid Gt. organ), 4 ft.; Cremona
(from old Gt. organ), 8 ft.; Orchestral Oboe, 8 ft.
Pedal (4 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Violoncello, 8 ft.;
Grand Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (5) Sw. to Gt,; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.;
Ch. to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt. ; 3 ditto to Sw. ; Gt. to Ped. on and off.
Compass CC to F.
Amongst the organists of S. Peter's, Cornhill, have been
the following :
Mr. John Goodgroome (in 1725).
Mr. W. Adams (in 1800).
Miss E. Mounsey, 1834-1882.
Mr. Zechariah Fenner, 1882-1889.
Mr. Joseph T. Smith, 1889-
Well attended organ recitals are given at S. Peter's on
certain week-days during the City luncheon hour.
s. CLEMENT'S, NEAR EASTCHEAP. 73
15. S. CLEMENT'S, near EASTCHEAP.
ONE of the first churches to be destroyed in the Great
Fire of 1666 which, beginning in Pudding Lane,
where the Monument now stands, and at once spread
northwards was that of S. Clement, Eastcheap. In those
days, there being no King William Street, Eastcheap ex-
tended as far as S. Clement's Church. In these days (all
change of long established precedent being slow in the City)
the ancient topographical designation "Eastcheap" is still
attached to S. Clement's Church very often without the
qualifying preposition " near " ; to the great bewilderment
of postmen, pol'cemen, and other public officials whose
knowledge of London is expected to be like that of
Mr. Samuel Weller both "extensive and peculiar." On
this spot, at the corner of Clement's Lane and King William
Street, a church has stood for more than a thousand years.
Stow dismisses " S. Clement in Eastcheape " in a few
words, thus : "This is a small church, void of monuments,
other than of Francis Barnam, alderman, who deceased 1575,
and of Benedicke Barnam his son, alderman also, 1598.
William Chartney and William Overie founded a chantry
.there." The present building was erected in 1686, under
the superintendence of Sir Christopher Wren ; it cost
,4,365, 35. 4^d. Its dimensions are : Length, 64 ft. ;
Breadth, 40 ft. : Height, 34 ft. ; Height of Tower, 88 ft. The
ground plan is nearly square ; it consists of a nave, chancel
and south aisle, with a square tower at the west end of the
aisle. The exterior is very plain, but the interior (re-arranged
by William Butterfield in 1872) is handsome, church-
like, and devotional in character. The clerestory windows
are fitted with stained glass representing the Twelve Apostles,
the large western window contains figures of Bishops Pearson
and Bryan Walton (both of Chester) and Thomas Fuller, the
Church historian, all of whom have ministered in this (or the
former) church. The ceiling is particularly fine, its central
division being enclosed in a sculptured wreath of various kinds
of fruit. The woodwork of this church is unusually heavy, and
has a perfect wealth of carving, some of which is said to be
74 S. CLEMENT S, NEAR EASTCHEAP.
the work of Grinling Gibbons himself. The hexagonal
pulpit, with its immense sounding-board enriched with
cherubs, festoons, scrolls and other ornaments of the Renaiss-
ance period, is well worthy the most careful attention ; it
has a splendid appearance, and produces an effect which
reminds the visitor of pulpits he has seen in large Continental
churches and cathedrals. The font, too, is finely sculptured ;
this is an octagonal basin set on a pillar of the same form.
The original wooden cover in the form of a crown, within
which is a white dove, still remains. The late Mr. W. E.
Gladstone admired this font so much that he sometimes
brought his grandchildren and other friends into the church
to see it. Mr. Butterfield's interior alterations can be
scarcely spoken of without much adverse criticism ; he com-
pletely ruined the once beautiful pulpit staircase, he spoiled
the magnificent Wren reredos by cutting it up into three
parts, leaving the central division where it was originally
placed, but removing the two outer divisions respectively to
the north and south walls of the chancel, where they de-
ceptively suggest side altars where none exist. But more
unwisely still, he demolished the west gallery, and removed
the organ to the worst possible position in the church the
south aisle.
The organ was built for the church and erected in the west
gallery by Renatus Harris in 1695-6. It originally
consisted of Great and Choir manuals only, with no Pedal
organ. Mr. Henry Leffler gives the specification, as he
found it in 1800, thus :
" 3 setts of keys from GG to D. Swell to F. Pedals GG to C (18 notes).
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap , 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52; isth, 52; Tierce, 52; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 156;
Mixture, II ranks, 104 ; Cornet, IV ranks (to C), 108 ; Trumpet, .
Swell (6 stops)- Op. Diap., 34; Stop. Diap., 34; Cornet, IV ranks,
136; Trumpet (No. i), 34; Trumpet (No. 2), 34; Hautboy, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; isth, 52;
Cremona, 52."
The case is very similar in design to that of All Hallows,
Lombard Street (Harris, 1695), but is rather more elaborate.
The churchwardens' accounts show that S. Clement's organ
was built in 1695, an( ^ was publicly opened very early in
1696. Christian Smith (a nephew of Father Smith) had
charge of the instrument after this, and in 1711 the year
when " Mr." Purcell became organist, it was handed over to
the care of Abraham Jordan who probably added the
swell (an invention of his in the following year). Jordan was
succeeded by Gray, who made additions and repairs from
time to time. In 1872 the organ was removed from its
original position in the west gallery and placed in the south
S. CLEMENT'S, NEAR EASTCHEAP. 75
aisle by Messrs. Gray & Davison, when the specifi-
cation stood thus :
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap. (No, i), 8 ft.; Op. Diap. (No. 2), 8ft.;
Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; i2th, 2 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera,
IV ranks ; Mixture, II ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (8 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft.; Keraulophon, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.;
Cornopean, 3 ft.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Op. Diap., 16 ft.
Couplers (3) Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.
Accessories -3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.
Compass -Gt. andCk.,CC to G; Sw., Tenor C to G; Ped.,CCCto.
In 1872, the "re-arranging" architect (Mr. Butterfield)
ruined the appearance of the organ by "decorating^" the
front pipes with a grotesque arrangement of stripes of various
colours, giving a bookcase effect to the instrument by no
means pleasing, because of its incongruity with the archi-
tectural surroundings. Mr. John Norbury (the present
hon. treasurer of the Royal College of Organists) states, in
his well-known work on organ cases, entitled The Box of
Whistles (1877), that he " never saw so much solid paint put
on metal pipes ; when they were plain gilt they looked much
'better."
Soon after the 1872 "restoration" of the church, the care
of the organ was entrusted to Mr. Henry Wedlake, who,
after adding a Bourdon to the Pedal organ and making other
slight alterations, rebuilt and modernized the insirument in
1889 under the supervision of Dr. E. J. Hopkins and the
present organist of S. Clement's. The specification now
stands thus :
Great (9 stop?) Op. Diap. (No. i), 8ft.; Op. Diap. (No. 2), 8ft.;
Stop Diap., 3ft.; Prin., 8ft.; Flute, 4 ft. [from the old Chfir];
izth, 2Jj ft.; i sth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (8 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
Echo Dulciana, 8ft. (new); Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Cornopean,
8ft.; Oboe, 8ft.
Choir (6 stops) -Lieblich Gedact, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Keraulophon,
8 ft. [ from tfie Gray &> Davison Swell] ; Flute, 4 ft. (new) ; Prin.,
4 ft. ; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Violoncello,
8 ft. (new).
Couplers (s)-Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped. (new); Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to
Gt ; Sw. to Ch. (new).
Accessories- 3 comp. peds. to Gt; 3 ditto to Sw.
Compass All three manuals, CC to G ; Pedal, CCC to F.
The whole of the Great and Choir fluework (with the
exception of the few stops otherwise marked) remains the
untouched work of Renatus Harris; the three Stopped
Diapasons are wholly of metal, of a lovely tone quality,
76 S. CLEMENT'S, NEAR EASTCHEAP.
each with its own marked individuality ; the reeds are by
Wedlake, who, in his youth, worked with Henry Willis-
as his fellow-apprentice at the same bench in Gray & Davi-
son's factory. The name of the organist from 1696 to 1711
cannot now be ascertained at any rate from the church-
wardens' accounts; but from the latter date to the present
day a period of close upon two centuries S. Clement's,
Eastcheap, has only seen the following five organists :
"Mr." Purcell, 1711-1765 (54 years).
Jonathan Battishill, 1765-1801 (36 years).
John Whitaker, 1801-1847 (46 years),
John Alexander Jopp, 1847-1885 (38 years).
Charles William Pearce, Mus. D. Cantab., F.R.C O..
1885-.
Of these, the name of Purcell, sometimes spelt Pursill
(and even Pursley) appears continuously as organist for the
entire period of fifty-four years shown above ; no Christian
name is given. His relationship to the great Henry
Purcell, of Westminster Abbey, has never been accurately
ascertained. Jonathan Battishill is well known as the
composer of several excellent chants still in daily use in all
choirs and places where they sing; his anthem, "Call to
remembrance," and his glee, "Amidst the myrtles," are
both living specimens of his skill. He was buried in S. Paul's
Cathedral. John Whitaker was a successful writer of
music for plays, as well as of glees and songs. His glee,
" Winds gently whisper " (Musical Tiwes, No. 62) :
Winds gent -ly whis-per while she sleeps, while she sleeps, And
fan her with thy cool- ing, cool - ing wings.
has survived him. The present writer has a portrait of
Whitaker seated at an organ, on the desk of which is a copy
of his Seraph, a collection of psalm tunes, etc., mostly
adapted from the works (both sacred and secular) of the
treat masters. Whitaker lies buried in the crypt of
. Clement's Church, below the Cantoris choir stalls. His
pupil, J. A. Jopp, who succeeded him, was also a student
of the Royal Academy of Music, and was one of the earliest
members of the (now Royal) College of Organists. He was
an admirable extemporaneous player.
s. CLEMENT'S, NEAR EASTCHEAP. 77
S. Clement's, Eastcheap, has other associations of a non-
musical character which cannot be overlooked. Brian
Walton, D.D., Bishop of Chester and Chaplain to King
Charles I, was rector of S. Martin Orgar, from 1628 to 1661.
One of the ablest scholars of Oriental languages in his time,
he was the author of the Biblia Polyglotta the "Great Bible
of many languages," published in 1657 the first book issued
in this country "by subscription." Bishop Walton lies buried
in S. Paul's Cathedral. His successor in the See of Chester,
John Pearson, D.D., has been described by Bishop
Burnet as "in all respects the greatest divine of his age.
His famous Exposition of the Creed (delivered in the form of
sermons) in old S. Clement's Church, where he was lecturer,
entitles him to a high place among those Anglican writers
(such as Bishops Jeremy Taylor and Butler) who have con-
tributed to the theological literature of the world works of
lasting influence and incontrovertible importance." Pearson
dedicates this monumental work to the "Right worshipful
and well-beloved Parishioners of S. Clement's, Eastcheap,"
and writes thus in his preface: " Some years have passed
since I preached unto you upon such texts of Scripture as
were on purpose selected in relation to the CREED, and
was moved by you to make these meditations publick. But
you were pleased then to grant what my inclinations rather
led me to, that they might be turned into an Exposition of
the Creed itself; which, partly by the difficulty of the work
undertaken, partly by the intervention of some other employ-
ments, hath taken me up thus long, for which I desire your
pardon. And yet an happy excuse may be pleaded for my
delay, meeting with a very great felicity, that as Faith
triumpheth in good works, so my Exposition of the Creed
should be contemporary with the re-edifying of your Church
[after the Great Fire of i666j. For though / can have little
temptation to believe that my Book should last so long as that
Fabrick, yet I am exceedingly pleased that they should both
begin together ; that the publishing of the one should so
agree with the opening of the other. . . . This, I hope,
may persuade you to forget my slackness, considering ye
were not ready to your own expectation. Your experience
tells you the excuse of Church-work will be accepted in
building, I beseech you let it not be denied in printing."
Pearson died at Chester in 1686, and was buried in the north
transept of the cathedral (behind the organ) where a hand-
some altar-tomb with a recumbent effigy of the bishop
surrounded by figures of the Twelve Apostles fittingly marks
his final resting-place. A copy of the first edition of the
Exposition, presented by the author to the parish, is pre-
78 s. CLEMENT'S, NEAR EASTCHEAP.
served in S. Clement's Church. The name of Thomas
Puller, D.D., is well-known as the author of two standard
books, viz., "History of the Worthies of England," and
"The Church History of Britain, from the birth of Christ
to the year 1648," first published in London, 1655. A list
of rectors, from Stephen de Southlee (who resigned
March 1st, 1308-9) to the Rev. W. J. Hall, M.A., Minor
Canon of S. Paul's (the present rector), hangs near the west
door of the church, showing a continuous succession of parish
priests for seven centuries without a break. After the Great
Fire in 1666, the parish of S. Martin Orgar was united
to that of S. Clement, Eastcheap. The old church of
S. Martin, which was situated on the east side of S. Martin's
Lane, Cannon Street, is described by Stow as "a small
thing." It was the burial-place of several Lord Mayors and
other citizens of importance in the XVth and XVIth Cen-
turies. A part of the nave and tower being found repairable
after the fire, a body of French Protestants (in communion
with the Church of England) obtained a lease of the ruins,
and built for their own use a church of smaller dimensions
than the original, which was pulled down in 1824. This
French church contained in its west gallery an organ which
is thus described by Mr. Henry Leffler:
" Built by Holland. One row of keys, long octaves from GG to F.
Great (7 stops) Op. Diap. to C-fa-ut, 42 pipes [then runs into the
Stop. Diap.]; Stop. Diap., 58 pipes; Dulciana to Middle C, 30
pipes; Pnn., 58; isth, 58; Cornet, III ranks, to FJf in tenor,
108 pipes, having for its Bass Sesquialtera, III ranks to the bottom,
66 pipes.
Organist Mr. Plaits, Junr."
The rectory of S. Martin Orgar was of ancient foundation,
being in the gift of the Canons of S. Paul's Cathedral as far
back as 1181. "Orgar" is a survival of the name of
Ordgarus, the Danish founder, who gave the living (as
well as that of S. Botolph's, Billingsgate) to the Canons of
S. Paul's.
S. ANDREW UNDERSHAFT. 79
16. S. ANDREW UNDERSHAFT.
jne has described the old Spring-time in London
more charmingly than has Mr. Saunders, a writer in
Charles Knight's London (Vol. I, p. 169). He
reconstructs for us the mediaeval May-Day procession
consisting of men, women and children, "all dressed in their
gayest habiliments, and laden with green boughs, setting
forth towards the place where the May-pole was to be
elevated. As they passed through the streets of London,
they found :
' Each street a park
Made green, and trimmed with trees ;'
the church porches decorated :
' With hawthorn buds and sweet eglantine
And garlands of roses."
The Church of S. Andrew the Apostle was called
% 'S. Andrew L'ndershaft" from the circumstance that from
time immemorial a May=pole or shaft had been set up
there, which towered considerably above it. Long streamers
or flags were attached to the pole ; summer-halls, bowers and
arbours were formed near it ; the Lord and Lady of the May
were chosen, and decorated with scarfs, ribbons and other
braveries, and then the dances, feastings and merriment of
the day fairly begun.
S. Andrew's Church is situated on the eastern side of
S. Mary Axe, and the building occupies a plot of ground at
the back of the houses on the north side of Leadenhall Street ;
in consequence of which, the west end and north side of the
church (with the tower) are the only parts visible. In ancient
records it is called Ecclesia Sancti Andrea super Comkili,
from the street wherein it stands ; which (before the erection
of Leadenhall) went by that name as far as this place. The
church was originally founded in 1362; but by the end ol
the XVth Century it had become so ruinous, that the present
building (which happily escaped the flames of 1666) was
begun about 1502, and was completed in 1532. Its ground
80 S. ANDREW UNDERSHAFT.
plan consists of a nave, chancel and aisles, with a tower at
the west end of the south aisle. The church way restored
and re-opened on May 7th, 1875-6, the architects being Sir
A. W. Blomfield for the chancel, and Mr. E. Christian
for the nave. The window of the " Five Kings " (formerly
at the east end) was then removed to the west end the two
windows being similar in size, tracing, etc., and a new east
window was erected at the cost of the then Rector, the
Rev. F. Q. Blomfield, M.A. On the north side of
the church, near the Vestry door, is the monument of John
Stow, the historian, and author of the famous Survey of
London. "The dear old conscientious labourer," writes
Canon Benham, "is represented attired in his livery gown
with a ruff round the neck, sitting at his desk, writing busily."
Stow died April 5th, 1605, at the age of eighty. The dimen-
sions of the church are : Length, 96 ft. ; Breadth, 55 ft. ;
Haight of tower (including the turret), 91 ft.
The organ was built by Renatus Harris in the west
gallery of the church in 1696 Hatton (New View of London,
p. 124) says that "several gentlemen (whose names I am not
allowed to mention) contributed ,1400." The organ was
opened on May 3ist, 1696, when the Rev. Dr. Towerson
preached a sermon on Vocal and Instrumental Music. In
1725, Mr. Henry Tombes, a worthy parishioner (and a
liberal subscriber to the building of the organ) gilded the
pipes "at his sole cost and charge," as well as defraying the
expense of divers mural paintings, etc., in the church.
Mr. Henry Leffler thus specifies the organ as it stood in
the opening years of the XlXth Century :
" Built by Renatus Harris. 3 setts of keys, short Octaves from GG to
D. Swell by 15} field, to Fiddle G.
Great (n stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Tierce, 52 ; Larigot, 52 ; Sesquialtera, IV ranks,
208 ; Trumpet, 52 ; Clarion, 52 ; Cornst to C, V ranks, 125.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop.- Diap., 32; Prin., 32 ;
Cornet, IV ranks, 128 ; Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32.
Choir 6 stops) Op. Diap. (to Middle C), 26 pipes ; Stop. Diap. to C
fa ut, 39 pipes ; Prin. to C fa ut, 39 pipes ; Flute, 52 ; Cremona,
52 ; Vox Humana, 52.
This organ originally went to C only ; the upper C 4 and D
(as also the Sesquialtera and keys) were newly added by
England in 1811. The organ was re-opened on Sunday,'
Dec. 22nd, of that year, by Mr. W. Russell, Mus.B.,Oxon.'
The Bass of the Open Diapason from Middle C, and the'
Stopped Diapason and Principal from C fa ut in the Choir 1
organ spoke by communication. Mr. J. W. Billinghurst
saw this organ in November, 1855, when after having been
S. ANDREW UNDERSHAFT. 8 1
rebuilt and added to by Hill, the specification ran as
follows :
Great (3 stops)- Bourdon Tenoroon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop.
Diap., 8ft. tone; Prin., 4ft.; izth, 2 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera,
IV ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.;
Cornet, IV ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Hautboy, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops)- Op. Diap., 3ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft. tone; Dulciana,
3 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft. (metal thrmigliaut) ; Cremona, 8 ft.
Pedal Op. Diap. (wood), 16 ft. (added by Hill).
Couplers (3) Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt.
Accessories Composition peds. to Gt.
The organ was removed to the east end of the south aisle
in 1875, when the church was restored. I am indebted to
the kindness of the present organist, Mr. Herbert Q.
Preston, for the following description of the organ, as it
stands at present (1906) :
Great (12 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; 8ve, 4 ft.; Wald Flute, 4 ft.; i2th, 25 ft.; isth,
2 ft.; Sharp Mixture, II ranks ; Full Mixture, HI ranks ; Trumpet,
8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (9 stops) Dble. Diap., 8 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
8ve, 4 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.; Vox Humana,
3 ft.: Harm: Piccolo, 2 ft. Spare slides for Salicional, Voix Celeste,
and Mixture.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 3 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; 8ve, 4 ft.; Stop.
Flute, 4 ft.; Spitz Flote, 4 ft.; Cromorne (Clarinet), 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, r6 ft. Spare slide for
Violoncello.
Couplers (5)-Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.;
Lh. to Ped.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 compositions to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.
Compass Man., CC to F ; Ped., CCC to F.
Amongst the organists of S. Andrew Undershaft have
been :
William Goodgroome, 1696.
Philip Hart, 1720-1749.
John Worgan, Mus. D., Cantab, 1749-1790.
Miss Mary Allen, 1790-1836.
John Smith, 1836.
Richard Limpus, April, i847-July, 1847.
William Rea, Mus.D.. Dunelm, 1847-1858.
Miss Elizabeth Stirling (afterwards Mrs. F. A. Bridge),
1858-1880.
C- F. Frye. 1880-1886.
W. M. Wait, 1887-1891.
Herbert G. Preston, i8gr.
Of these, Philip Hart and Richard Limpus became organists
of S. Michael's, Cornhill.
82 S. ANDREW UNDERSHAFT.
Dr. John Worgan, who was a pupil of Roseingrave and
Geminiani, lies buried in S. Andrew's Church, "on the
left side of the communion table, as approached from the
aisle. ... As the body was brought into the church,
Mr. Charles Wesley (one of the doctor's favourite pupils)
played the Dead March in Saul on the organ, and the
instrument which in the dead musician's hands had fascinated
thousands, thundered forth a volley, as its unconscious master
descended into the grave. Such was the fitting scene that
honoured his remains, and vanished : and now,
Not a stone
Tells where he lies."
Quarterly Musical Review, Vol. V (for the year 1823), p. 133.
Accordingly, the present-day visitor to S. Andrew's Church
will ask in vain to see the last resting place of a great English
musician whom Jonathan Battishill and other critics of the
time considered a finer performer on the organ than Q. F.
Handel himself, and whose compositions are praised by
Dr. Burney, the musical historian, as "learned and masterly."
In person, Dr. Worgan was "dark, handsome and expressive ;
with a forehead shaped like Mozart's, and a profile much
resembling that of the poet Gray."
S. MARY-AT-HILL. 83
17-S. MARY- AT- HILL.
says that "the fair parish church of S. Marie is
.K^ called on (he hill because of the ascent from Billings-
gate." Situated in Love Lane, a turning out of
Eastcheap, the date of its foundation is uncertain, but the
church was rebuilt in 1487, and then appears to have had a
nave and chancel with north and south aisles, and a "cross
aisle," i.e., north and south transepts. The south aisle, built
about 1501, is said to have occupied " the site of the Abbot of
Waltham's kitchen" (Malcolm}. The walls and tower alone
escaped the Fire in 1666. Seven chantries are mentioned in
the book of chantries preserved in the British Museum as
having existed in the old church, which possessed as many
as nine altars. The parish (before the dissolution of the
monasteries) paid an original quit-rent of ten shillings to
Waltham Abbey "for ever." The Inventorye of Chyrch
Goades, 1485-6, "taken just before the rebuilding" when
Prewne and Halhed were churchwardens," mentions some
very sumptuous "appareyle for the hyghe aulter," and
amongst other interesting things, " Item, a myter for a
byshop at Seinte Nicholas-tyde, garnyshed with sylver and
aneyld, and perle and counterfete stone," plainly showing
that the custom of Boy-bishops or Episcopi Pue>-orum
prevailed here at S. Mary-at-Hill as well as at Salisbury
Cathedral and at other places. "Two paire of organs,
the one paire gretter than the other," are also mentioned in
the churchwardens' accounts. After the Fire, Sir Chris-
topher Wren, in 1672, rebuilt the east end of the church,
and gave it a new square interior in which four pillars "of a
strange order" support a cupola in the centre, lighted by a
circle of windows, the rest of the ceiling being without
ornament. The dimensions are : Length, 96 ft. ; Breadth,
60 ft. ; Height, to the ceiling of the roof, 26 ft. ; to the centre
of the cupola, 38 ft. There is a slight resemblance in the
interior of S. Mary-at-Hill to that of S. Stephen, Walbrook.
Hatton in his New View of London, 1708, Vol. II, p. 376,
says, " And here is a pretty organ, composed of these stops.
#4 S. MARY-AT-HILL.
ind set up anno 1692-3 " [by Father Schmidt]. Hatton
gives the following list of stops :
Great (ti stops) Op. Diap. ["of substantiall Metall of the Toane of
the Common Church Pitch "] ; Stop. Diap. (metal) ; Recorder
(wood); Prin. (metal); 151(1 (metal) ; i2ch (metal) ; Tierce (metal) ;
Mixture, III ranks (metal); Cornet, V ranks (metal, " advanced
exactly ") ; Vox Humana ; Trumpet (metal).
"To draw all in whole stops, except the i2th, isth, tierce, mixture,
\ox-humane and trumpet ; all of which are broken, ard made to draw in
half stops, for the benefit of increasing the variety in the organ."
The Accessories included a "tritneloe" and "an echo
to the whole.' 7
In 1788, Samuel (ireen built a new organ for the
church, for which he received ^320 and the old organ built
by Father Schmidt. Mr. Henry Leffler gives the specifi-
cation of Green's organ as follows :
"One sett of keys from GG long octaves to E, and a Swell to F in
ye Tenor.
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., 57 pipes; Stop. Diap, 57; Prin., 57;
I5th, 57; I2th, 57; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 228; Trumpet, 57;
Cornet to C, IV ranks, 116.
Swell (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 36; Dulciana, 36; Prin., 36; Cornet,
III ranks, 108 ; Trumpet, 36 ; Hautboy, 36.
Organist (in 1800) : Mr. Smetkergill, salary ,30."
In 1849, Messrs. Hill & Son built an organ for S. Mary's,
which is thus "specified" by Dr. E. J. Hopkins, who
speaks of it as "a very fine instrument " :
Great (15 stops ; every stof> throughout) Bourdon and Op. Diap.,
16 ft.; Op. Diap., 3 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Quint, 6 ft.;
8ve, 4 ft.; 3ve Quint, 3 ft.; Super 8ve, 2 ft.; Wald Flute, 4 ft.;
Flageolet, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera. Ill ranks; Mixture, II ranks;
Posaune, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft ; Krum Horn, 8 ft.
Swell (12 stops) Bourdon and Op. Diap., 16 ft ; Op. Diap., 8 ft.;
Stop. Diap., 3 ft. tone (draws in halves, Treble and Bass); Hohl
Flute, 8 ft.; 3ve, 4ft.; Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; 8ve Quint, 3 ft.; Super
8ve, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Hautboy, 8ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft; 8ve, 8 ft.; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (3) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; bellows with double-action feeders.
Compass Both Manuals, CC to f 3 in alt.; Peds., CCC to tenor E.
This organ was designed by Mr. J. F. Burrowes, the
then organist (afterwards of S. James's, Piccadilly). It cost
,600 with ^105 allowed for the old organ. To this two
manual instrument Messrs. Hill & Son added a Choir
organ in 1880. By the kindness of the present organist,
Mr. A. H. Carter, I am enabled to give the specification
of this fine organ as it stands at present (1906) :
S. MARY-AT-H1LL. 85
Great (16 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft,
tone ; Gamba, 8 ft. ; Harm. Flute, 8 ft. tone ; Quint, 6 ft. ; 8ve, 4 ft.
Wald Flute, 4 ft.; 8ve Quint, 3 ft.; Super 8ve, 2 ft.; Flageolet, 2 ft.
Sesquialtera, III ranks; Mixture, II] ranks; Krum Horn, 8ft.
Posaune, 8 ft. ; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (15 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.
Stop. Diap. (Bass), 8 ft. tone ; Stop. Diap. (Treble), 8 ft. tone
Hohl Flute, 8 ft.; Sve, 4 ft.; Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; 8ve Quint, 3 ft.
Super Sve, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Contra Trombone, 16 ft.
Cornopean, 8 ft. ; Oboe, 8 ft. ; Clarion, 4 ft.
ChoiP (10 stops)-Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Lieblich Gedact, 8 ft. tone; Viola
di Gamba, 3 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Unda Maris, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.
Flute d'Amour, 4 ft. ; Flautina. 2 ft ; Orchestral Oboe. 8 ft. ; Krum
Horn, 8 ft.
Pedal (5 stops) Contra Bourdon, 32 ft. tone; Op. Diap., 16 It.;
Bourdon, 16 ft. tone ; Sve, 8 ft.; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (9) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt ; Ch.
to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw. Sve ; Sw. sub-8ve ; Gt. to Ped. on and off.
Accessories 4 comp. peds. to Gt. ; 3 to Sw. ; Tremulant to Sw. by ped.
Amongst the organists of S. Mary-at-Hill may be named :
Mr. John Barrett, 1710 (died 1735).
Mr George Berg (his name appears amongst the list of
subscribers in the original edition of Handel's Judas
\laccabceus, 1746).
Mr. Smethergill in 1800.
Mr. J. F. Burro wes (afterwards of S. James', Piccadilly),
died 1852.
Dr. Edmund F. Chipp, 1852-1856 (afterwards of Ely
Cathedral).
Mr. 5. J. Noble, 1861.
Mr. Tunstall.
Mr. Whittaker.
Mr. W. A. Billingsby, 1898-1902.
Mr. A. H. Carter, 1902
S. Mary-at-Hill is at present (1906) the City church of the
Church Army, which, under the direction of its founder
and "General," the Rev. Prebendary Carlile, M.A.
(rector of S. Mary's), has done so much "rescue" and
general mission work on sound (if at times unusual} Church
lines.
.86 s. HELEN'S, BISHOPSGATE.
18.-S. HELEN'S, BISHOPSGATE.
IN a square on the east side of Bishopsgate, close to
Crosby Hall, stands the ancient Parochial and
Priory church of S. Helen, which happily escaped the
Great Fire of 1666. There is a popular tradition that the
Emperor Constantine built a church on this spot in the
IVtn* Century to replace a Pagan temple which had formerly
occupied the same site ; and that he dedicated this church in
pious memory of his mother, S. Helena, the reputed dis-
coverer of the True Cross, who was herself a British lady,
daughter of Coel II, Prince of the Trinobantes. A record
in the archives of S. Helen's states that in 1010, Alwyne,
Bishop of Helmeharn, removed the remains of King Edmund
the Martyr from S. Edmundsbury to London, and deposited
them in S. Helen's Church for three years, until the ravages
of the Danes in East Anglia had ceased. No authentic
record of the actual building of any part of the present
structure can be satisfactorily obtained. The style, however,
of portions of the architecture, and the mention made of it
in various documents, afford proof of its existence in the
early part of the XII Ith Century. The original parish church
had consisted of a long nave without aisles. In 1212,
William the Goldsmith established a Priory for Nuns
of the Benedictine Order in connection with S. Helen's
Church, and built a second nave along the whole length
(122 ft.) of the nave of the parish church on its north side.
That this priory church is really a second nave and not a
mere aisle, is proved by the fact that it is wider than the
original nave, 26^ ft. against 24 ft. This new priory church
known as the Nuns' Choir was divided from its neigh-
bour by an arcade screen, which was not removed until the
end of the XVIIIth Century.
The Rev. Canon Benham remarks that " one occasion-
ally sees the like arrangement in foreign churches. For
example, at the Abbaye aux Dames, at Caen, you have two
distinct congregations, one of nuns, the other of the world in
general ; and very impressive it is to hear the Vesper service
of the nuns unseen, and at the Gloria to have the curtains
s. HELEN'S, BISHOPSGATE. 87
lifted for a moment and to see them kneeling in devotion."
The fine doorway which led from the S. Helen's nunnery
into their choir is in good preservation, and so is also a
richly ornamented hagioscope of six openings, affording a
view of the high altar from the cloisters for those members
of the convent who were prevented from being in the choir.
The general appearance of this hagioscope or squint resembles
that of an altar tomb with open niches, a canopy surmounted
by an entablature with shields carrying armorial bearings.
In addition to the Nuns' Choir and the parochial nave, there
is, at the east end of the church, a south transept (in which
the organ is placed) and two eastern chapels side by side
opening from it, one dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, and
the other to the Holy Ghost. There is now an altar in the
Lady Chapel, with the original stone slab (still retaining its
five crosses) set on a movable frame ; here the Holy Eucharist
is offered every Sunday morning. There is a tradition that
in one of these chapels Richard III received absolution after
the murder of his nephews. The monuments in this church
are particularly interesting ; every visitor should see the
following:
1. On north wall of the Nuns' Choir, near the west end,
Alderman Thon Robinson, 1599. A beautiful Eliza-
bethan group of kneeling figures ; the deceased and his wife,
with nine sons and seven daughters.
2. In north-east corner of " Gresham Memorial Chapel"
at the east end of Nuns' Choir, altar tomb of Sir Thomas
Gresham, 1579. Founder of the Royal Exchange, and of
the Gresham Lectures.
3. Side by side with the preceding, Sir Julius Caesar
Adelmare, 1636. Judge of the Court of Admiralty.
Altar tomb with Latin epitaph in the form of a deed to
which is affixed the broad seal of the deceased.
4. In south-east corner of Gresham Memorial Chapel,
Sir Andrew Judd, 1558. Founder of Tonbridge School.
5. Under the chancel arch, north of High Altar, Sir
William Pickering, 1574. Ambassador in the reign of
Elizabeth. Altar tomb with recumbent figure surmounted
by a lofty canopy.
6. Under the chancel arch, south of High Altar, Sir
John Crosby (Founder of Crosby Hall), and Agnes (or
Anney) his wife, 1475. Altar tomb with recumbent figures.
7. In the Chapel of the Holy Ghost, Sir John Oteswich
and his wife, time of Henry VII. This was formerly in the
Church of S. Martin, Outwich (which escaped the Great
88 s. HELEN'S, BJSHOPSGATE.
Fire of 1666), and was replaced in the new Church of
S. Martin, erected in 1795, and ultimately destroyed in
1874.
8. Against the south wall of the church, slightly to the
west of the south entrance, Sir John Spencer and his
wife, 1609. Altar tomb under a canopy with recumbent
figures and a third (kneeling) figure.
The organ was built in 1744 by Thomas Griffin, a
barber in Fenchurch Street, who provided organs for churches
in a singular way. In consideration of an annuity granted
to him for life, he provided an organ for the contracting
parish, and engaged to pay an organist as long as his own
annuity was regularly paid to him. Encouraged by his
success in several instances (he provided organs in this way
for S. John the Evangelist, Westminster ; S. Margaret,
Pattens; S. Michael, Bassishaw ; S. Mildred, Bread Street;
and S. Paul's, Deptford), this man offered himself for election
as Gresham Professor of Music, against a professional
musician, well skilled in the art, but being a Common
Council man, and the electors being also Common Council
men, he was elected in 1762, and held that important office
for nine years.
In dealing with the parishioners of S. Helen's, Griffin
undertook, in 1744, to erect an organ of the value of ^500 in
the west gallery (then recently built by subscription), in
consideration of the receipt of ^250, and ^25 per annum
during his life, he engaging either to play himself or to
provide a substitute.
Mr. Henry Leffler (writing in 1800) specifies the
S. Helen's organ thus :
"3 y Griffin.
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap. to CC, then Stopt and 8ve pipes, 61 ;
Stop. Diap., 56 pipes ; Prin.,s6; i2th, 56 ; 15th, 56; Tierce, 56 ;
Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 224 ; Trumpet, 55 ; Clarion, 55 ; Cornet,
V ranks to C, 108.
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap. to Middle C, 27;
Cornet, IV ranks, 128; Trumpet, 32; Hautboy, 32.
Choir (5 stops) of which three "are by communication," viz., Op. Diap.,
Stop. Diap. and Prin.; isth, 56 pipes ; Cremona to D, 37 pipes.
An octave of Pedals.
There is no GG$ in either the Trumpet or Clarion."
In 1865 the west gallery was taken down and the organ
was repaired and removed to the chantry on the south side
of the choir. As far as can be ascertained, the present
specification is much the same as that recorded by Mr. Leffler
a century ago. In 18913 the church was thoroughly restored
under the direction of Mr. J. L. Pearson, R.A, and
S. HELEN'S, BISHOPSGATE. 89
re-opened on S. John the Baptist's Day, 1893, by the Bishop
of London (Dr. Temple). The Rector the Rev. J. A. L.
Airey, M.A., with his devoted band of churchwardens and
parishioners, are much to be congratulated upon the excellent
results which are the outcome of their care and supervision.
Amongst the organists at S. Helen's, Bishopsgate, may be
mentioned :
W. H. Cutler, 1818-1823.
Dr. Bexfield, 1848-1854.
Mr. Deane, 1854.
Miss A. Barton, 1867.
No visitor to S. Helen's should miss seeing Crosby
Hall, now (1906) a restaurant, once a royal palace. The
place has distinguished musical associations ; at concerts
given there in the first half of the nineteenth century,
Mendelssohn was a performer upon more than one
occasion.
9 S. JAMES', GARL1CK.HYTHE.
19.-S. JAMES', GARLICKHYTHE.
/^HIS church, at the S.E. corner of Garlick Hill, near
\~J the Mansion House Station of the District Kailway,
takes its local name from its former vicinity to a garlick
market anciently held by the river-side. Stow writes of
the old building (destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666), " This
is a proper church, whereof Richard de Rothing, one of
the sheriffs (1326) is said to be the new builder, and lieth
buried in the same." Mention is made of a rector, Peter
del Gannok, in 1259. The chantries and monuments in
the old church were both numerous and beautiful ; Stow
mentions one in particular, that of Richard Lions, a rich
"merchant of wines," slain in the Wat Tyler rebellion in
133* whose "picture on his grave-stone was very fair and
large." The living was in the gift of the Abbot and Convent
of Westminster, up to the time of the dissolution, when
coming to the crown, Queen Mary in 1553 granted it to the
Bishop of London and his successors, in whose hands with
those of the Dean and Chapter of S. Paul's it still remains.
The present church was built at a cost of .5,357 I2s. lod.
by Sir Christopher Wren, and opened in 1682. It is
75 ft. long, 45 uroad, 40 high, and the steeple rises to a
height of 96 It. The ground plan is a parallelogram, with a
square tower at the west, and a chancel at the east ; the area
is divided into a nave and aisles by two rows of Ionic columns,
the central intercolumniation being wider than the rest.
The fine pulpit and choir stalls, carved by tirinling
Gibbons, were removed here from S. Michael, Queenhithe,
when that church was destroyed in 1877. Bishop Hooper
of Gloucester, and John Rogers (burnt at the stake in
Queen Mary's reign) were both Rectors of S. James',
Garlickhythe.
The organ (happily still in its original position in the west
gallery and retaining its old handsome case) was built in 1697
by Father Schmidt. The Churchwardens' Accounts for
the year ending December, 1718, shew the following entry:
S. JAMES, GARLICKHYTHE. 91
" Paid and given the Workmen Carvers about y e organ, 7s. 6d."
In New Remarks of London, collected and published by the
Company of Parish Clerks in 1732, it is stated that the organ
was then only played on Sundays and on Christmas Day.
The description of the organ given by Mr. Henry Leffler
in 1 800 tallies so completely with that given by Mr. J. W.
BHIinghurst fifty-six years afterwards, that we need only
give the latter. Mr. Billinghurst, who visited S. James's
Church on March 3Oth, 1856, describes the organ thus :
" I found the instrument to be almost in its original slate
more so than one could conceive an organ to be in London
after the lapse of so many years. The manuals have black
natural keys and white sharps, These keys were so perfect,
that I think they must have been renewed at some time or
other. The stops are :
Great (GG short octaves to D: 9 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop.
Diap., 52 ; Prin., 52 ; i2th, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 208 ;
Cornet, 5 ranks (to C J), 130 ; Trumpet, 52 ; Clarion, 52.
Swell (Fiddle G to D ; keys below Fiddle G being " dummies "; 6 stops)
Op. Diap., 32 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 32; Prin., 32 ; Cornet, III ranks,
96 ; Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32.
Choir (same compass as Great ; 4 stops) Stop. Diap., 52 pipes ; Flute,
4 ft, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Vox Humana, 52.
No couplers, no pedals, no composition pedals.
The diapasons on the Great are very sweet, but weak.
The ' Chorus ' is satisfactory in the church. The reeds are
all quite out of date, the Vox humana cannot be used in the
service. The flute is pretty, the swell thin, its reeds very bad.
The want of pedals and pedal pipes very apparent. The
wind (supplied by two diagonal bellows) is very unsteady."
This interesting old organ was rebuilt by Messrs. Gray &
Davison in 1866, and again (by Messrs. HHI & Son) in
1888. At present (1906) the specification stands thus :
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., No. i, 8 ft.; Op. Diap., No. 2, 8 ft.; Stop.
Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Prin. 4 ft.; i2th, 3 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera,
III ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft. ; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (10 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft. tone ; Salicional, 8 ft.; Voix Celestes, 8 ft.; Prin. 4 ft.; isth,
2 ft.; Mixture, II ranks ; Oboe, 8 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.;
Piccolo, 2 ft. ; Cremona, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Grand Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (6) Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Fed.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw.
to Gt. ; Sw. Sve.
Accessory -Trem. to Sw.
The following organists have officiated at, S? James's,
Garlickhythe :
S. JAMES, GARLICKHYTHE.
APPOINTED.
NAME.
REMARKS.
25 March, 1719
14 May, 1719
26 March, 1722
14 March, 1744
i April, 1793
23 April, 1832
Talbot Young
John Jones
Richard Neale
John Gates
Edwd. Frith
Wm. Wilson
Salary ^20 per ana
Deceased 1722.
Deceased 1744.
Deceased 1793.
Resigned 1867.
9 April, 1874
20 April, 1876
24 June, 1899
Arthur Earth
Frank Frewer, A.R.C.O.
William A. Hall,
Resigned 1899.
Mus. B. , Oxon. , F. R. C. O.
When J. Jones was appointed in 1719, Edward Henry
Purcell (a son of Henry Purcell) was among the unsuccessful
candidates.
I am indebted to the kindness of my friends, the Rev.
H. D. Macnamara, M.A., Rector of S. James's, and Mr.
William A. Hall, Mus. B., Oxon., the present organist, fol
much of the foregoing information.
S. MAGNUS, LONDON BRIDGE. 93
20. S. MAGNUS, LONDON BRIDGE.
^"'HIS large and spacious church, situated at the north-
\*J east corner of London Bridge, is dedicated to
S. Magnus, an early Christian, who suffered mar-
tyrdom under the Emperor Aurelian. Of considerable
antiquity for Hugh Pourt founded a chantry here in 1302
its patronage was anciently vested in the abbots and
convents of Westminster and Bermondsey, who presented
alternately until the Dissolution, when the gift of presentation
passed to the Crown. Queen Mary, by letters patent, 1553,
granted it to the Bishop of London, who now presents to the
living alternately with the Archbishop of Canterbury. The
church was rebuilt after the Great Fire by Sir Christopher
Wren in 1676 at a cost of ^9,579, 195. lod. The steeple
was added in 1706. Twice since its total destruction ii,
1666 has this church suffered damage from fire in 1760 and
in 1827. After the fire in 1760, the basement of the tower
was pierced to admit a thoroughfare for foot passengers, and
the western portion of each of the side aisles was demolished
for this purpose. It is stated by Mr. Gwilt, in Vol. XC,
part ii, page 225, of the Gentleman's Magazine, that the
steeple was built from Wren's original design for Bow
Church, Cheapside. Miles Coverdale, a translator of the
Bible, and a former Rector of S. Magnus, lies buried in the
church.
But S. Magnus Church is chiefly famous on account of its
organ ; for here, in 1712, the first Nag's-head Swell
was introduced by its inventor, Abraham Jordan. In
the Spectator of Feb. 8th, 1712, we find the following
announcement : " Whereas Messrs. Abraham Jordan, Senior
and Junior, have, with their own hands (joynery excepted),
made and erected a very large organ for S. Magnus Church,
at the foot of London Bridge, consisting of four setts of keys,
one of which is adapted to the art of emitting sounds by
swelling the notes, which never was in any organ before ;
this instrument will be publicly opened on Sunday next, the
performance by Mr. John Robinson. The above-said
Abraham Jordan gives notice to all Masters and Performers
94 S. MAGNUS, LONDON BRIDGE.
that he will attend every day next week at the said church
to accommodate all those gentlemen who shall have a curiosity
to hear it."
According to Mr. Henry Leffler, Jordan was assisted
in the building of this organ by Christopher Schreider
(son-in-law of Father Schmidt). We know from a memo-
randum in a MS. book in Westminster Abbey that Schreider
co-operated with Jordan in the building of the Abbey organ
in 1730. Mr. Leffler gives the specification of S. Magnus
organ as he thus found it in 1795 :
" 3 setts of keys from GG to D, short octaves. Swell to G.
Great (n stops) Op. Diap., No. i, 52 pipes; Op. Diap., No. 2, 52
pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; i2th, 52; isth, 52; Tierce, 52;
Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 208 ; Cornet to C j, IV ranks, 130 ; Trumpet,
52 ; Clarion. 52.
Swell (8 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes: Stop. Diap., 32; Prin., 32;
i2th, 32; isth, 32; Tierce, 32; Trumpet. 32; Clarion, 32.
ChoiP (5 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 52 ; Flute, 52 ; isth,
52 ; Vox Humana, 52.
A ve>y fine old organ. /79J. Organist Mr, Cook.
Salary, ,52 IDS."
Dr. W. B. Gilbert, in his Antiquities of Maidstone,
shows that the Jordans were an ancient family located in
that town as early as the fifteenth century. He says :
" Thomas Jordan resided (in 1477) at the ancient family seat
in Stone Street, called for some centuries 'Jordan's Hall.'
Many members of the family have at various times been
concerned in the affairs of Maidstone, and one of the Jordans
in the last century was a distiller in the town. Having a
genius for organ building he removed to London, where he
made many fine instruments."
Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, who inspected this organ on
May gth, 1855, says that it was repaired in 1825 by Parsons,
and again in 1850-1 by Gray & Davison. By 1855 the
specification recorded sixty years previously by Mr. Leffler
(in 1795) had undergone the following changes :
Great (reduced to 10 stops) Tierce and Cornet both gone. A Mixture
replaces the latter. Compass extended upwards to F.
Swell (9 stops)^Compass extended downward to Tenor C, u(ni extra for the same. A P.S. to Mr. Walker's
letter to the churchwardens states, that "The compass of
this pedal organ will be more complete than that at S. Peter's
Cornhill, (at which church the organist's sister officiated)
which has but one octave returned." This addition made
the total cost of the organ ^430 " and the old organ " and
it most certainly was a very beautiful instrument for the
money paid for it.
The organ was placed in the centre of the great west gallery,
but when the church was modernized, in 1885, the instru-
ment was taken down and rebuilt in the south-east corner ot
the church, several stops were added by Messrs. J. W.
Walker & Sons, a third manual added, and the organ,
as it stands at present (1907), is as follows I insert the
specification with which I have been favoured by the kind-
ness of the present able organist, my friend, Mr. Henry
J. G. Gray:
114 S. VEDAST, FOSTER LANE.
Compass Manuals, CC to G ; Pedals, CCC to F.
Great (12 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap. (large), 8 ft.; Op.
Diap. (small), 8 ft.; Keraulophon, 8 ft.; Wald Flute (Stop. Bass),
8 ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; Lieblich Flute, 4 ft.; Prin. 4 ft.; i2th,
2f ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (10 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Viol di Gamba,
8 ft.; Vox Angelica, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.;
Mixture, III ranks; Horn, 8ft.; Hautboy, 8ft.
ChoJP (6 stops) Horn Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Lieblich Stop.
Diap., 8 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; Piccolo Suabe, 2 ft.; Clarinet. 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (5) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Ch.; Ch.
to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.
The following is a list of organists at this church :
Mr. William Duncombe, 1774.
Mr. Charles Jones, 1784.
Miss Catherine Jones. 1798.
Mr. Robert Topliff, 1807.
Miss A. Hill. 1828.
Miss Ann S. Mounsey (afterwards, Mrs. Bartholomew), 1837.
Mr. Henry J. G. Gray, 1886
Miss Mounsey was the elder of two celebrated sisters
who, in their day, were very fashionable musicians, and gave
concerts amongst other places in the Throne Room at Crosby
Hall, Bishopsgate, at which the elite of the City and Blooms-
bury were always to be found. They were both exceedingly
clever organists and very pretty women. The younger of the
two, Miss Mounsey, was appointed organist of S. Peter's,
Cornhill, in the year 1834, and held that post right up to the
date of her death, 1905. The elder, Miss Ann S. Mounsey,
afterwards married Mr. William Bartholomew, who will
always be remembered gratefully for the very beautiful
English translations he made of many German songs and
duets, and who acted as English librettist, and poet to his
kinsman, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy.
Mrs. Bartholomew retired in the year 1886, having been
organist for over 49 years, and died in the year 1891. She
was succeeded at S. Vedast's by her pupil, the present
accomplished organist, Mr. H. J. G. Gray.
I am indebted to my friend, Mr. William Windsor, for
much of the foregoing information.
S. MARGARET PATTENS. 115
26.-S. MARGARET PATTENS.
OF the three ancient City churches dedicated to S. Mar-
garet, one (in Lothbury) has already been described.
A second, which stood on Fish Street H ill before the
Great Fire, has its site now covered by the Monument. The
third, still standing at the south-east corner of Rood Lane,
Eastcheap, receives its compound name from its dedication
to S. Margaret, Virgin and Martyr, and from its situation in
a lane which was. at the time of its foundation, occupied
by makers and sellers of pattens. The patten-sellers' lane
came to be called Rood Lane, on account of the Churchyard
Cross of S. Margaret's, which, when the church was rebuilt
early in the sixteenth century, was blessed by indulgences
granted by the Pope to penitents who came to pray before it,
and made offerings at the same time for the rebuilding of the
church. The first recorded incumbent is Hamo de Chyrch,
who was presented to the rectory in 1324 by Lady Margaret
de Nevil. The patronage remained in the Nevil family until
1392, when it was transferred to Robert Rikeden of Essex,
who, in 1402, conveyed it to Richard Whittington, who,
in 1411, handed over the patronage to the Lord Mayor and
Corporation of London, with whom it still remains.
The present building (which replaces the one finished in
1538, and destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666) is much con-
cealed by houses, the only visible portion being the south
front (separated from Eastcheap by a paved court) and the
west wall in Rood Lane. Its ground plan consists of a
nave with a spacious north aisle (the eastern portion of which
is used as a vestry), and a recess at the east end for the altar.
A gallery over the vestibule at the west end contains the
organ, and there is another gallery over the north aisle. At
the north-west angle of the building stands a four-storied
tower, surmounted by a spire rising to a height of 198 ft.
The church was completed (from the designs of Sir Chris-
topher Wren) in 1687 at a cost of 4,986 IDS. 4d. The
exquisite carving on the reredos is unquestionably the work
of Grinling Gibbons. A picture of the Agony, by Carlo
Maratti, hangs on one of the walls. The organ was built
Il6 S. MARGARET PATTENS.
by Thomas Griffin about the middle of the eighteenth
century. In 1800, Mr. Henry Leffler thus specifies it :
" Two setts of keys all through. Compass from GG to D, short 8yes.
Sw. Fiddle G to D.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin,, 52;
i^th, 52 ; tsth, 52 ; Tierce, 52 ; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 156 ;
Trumpet, 52; Cornet, III ranks to CJf, 130.
Swell (3 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 32 ; Trumpet, 32.
Choir (2 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 52.
The Swell and Chair are ptayed from the same sett of keys.' 1
The organ was rebuilt by Q. M. Holdich in 1856, and
ab*out thirty-two years afterwards by Messrs. Foster &
Andrews (of Hull). It now (1907) contains :
Compass Manuals, CC to G ; Pedals, CCC to F.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ;
(9 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ;
Prin., * ft.; Wald Flute, 4 ft.; isth., 2 ft.; i2th, 2Jj ft.; Mixture, III
ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (9 stops) Dble. Diap.. 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.
Cornopean, 8ft.; Oboe, 8ft.
Pedal (i stop) Op. Diap., 16 ft.
Couplers (4) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. Sub.-8ve.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.
I am indebted to the kindness of the present organist, my
friend, Mr. Wm. Wait, for the foregoing specification.
Under the incumbency of the Rev. J. L. Fish, who was
rector from 1866 to 1907, the church obtained a great deal of
notoriety on account of the dignity of its well-ordered ritual, as
well as for the excellence of its musical services. The Masses
martyrdom of S. Charles, King of England, and the church
possesses a handsome processional banner with a portrait of
that unhappy monarch embroidered thereon.
Amongst the organists of S. Margaret's have been :
Jonas Blewitt, 1795 (?)-i8o5.
Robert Glenn.
Miss Eliza Wesley, 1846-1886.
F. C. Bevan
Wm. Wait, 1879-1881.
Hughes.
Walter E. Stark.
T. Drew.
Horace C. Buttery, 1884-1893.
Wm. Wait, re-appointed 1893 .
Of these, Jonas Blewitt was a composer of several sets
of meritorious organ voluntaries. His son Jonathan (who
S. MARGARET PATTENS. I I J
frequently, as a boy, deputized at S. Margaret's) was a
theatrical composer of some eminence, who, during a long
residence in Dublin, became Masonic Grand Organist of
Ireland. Robert Glenn was related to the Wesley family.
Eliza Wesley was the daughter of Samuel Wesley and
sister of Dr. S. S. Wesley. She was organist of S. Kath-
erine Coleman's, Fenchurch Street, from 1836-46, and after
that held the post at S. Margaret's for forty years. She was
born in 1819, and died in 1895. " I n ner own home," writes
Mr. F. Q. Edwards, in The Organist and Choirmaster
for June I5th, 1895, "and amongst the many interesting
relics she lovingly preserved of her father and grandfather,
Miss Wesley was a striking personality.'' Mr. Horace C.
Buttery was an artist by profession, but an accomplished
musician and choir- trainer. The present organist, Mr.
Wait, has raised the choir to a very high standard of
efficiency.
Jl8 S. MICHAEL, QUEENHITHE.
27. S. MICHAEL, QUEENHITHE.
(Destroyed in 1876).
KITING in 1598, Stow remarks that " Ripa
Reginse, the Queene's bank, or Queene hithe, may
well be accounted the very chief and principal
water-gate of this city, being a common strand or landing-
place, yet equal with, and of old time far exceeding Belins
gate" (Billingsgate). There was here anciently a large
harbour for ships, lighters, barges and such other vessels.
Ships of the Cinque Ports were compelled by King Henry III
to bring their corn to Queen-hithe, where there was a custom
house for the taxing of corn, fish, salt and other commodities
brought from foreign places. But as time went on, and vessels
grew larger, the market at Queen-hithe became slackened
and hindered by reason of the difficulty of ships getting
past old London Bridge. In the sixteenth century, Queen-
hithe was the only place in England where the process of
sugar- refining: was carried on. Malcolm, writing in
1807, stated that there were, at that time, many sugar houses
in the neighbourhood, and that " the inhabitants of their
vicinity need be under no 'apprehension from other exhala-
tions ; those of the sugar-house admit of no rival."" The earliest
authentic mention of S. Michael's, Queenhithe, is in the year
1404, when Stephen Spilman (who had served the offices
of alderman, sheriff and chamberlain), died, and left part of
.his goods to form a chantry in the church. There were at
least five other chantries there in pre-reformation times. Most
of the churches in Queenhithe Ward (including S. Michael's)
which were burnt in the Great Fire of 1666, were rebuilt,
and were still in existence in the middle of the nineteenth
century.
" There were churches also, by dozens, with many a ghostly
little churchyard, all overgrown with straggling vegetation
here, paralysed old watchmen guarded the dead at night,
year after year, till at last they joined that solemn brother-
hood." So wrote Dickens in the immortal chapter of
Martin Chuzzlewit, which describes "Town and Todgers."
S. MICHAEL, QUEENHITHE. 1 19
S. Michael's, Queenhithe (now ruthlessly destroyed), must
have been among these, for, according to Mr. DanielPs book,
it stood on the north side of Upper Thames Street, opposite
to Queenhithe. "M. Todgers' Commercial Boarding-
House" was, it may be remembered, near the Monument.
S. Michael's, one of Wren's churches, rebuilt by him after
the Fire in 1677 at a cost of 4354, 3s. 8d. was a plain
building, without aisles, 72 ft. long, 40 ft. wide and 39 ft.
high, well lighted by side windows, with round holes above.
The original " altar piece," representing Moses and Aaron,
with the inscription SURSUM CORDA, was retouched by
Sir James Thornhill in 1721, but this work of art was
destroyed in 1823 by an oversight, when a new altar-piece
was provided. Over the east doorway were fine carvings by
Grinling Gibbons. The fine pulpit and carved oak choir-
stalls, also the work of Grinling Gibbons, are now in the
church of S. lames, Garlickhithe. The tower, 135 ft. high,
had a gilded vane in the shape of a ship in full sail, sur-
mounted by a ball. This vane is now on the rectory house
of S. James', Qarlickhithe, with which S. Michael's
was united in 1876, when the latter church was wantonly
demolished. This rectory is on the site of S. Michael's.
In memory of this church, S. Michael's, Camden Town,
was built in 1881, which is a fine, lofty building in severe
Gothic style, by Messrs. Bodley & Garner. The organ in
S. Michael's, Queenhithe, was originally built by England
& Russell in 1779
Mr. Henry Leff ler thus specifies it :
" 3 setts of keys from GG, short 8ves to E. Sw. to G.
Great (10 stops)-- Op. Diap., 54 pipes; Stop. Diap., 54 pipes; Prin.,
54; i2th, 54; ijth, 54; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 216; Mixture, II
ranks, 108 ; Trumpet, 54 ; Clarion, 54 ; Cornet (from Middle C),
IV ranks, 116.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes; Stop. Diap., 34; Prin., 34;
Cornet, III ranks, 102; Trumpet, 34; Hautboy, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 54 pipes; Prin., 54; Flute (stopped), 54;
15th, 54 ; Cremona (to Gamut), 46.
A very good organ all through."
In 1837 (whilst Mr. J. T. Cooper was organist) the following
additions were made by Gray: Two octaves of pedals and
an octave of unison pedal pipes. The upper octave of pedal
keys, as well as the lower octave, both acted on the pedal
pipes independently of the Great Manual, by a system Lnown
as " return " pedal pipes. A Swell to Great Coupler and
percussion valves to the bellows were also added, and the
organ was tuned to equal temperament.
In 1876, when S. Michael's Church was needlessly des-
120 S. MICHAEL, QUEENHITHE.
troyed, the organ specification had undergone the following
alterations :
Great Sesquialtera had III ranks instead of IV ; Cornet had been
destroyed and replaced by a Viola from Middle C.
Swell The Cornet began at Middle C, instead of Fiddle G.
Pedal CCC to DD, instead of two 8ves from GG.
The organ was removed in this condition to Christ Church,
Chelsea, a church built in 1839, near Sloane Square Station
on the District Railway. In 1890, the instrument was
considerably enlarged and altered by Messrs. Abbott &
Smith, of Leeds, to the following specification, for which
I am indebted to the kindness of my friend, Mr. F. A.
Sewell, the present organist of Christ Church, Chelsea :
Great (CC to A 3 , 7 stops) Large Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Small Op. Diap.
(oldl, 8 ft.; Hohl Flote, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; isth,
2 ft. ; Trumpet (old), 8 ft.
Swell (CC to A 3 , ii stops) Bourdon [from old Gt. Stop. Diap.], 16 ft.;
Geigen Prin., 8ft.; Stop. Diap. (old), 8ft.; Salicional, 8ft.; Vox
Celestes, 8 ft.; Prin [from old Svr. Op. Diap.], 4 ft.; Gedact Flute
[from old Ch. Flute], 4 ft.; Mixture, III ranks [from old i2th,
Sesquialtera, Sw., Prin. and Cornet] ; Hautboy (old), 8 ft.; Trumpet
(old), 8 ft. ; Clarion [from old Gt. Clarion], 4 ft.
Choir (CC to A 3 , 7 stops)- Gamba [from old Gt. Prin.], 8 ft.; Stop.
Diap. (old), 8ft.; Dulciana, 8ft.; Prin., 4ft.; Stop. Flute, 4ft.;
i 5 th (old), 2 ft.; Cremona (old), 8 ft.
Pedal (CCC to F, 3 stops) Op. Diap., i6ft.; Bourdon, i6ft.; Bass
Flute, 8 ft.
Couplers (6) Sw. 8ve; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to
Ped. ; Ch. to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt. and Ped.; 3 ditto to Sw.; pneu-
matic action throughout ; blown by hydraulic power.
Amongst the organists of S. Michael's, Queenhithe, have
been :
Mr. Richard Short (who, in 1800, received a salary of ^30).
Mr. Joseph Thomas Cooper (afterwards of Christ Church.
Newgate Street).
Sir Joseph Barnby (afterwards Precentor of Eton).
I am indebted to my friend, Mr. R. J. Dallas, M.A.,
for much of the foregoing information respecting S. Michael's,
Queenhithe.
ALL HALLOWS, LOMBARD STREET.
28.-ALL HALLOWS, LOMBARD STREET.
^""HE six city churches dedicated to All Saints were all
V*J called by the old English name All Haltows. Very
much concealed by houses, the interesting church
named above is approached from Lombard Street by a gateway
leading into a passage through the houses which opens on a
small churchyard. As the east end of the church adjoins the
houses on the west side of Gracechurch Street, Stow and
others call it by the name of "All Hallows, Grasse-c&urcA."
Mention is made of this church as early as 1053 in the
Monasticon Atigiicanum : the Rectory then, as now, being
in the gift of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Rebuilt between
the years 1494-1544 (when the steeple was finished) the church
was entirely destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, and after-
wards rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren in 1694 at a cost
of ^8058, 155. 6d. The ground plan of the present building
is that of an oblong without aisles, the tower being situated
at, the S.W. angle within the plan. The dimensions are :
length, 84 ft; breadth, 52 ft.; height of roof, 30 ft.; height
of tower, 85 ft. The tower contains 10 bells, brought
from the unhappily demolished church of S. Dioms'
Backchurch in 1879. The entrance to the church is
through the basement story of the tower ; here is an old
gate, the piers and lintel of which are curiously sculptured
with death's heads, cross-bones, hour-glasses and other
emblems of mortality. This gate formerly stood outside at
the street entrance. In 1870 the church was restored and
decorated by Messrs. Francis (architects), and ten new
stained glass windows by (iibbs were inserted.
The organ was built in 1695 by Renatus Harris, and is
thus specified by Mr. Henry Leffler writing in 1800 :
" Has only one sett of Keys, Compass from CC (not any C jf) to D in
alt., without shifting movements.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 50 pipes ;Stop. Diap., 50 ;Prin.,5o; i2th, 50;
15th, 50; Tierce, 50; Sesquialtera, III Ranks, 150; Trumpet, 50;
Cornet, IV Ranks (to CJ), 104.
A very fair trumpet stop."
122 ALL HALLOWS, LOMBARD STREET.
This instrument, which had the CC manual range of the
organs built immediately after the " Restoration of the
Monarchy," was the contribution of forty-two benefactors
whose names were at one time to be seen inscribed in gold
letters on the organ gallery. The specification remained un-
altered as above until 1868, when it was published in the
Musical Standard for January 25th of that year, with the
following additional information, "No pedal pipes; no pedal
keys ; three bellows handles acting alternately." Two years
later (1870) the organ was rebuilt by Messrs. Gray &
Davison. At the present time (1907) it contains :
Great (7 stops)-Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop Diap., 8ft.; Prin..4ft; Twelfth,
3ft.; Fifteenth, 2ft.: Mixture, II ranks; Trumpet, 8ft.
Swell (7 stops, Double Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop Diap., 8ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Fifteenth, 2 ft.; Mixture, II ranks; Cornopean, 8 ft.
Choir (5 stops) Lieblich Gedact, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Gemshorn, 4 ft.;
Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft
Pedal (i stop) Grand Op. Diap., 16 ft.
Couplers (4) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.
Accessories- 3 composition peds. to Great; 2 ditto to bw.
The case resembles that of S. Clement's, Eastcheap; having a "tower"
at each corner, with an oval compartment in the centre surmounted by a
small tower, and side "flats."
Amongst the organists have been :
1812-1865. Miss Rhodes (Salary 30).
1865-1871. Mr. Gresham.
1871-1907. Mr. Th. Bensted.
1907- Mr. H. Evans.
To this last-named gentleman I am indebted for the
particulars of the present specification.
S. DIONIS, BACKCHURCK. 123
29.- S. DIONIS, BACKCHURCH.
(DESTROYED IN 1879).
ON the north side of Fenchurch Street, west of Lime
Street, the passer-by will observe a short line of
shops with a low elevation, behind which arise much
taller houses. This is the site of S. Dionis' Church, which
was ruthlessly destroyed in 1879. It was dedicated to
S. Denis or Dionysius, the patron saint of France, and was
named Back-church because of its standing back or behind
the row of shops referred to. The living of S. Dionis was
in the gift of the Abbot and Convent of Canterbury in the
year 1288, and remained in the patronage of the Dean and
Chapter of Canterbury until the year 1879, when the church
was pulled down, and the benefice united to that of All
Hallows, Lombard Street also a Canterbury living. Stow
remarks that the church was " lately new built in the reign
of Henry VI ; John Bugge, Esquire, being a great
benefactor to that work, as appeareth by his arms, three
water budgets, and his crest, a Morian's head, graven in the
stonework of the choir, at the upper end on the north side,
where he was buried." This church was one of the first to
be destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, but it was rebuilt
from the designs of Sir Christopher Wren, and finished
in 1674, the whole cost amounting to 5,757 ios. 8d! The
dimensions were: Length, 66 ft., breadth, 59 ft., height,
34 ft., height of tower (which was surmounted by a small
turret and spire, finished in 1684), 90 ft. The tower con-
tained six bells for peal-ringing. The interior was distinctly
handsome in character, with the organ effectively situated
in the west gallery. The organ was built about 1724 by
Byfield, Bridge and Jordan. Mr. Henry Leffler
(writing in 1800) specifies it thus :
" 3 setts of keys, long Sves, GG (with GG J) to D.
Great (n stops) Op. Diap., 56 pipes; Stop. Diap., 56; Prin., 56;
i2th and isth (together as one stop). 112; Tierce, 56; Larigot, 56;
Sesquinltera, IV ranks, 224; Trumpet, 56; French Horn from
D upwards], 37 ; Cornet, V ranks [from C], 135 ; Clarion, 56. The
Choir Cremona can be played upon the Great keys by communication.
124 S. DIONIS, BACKCHURCH.
Swell \_from Fiddle G] (7 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes ; Stop. Diap.,
32; Prin. [originally Vox Humana], 32; Cornet, IV ranks, 128;
Trumpet, 32 ; Cremona, 32 ; Clarion, 32.
Choir (7 stops) Op. Diap. [to Middle C, toss communicated from
Gt.], 27 pipes; Stop. Diap. to Gamut [the forty-four rest by com-
munication from Gt.], 12; Prin., 56; Flute, 56; Vox Humana, 56;
Bassoon, 56; Cremona, 56; Clarion \by communication from Gt.], 56.
A very fine organ. Organist, Miss Crane."
Mr. J. W. Billinghurst (who saw this organ in very
much its original state on August 8th, 1855) states that it
was blown by four pairs of bellows, and that the design of its
case was similar to that of the original S. Giles', Cripplegate,
organ, but the wood was of a lighter colour. The organ was
rebuilt and modernized by Messrs. Gray & Davison in
1868.
Dr. Charles Burney (the well-known musical historian)
was organist of S. Dionis in 1749 ; he was then a young man
twenty-three years of age, not long freed from his articled
agreement with Dr. Arne, and was engaged as a harpsi-
chord player at the subscription concerts held at the King's
Arms in Cornhill. He left London in 1751 to become
organist of S. Margaret's, King's Lynn, Norfolk, when he
appears to have been succeeded at S. Dionis by John
Bennett, an organist of sufficient talent to attract G. F.
Handel to his performances. Bennett was organist from
April, 1752, to September, 1784, and the name of Handel
appears as a subscriber to a volume of organ voluntaries
which he published during his organistship at S. Dionis.
Miss Crane (mentioned by Mr. Leffler as being organist
in 1800) was probably the direct successor of John Bennett.
When S. Dionis Church was needlessly destroyed in 1879,
the organ was removed and rebuilt in S. Mark's Church,
East Street, Walworth Road by Messrs. Maley,
Young & Oldknow. In 1881, the instrument was much
damaged by the great blizzard of January i8th, which pene-
trated the roof of the church evidently not as substantially
built as that of S. Dionis, Backchurch. On January 27th,
1885, the organ was re-opened after a complete rebuilding
by Mr. E. Ingram. By the kindness of the Vicar of
S. Mark's, Walworth, I am enabled to give the specification
as it stands at present (1907) :
Great (i i stops) Dble. Diap., i6ft; Large Op. Diap., 8ft.; Op. Diap.,
8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft.; Gamba, 8ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Harm. Flute,
4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, IV ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (14 stops) Lieblich Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Hohl
Flute, 8ft.; Horn Diap., 8ft.; Echo Gamba, 8ft.; Voix Celestes,
8 ft.; Prin.. 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft. ; Mixture, IV ranks ; Contra Fagotto,
i6ft.; Cornopean, 8ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.; Vox Humana
[in separate swell box], 8 ft.
S. DIONIS, BACKCHURCH. 125
Choir (7 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft; Dulciana, 8ft.;
Wald Flute, 4 ft. ; Prin. , 4ft. ; Piccolo Harmonique. 2 ft ; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (9) Sw..to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw. to Ped.; Sw. super-8ve ;
bw. sub-Sve ; Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sub-8ve; Ch. to Gt.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; Bellows; 4 comp. peds. to Gt.; 4
ditto to Sw.; pedal to act on Gt. to Ped.
S. Dionis Church, before it was destroyed, contained a
long list of benefactors and benefactions ; amongst these the
name of Sir Robert Jeffreys was prominent as having
bequeathed the sum of ^400 "to maintain Reading Prayers
for ever, to be paid by the Ironmongers' Company as his
trustees." It would be interesting to learn in what mannei
the will of Sir Robert Jeffreys is at present carried out.
126 S. SWITHIN, LONDON STONE.
30.- S. SWITHIN, LONDON STONE.
"^'HIS church is situated in Cannon Street, immediately
X~J opposite the station and hotel belonging to the South
Eastern Railway Company. It is dedicated to
S. Swithin, who died in A.D. 806, having been Bishop of
Winchester and Chancellor to King Egbert. London
Stone was, in Stow's time (1603), of considerable dimensions,
standing by itself away from the church, between the road-
way and the pavement; "fixed in the ground very deep,
fastened with bars of iron, and otherwise so strongly set that
if carts do run against it through negligence, the wheels be
broken, and the stone itself unshaken." In 1798, after being
doomed to destruction as a nuisance and an obstruction to
the traffic, the stone by that time reduced to a fragment not
much larger than a bombshell was (by the persuasion of
Mr. Thomas Warden, a printer of Sherbourn Lane)
enclosed within a neat little pedestal, and placed against the
south front of S. Swithin's Church, where it remains to this
day a mysterious proof of the antiquity of the City. For
no one seems to know exactly how, or for what purpose, the
stone was originally placed en this spot. Fabian supposes
that it was dedicated to Christ, serving as a sort of Palladium
to London. Strype and Camden both thought it might
be intended for the central British Milliarium or milestone
(similar to that in the forum at Rome) from which the British
high roads radiated, and the distances on them were reckoned.
But, after the Great Fire of 1666, when the ground all around
was considerably disturbed, Sir Christopher Wren, who
had examined the base of the stone, pronounced it some
important monument situated in the forum of Roman times,
and supported his opinion by mentioning fragments of articles
of Roman workmanship found near it. For many ages in
the early history of the City this stone was used as a rallying
point for the citizens in times of insurrection, etc., just as
the Guildhall would be at the present day.
Ancient records show that there was a church dedicated
S. SW1THIN, LONDON STONE. I2'/
to S. Swithin standing here before the year 1331. StOW
states that it was " new built and increased" in 1420. This
was done chiefly at the charge of Sir John Hind, Lord
Mayor of London, who was buried in old S. Swithin's. In
Stow's time (1603) there was a large house "sometime per-
taining to the Prior of Tortington in Sussex" which had "a
fair garden belonging thereunto, lying on the west side
thereof." The living is in the alternate gift of the Dean and
Chapter of Canterbury and a private patron, the former pos-
sessing the patronage of S. Mary Bothaw, a parish united
to S. Swithin's after the Great Fire.
The present church was built in 1679 from the designs of
Sir Christopher Wren at a cost of 4^87 43. 6d.
Malcolm, in his Londinium Redivium (1807), says "there
is an air of true elegance in this beautiful but diminutive
church, which is square, and reduced to an octagon by
composition pillars in the angles. Above the singularly
rich entablature is a handsome dome pierced with windows
and decorated with festoons." The reredos and pulpit are
both exquisitely carved. Hatton, in his New View of
London, Vol. II, p. 560 (published in 1708), states that
" a spacious black marble gravestone lying north and south
before the altar-rails " had the following inscription :
"Here lies the body of Mrs. Agnes Reid, daughter of
the Hon. John Reid, one of His Majesty's judges in the
island of Barbadoes, Ob. Jan. 1st, 1685. Arms, an Eagle
displayed, charged with an escutcheon :
"Virtue and Beauty here cloth lie,
Her sex's sole epitome ;
They must have Mustek, all the Arts
Judgment to use ; or want her parts.
When such vanish, then what can save
The most ingenious from the grave ? "
The dimensions of the church are : Length, from east to
west, 42 ft.; breadth, from north to south, 61 ft ; height of
church, 40 ft., and of tower and spire, 150 ft. Hatton
does not mention an organ in his account of S. Swithin's ;
but in New Remarks of London, a survey collected by the
Company of Parish Clerks in 1732, it is definitely stated that
the church did not then contain an organ. In Allen's London
(published in 1839) we read on p. 766 that "an additional
gallery for charity children on the east side of the organ was
erected in 1812." Mackeson's Guide for 1883 states that
the organ was built by Gray in 1809, and rebuilt by
Messrs. Gray & Davison in 1869. At present, the
instrument (renovated in 1906 by Mr. H. Wedlake)
contains the following stops :
128 S. SWITHIN, LONDON STONE.
Great (9 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft. ; Op. Diap., 8 ft. ; Op. Diap. (small),
8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; 8ve, 4 ft.; Harm. Flute, 4ft.;
Super-8ve, 2 ft. ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (12 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft.;
Voix Celeste, 8ft.; Keraulophon, 8ft.; 8ve, 4ft.; Super-8ve, aft.;
Mixture, III ranks; Oboe, 8 ft.; Vox Humana, 8ft.; Cornopean,
8 ft.; Clarion, 8 ft.
Choir (4 stops) Lieblich Gedact, 8 ft., Dulciana, 8ft; Suabe Flote.
4 ft. ; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Violone, 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.
Couplers (6) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.;
Sw. toCh.; Sw. 8ve to Gt.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw., and the usual composition pedals.
Under the rule of the present rector, the Rev. W. J.
Foxell, M.A., Mus. B,, Lond. (formerly Minor Canon
of Canterbury Cathedral), an admirably rendered choral
service is maintained. Amongst the organists of S. Swithin's
have been :
Deputy Alderman J. G. White.
389-1903.
1903-1906.
The Rev. J. Hirst, F. R C.O . 1889-1903.
R. J. Pitcher, Mus. R., Dunelm, F.R.C.O., it
H. Goldstein, A.R.C.O., 1906-.
S. MARY ABCHURCH.
31.-S. MARY ABCHURCH.
^"HIS church is situated on the west side of Abchurch
V*) Lane, a narrow turning which connects Cannon Street
with King William Street. It is supposed to derive
its local name from the fact of its standing upon rising ground,
hence: ^church, Apechurch, Apchurch, and Abchurch.
With the parish of S. Mary Abchurch is joined that of
.S". Laurence, Poultney, the church of which was burned in
the Great Fire of 1666, and never rebuilt. S. Laurence
Church was " increased " with a chapel of Jesus, by Thomas
Cole, in early Plantagenet times ; and this chapel with the
parish church was made collegiate by Sir John Poultney
for a master and seven chaplains in 1347. The religious
house of "Corpus Christi College on Laurence Foultney
Hill," as it was called, was " surrendered " in the reign of
Edward VI. Hatton, in his New View of London, Vol. II,
p. 361, states that in S. Laurence Church was buried " Eliza-
beth, wife of Emmanuel Lucar, a very ingenious person in
all sorts of needlework .... could play well on the Viol,
Lute, and Virginals. She read, spoke, and wrote Latin,
Italian, and Spanish, and (which crowned all) was endowed
with many virtues. She died before she was full 27, Anno
Domini 1537." This account of a XVIth century amateur
musician well deserves preservation.
The patronage of the living of S. Mary Abchurch was
originally in the hands of the prior and canons of S. Mary
Overies, Southwark (now S. Saviour's Cathedral), who, in
1448, exchanged it with the master and chaplains of Corpus
Christi College on Laurence Poultney Hill, for a house in
the parish of All Hallows-the-Less, Thames Street. On the
dissolution of that religious house, the living fell to the Crown,
but Queen Elizabeth, in 1568, gave it to Corpus Christ!
College, Cambridge, in whose gift it still remains.
Stow speaks of the old S. Mary Abchurch before the
Great Fire as "a fair church," and mentions three chantries
which it contained. The present building was erected from
the designs of Sir Christopher Wren at a cost of
,4,922, 2s. 4^d : its dimensions are, length 63 ft.; breadth
60 ft.; height 51 ft.; height of steeple 140 ft. The rectangular
130 S. MARY ABCHUKCH.
ground plan is square, lengthened slightly at the west end,
where the organ gallery is situated. The ceiling takes the form
of a well-proportioned dome. The reredos is particularly
deserving of attention, containing as it does some of the best
carving of Qrinling Gibbons a pelican feeding her young,
and a wealth of entwined tendrils, grapes, flowers, various
fruits, and ears of corn all executed with marvellous deli-
cacy. There are three bells in the steeple.
The organ was erected by J. C. Bishop in 1822 at a cost
of .300, raised by voluntary subscription. It was enlarged
by Messrs. Bishop & Starr about 1866, and rebuilt by
Messrs. Brindley & Foster 1875-1881 under the
direction of the present able organist, Mr. Albert E.
Bishop, to whom I am indebted for the following specifi-
cation :
Great (8 stops)-Op. Diap., 8 ft. (Bishof); Hohl Flute. 8 ft; Gamba,
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft. (Bis'wfi); i 5 th, a ft. (Bishop); rath, 2 | ft.; Mixture,
III ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (7 stops) Dble. Hiap. and Sub. Bass, 16 ft. (Bishop); Violin
Diap., 8ft.; Vox Angelica, 8ft.; Salicet, 8 ft. ; Mixture, III ranks;
Hautbois, 8 ft.; Horn, 8ft
Choir (5 stops) Salicional, ft.; Lieblich Gedact, 8 ft.; Lieblich
Flute, 4 ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft.; Cremona, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft. (Bishop &> Starr); Bourdon, 16 ft.;
Bass Flute, 8 ft.
Couplers (6)-Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Fed.; Ch. to Ped.;
Sw. toCh.; Sw. Sub-8ve.
Accessories- 4 comp. peds. to Gt.; 2 ditto to Sw.; Tremulant to Sw.;
Dble. action Gt. to Ped. coupler.
Only the Great organ stands in the original Bishop case
(1822); the whole of the remainder of the instrument being
placed at the back and sides, the bellows under the side arch.
The organists have been :
A daughter of the parish clerk who led the singing before
the organ was introduced, i822-i8=;8.
Mr. George Henry Robinson, Mus. B. Cantab., 1858-1864.
Mr. Tom Shoubridge, 1865-1871.
Mr. Albert E. Bishop, 1871.
Of these, Mr. Robinson was subsequently organist of
Charterhouse School, Godalming ; Mr. Shoubridge was a son
of the well-known tenor lay vicar of that name at S. Paul's
Cathedral. Mr. Bishop was a chorister boy at Westminster
Abbey under James Turle; he is an admirable choir-trainer
and a brilliant organist. A series of Bach Recitals given
some years ago by him, attracted considerable attention in
the City. Mr. C. E. Willing (of the Foundling Hospital)
acted as umpire at the two competitions which respectively
resulted in the election of Messrs. Shoubridge and Bishop.
S. ETHELBURGA, BISHOPGATE STREET. 131
32.-S. ETHELBURGA, BISHOPGATE STREET.
*-|T)ERHAPS no better example of a small mediaeval
^.i London Parish Church could be found than the
highly interesting little building above-named, which
happily escaped the Great Fire of 1666, and exists to-day very
much in its original fourteenth century condition. Allen
remarks that its interior possesses " more the character of a
country church, than that of a parish church in the heart of
the metropolis." Dedicated to S. Ethelburga, the first
Christian Princess of the Saxon race, the daughter of Ethelbert,
King of Kent, who became the patroness and protector of
S. Augustine, "the Apostle of the English," the church is
situated a little north of S. Helen's place in Bishopsgate
Street, Within. Its earliest record dates back to 1366, when
Robert Kilwardeby was rector. Hatton (in his New
View of London, 1708) states, that the church was repaired
and beautified in 1612, and the steeple in 1620. Further
alterations were made in 1694. The ground plan consists of
a nave, chancel and south aisle, the last-named extending the
entire length of the church. Between nave and aisle are
four pointed arches springing from clustered pillars. Over
the south aisle there was formerly a gallery (removed in 1862
when the church was restored by Withers) upon which
appeared the following inscription : 7 his Gallery was given
by Mr. Owen Saintpeer (being Church-warden in (he
year 1629} only for the Daughters and Maid-servants of this
Parish to sit in. This was known as the Maids' Gallery,
and affords an interesting example of the "division of the
sexes " in church during early Protestant times. The
dimensions of the church are as follows : Length, 54 ft
breadth, 25 ft. ; height, 31 ft. ; height of steeple, 90 ft.
The advowson was in the hands of the prioress and nuns of
S. Helen's, Bishopsgate, until the suppression of that
convent in 1539; when, coming to the crown, it was some-
time after granted by Queen Elizabeth to the Bishop of
London, who is still the patron of the living.
The organ, built by Elliott towards the close of the
XVIIIth century, was originally in the West gallery of the
132 S. ETHELBURGA, BIsHOPGATE STREET.
church. Mr. Billinghurst describes it in the "fifties"
of the XlXth century as "a small organ with a bad Gothic
front." During the restoration of 1862 it was stripped of its
cumbrous and ugly case, and placed behind the choir stalls in
the south aisle. In 1898 it was rebuilt and enlarged by
Messrs. Speech ly; so that the specification stands thus at
the present time (1907) :
Great (7 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.;
Prin. 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; izth, z ft.; isth, 2 ft.
Swell (3 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Oboe (really a
i'rumpet), 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft.
Couplers (3) Sw. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Fed.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.
Amongst the organists have been :
Alfred), Eyre, F.R.C.O., 1872-1874.
Edwin M, Lott, F.R.C.O., 1880-1903.
Clarence Thompson.
William C. Crooks.
Sydney B. Mason.
I am indebted to my friend Mr. Sydney B. Mason, the
present organist, for the organ specification, and other
information.
S. BOTOLPH, BISHOPSGATE. 133
33. S. BOTOLPH, BISHOPSGATE.
^ BOTOLPH the Briton is said (by Hatton) to have
$^J + been born in Cornwall, and to have lived between
the years A.D. 620 and 690. He migrated to East
Anglia, where he founded a monastery at what is now called
Boston, i.e., " Botolf s Town his burying place. For some
reason or other being eminent as a miracle-worker he
came to be regarded as the patron saint of travellers ; hence,
anyone about to take a journey in mediaeval days would
naturally commend himself to the care and protection of S.
Botolph. Accordingly, there were four churches in London-
dedicated to this Saint, and each of these churches stood
close to one of the city gates. They were : S. Botolph,
Billingsgate ; S. Botolph, Bishopsgate ; S. Botolph, Aldgate ;
and S. Botolph, Aldersgate. The first named church has
long since disappeared ; it stood in Thames Street, opposite
to Botolph Lane, which was named from it : Maitland was
of opinion that this church was of Saxon foundation. The
other three churches happily remain until this day (1907).
Erected as they doubtless were with the idea that the
wayfaring man would as he quitted or entered the City
first step aside to offer prayers for a safe journey, or render
thanks for his preservation and safe return ; it is interesting
to observe that even in these days of much running to and
fro, the Church of S. Botolph, Bishopsgate, still
answers its ancient and original purpose. Close by in
Liverpool Street, is the great terminus of the Great East-
ern Railway, which boasts the heaviest traffic of any
metropolitan station, and, as a matter of fact, a writer in the
Church Monthly for September, 1907, remarks that "many
a traveller is to be seen passing into the church either on his
way to daily work, or before he starts for some far-off
country."
Stow (1598) only describes the church in his day as
standing " in a fair churchyard, adjoining to the town ditch,
upon the very bank thereof; " but Hatton (1708) tells us
that it was then " an old church built of brick and stone, and
rendered over [with plaster?] ... it escaped the dreadful
flames in 1666, and was not long since repaired. It is of
34 S. BOTOLPH, BISHOPSGATE.
ihe Gothick Order ; but the pillars that support the roof are
of the Tuscan; and some of those that the galleries rest on
are of the lonick Order, and the roof is somewhat arching."
This old church was 84 ft. long, 51 ft. wide, and 28 ft. high;
it had a square tower and turret about 80 ft. high in which were
six bells. The clock dial was inscribed Disce Dies Numerarc.
It is evident from Hatton's account that the art of Church
Restoration was very imperfectly understood and practised
two centuries ago. Seventeen years later (1725), the then
incongruous old S. Botolph's Church was found to be so unsafe
that it had to be pulled down, and a new building was erected
in its place from the designs of James Gould. Finished
in 1729, the present church has its tower placed over the
East (instead of the West) end, evidently for the purpose of
dominating the main street. In this tower is a fine peal of
eight bells which have been recently re-hung. The basement
of the tower forms the sacrarium. The East window repre-
sents "The Attraction of the Cross," the West window depicts
" The Presentation in the Temple." Amongst the Rectors
have been Dr. W. Conybeare, Prebendary Wm. Rogers, and
Dr. Earle (Bishop of Marlborough and now Dean of Exeter).
Dr. Ridgway (Bishop of Kensington) is the present incumbent.
Keats, the poet, was baptised in this church, and Alleyn
(founder of Dulwich College) lies buried in the churchyard,
which \sfatrer now than in the days of Stow, for the "town
ditch " has disappeared, and in summer time the gardens are
bright with flower-beds, and the whole place is quiet and
restful under the leafy shade of its tall green trees. There
was no organ in the church when Hatton wrote in 1708,
but mention is made of Daily Service : " prayers at 8 and 7
in the summer, and 9 and 7 in the winter daily, except on
holy days, when they are at about II in the morning." Mr.
Henry Leffler states that John Byfield, Junr., built
an organ in 1764 (not in 1750 as stated by Rimbault) which
contained the following stops :
" Three setts of keys from GG to E, long octaves. Swell (Fiddle) G
.upwards.
Great (n stops) Op. Diap., 57 pipes; Stop. Diap., 57 pipes; Prin.
57 pipes; Flute, 57 pipes; izth, 57 pipes; isth, 57 pipes ; Tierce,
57 pipes; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 228 pipes; Cornet V ranks (to C),
145 pipes ; Trumpet, 57 pipes ; Clarion, 57 pipes.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes; Stop. Diap., 34 pipes; Prm.
34 pipes; Cornet, III ranks, 102 pipes; Trumpet, 34 pipes;
Hautboy, 34 pipes.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 57 pipes ; Prin., 57 pipes ; Flute, 57 pipes ;
Vox Humana, 57 pipes ; isth, 57 pipes ; Cremona, 57 pipes. A
noisy chorus."
The organ was enlarged and removed from the West
gallery to the East end of the church by Messrs. Qray &
S. BOTOLPH, BISHOPSGATE. 135
Davison, in 1867. In 1887, it was reconstructed and
enlarged by the late Henry Willis, and re-opened on
Trinity Sunday, June 5th, of that year. In 1893 it was
divided into two portions and replaced in the west gallery by
Messrs. T. C. Lewis & Co., who applied their electro-
pneumatic action to the northern half of the instrument.
During the summer of 1902, the organ was cleaned, repaired,
revoiced, and supplied with a new electro-pneumatic action
for the northern half, pneumatic action for some of the draw
stops, and hydraulic blowing-eear in the crypt, the latter
consisting of a Watkins & Watson high-pressure hydraulic
engine and large new bellows and feeders. This work was
carried out by Messrs. J. W. Walker & Sons, under the
supervision of Sir George Martin, Mus. D.
I am indebted to the kindness of my friend Dr. J. E.
Borland (the present accomplished organist), for the follow-
ing speci6cation (1907) :
Great (9 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Claribel Flute,
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft,; i2th, 28 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks;
Trumpet, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (8 stops) Lieblich Bourdon, 16 ft.; Geigen Prin., 8 ft.; Lieblich
Gedackt, 8 ft.; Salicional, 8 ft.; Gemshorn, 4 ft.; Vox Angelica, 8 ft.;
Hautboy, 8 ft. ; Cornopean, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops) Dulciana, 8 ft.; Claribel Flute, 8 ft.; Gair.ba, 8ft.;
Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; Gemshorn, 4 ft.; Corno di Bassetto, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.
Couplers (5) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Fed.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. toGt.; Sw.
to Ch.
I am also indebted to the kindness of Mr. Frederick
Qeo. Fitch, Vestry Clerk, for the following list of organists
of S. Botolph, Bishop^gate :
Samuel Jarvis, 1764-1785.
James Thomas Field, 1785-1805.
George Eugene Griffin. 1805-1815.
William White, 1815-1825.
Miss Esther E. Fleet (otherwise Mrs. Cope from 1831 : the
review of an Organ Voluntary of her composition published by
dementi & Co., 26, Cheapside occurs in the Harmonicon for
Dec. 1827, p 245), 1825-1839.
Charles Wright, 1839-1864.
Miss Mary Elizabeth Teede (otherwise Mrs. Surman from
1871) 1864-1880.
Edwin Thatcher, B.A., Mus. B., London, 1880-1897.
David Sinclair, A.R.C.O., 1897-1898 acting organist (not
appointed by the Vestry) the present assista nt organist.
John E. Borland, Mus. D.. Oxon.. F.R.C.O., 1898 .
136 S. BOTOLPH, ALDERSGATE.
34. -S. BOTOLPH, ALDERSGATE.
fry HIS church is situated on the west side of Aldersgate
J I [ Street, at the south corner of " Little Britain," oppo-
site the General Post Office. Anciently a rectory, the
patronage of which was in the hands of the dean and canons
of the great religious house of S. Martin-le-Grand, the living
ultimately became a donative or curacy under the same
patrons. In 1503, Henry VII annexed the collegiate church
of S. Martin-le-Grand to the Convent of S. Peter, West-
minster, and when his successor suppressed the monasteries,
the living of S. Botolph's, Aldersgate, came into the hands
of the Uean and Chapter of Westminster with whom it still
remains.
Stow says that a Brotherhood of SS. Fabian and
Sebastian was founded here in 1377. The old church was
only slightly damaged in the Great Fire of 1666. Hatton
describes it as he saw it in 1708 as being " of the old Gothic
order, 78 ft. long, 51 ft. wide, about 25 ft. high, with a tower
and turret about 65 ft. high, containing five bells to ring in
peal." The old church contained many handsome monu-
ments, now to be seen in the present one ; but there was no
organ, although Daily Service was regularly offered ; there
were, 200 years ago, "prayers daily at 9 and 3." This
mediaeval building having become unsafe towards the close
of the XVlIIth century, it was taken down and rebuilt in
1790-91 at a cost of .10,000. Only the east wall of the old
church was retained, but heightened to accommodate the
superior elevation of the new building. The present ground
plan is nearly square, but the interior follows the usual
arrangement of nave and aisles by means of dividing piers
upon which are set columns of the Corinthian order. The
pulpit deserves attention : it appears to hang on a single
C'"ar which ends in a palm tree supporting the sounding-
rd. The church was modernized and reseated in 1873-4,
being re-opened on March 22nd, 1874.
The organ, built and erected in the old church by Samuel
Green, in 1778, was the gift of Messrs. Seddons, a
then well-known firm of upholsterers in the parish. Mr.
Henry Leffler describes it as having
S. BOTOLPH, ALDERSGATE. 137
" 2 setts of keys, long octaves from GG to E ; Swell from F upwards ;
Pedals, GG to C.
Great (9 stops). Op. Diap., 57 pipes; Op. Diap., No. a, 57; Stop.
Diap., 57; Prin., 57; i2th, 57; isth, 57; Sesquialtera, III ranks,
171 ; Cornet, IV ranks [to C], 116 ; Trumpet, 57.
Swell (6 stops) Dulciana, 36 pipes; Stop. Diap., 36; Prin., 36;
Cornet, III ranks, 108 ; Trumpet, 36 ; Hautboy, 36."
The organ was rebuilt by H. Speechley, in 1867, and
further improved by Bryceson in 1872. At present the
specification stands thus :
Compass Manuals, CC to G ; Pedals, CCC to F.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap. with Clarabella Treble,
8ft.; Dulciana, 8ft.; Prin., 4 ft. ; Flute Harm., 4 ft.; "Sth, aft.;
Sesquialtera, III ranks; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Cremona (Tenor C), 8 ft.
Swell (10 stops) Double Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Salicional,
8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft,; Piccolo Harm., 2 ft.; Mixture,
III ranks; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4 ft.
Pedal (2 stops)- Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.
Couplers (4) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. super 8ve; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.
on and off.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 7 comp. peds.
Amongst the organists have been :
Joseph Olive (died 1786).
John Munro.
Garrett, 1864.
J. R. Murray, 1864-1889.
G. W. R. Hoare, 1889-1892.
Walter E. Mansell, F.R.C.O., 1892.
Of these, Mr. J. R. Murray was the founder and first
conductor of the London Church Choir Association,
now conducted by Dr. H. Walford Davies of the Temple
Church. I am indebted to Mr. Mansell, the present
organist, for the organ specification as it now stands (1907).
138 S. BOTOLPH, ALDGATE.
35.-S. BOTOLPH, ALDGATE.
mHIS church stands within the angle formed by the
junction of Houndsditch with Aldgate High Street.
Of ancient foundation, the patronage of the living
was, in 1115, vested in the prior and convent of Holy Trinity,
Aldgate, founded by Queen Maud, wife of Henry I. At the
time of the dissolution it was seized by the crown and handed
over to private patronage ; it is now in the gift of the Bishop
of London. The old church escaped the Great Fire, and is
described by Hatton as being "built of brick, boulder and
stone rendered over, and of the Gothic order ; length, 78 ft.,
breadth, 51 ft., altitude, 32 ft." The original tower and
turret (which contained six bells to ring in peal) was about
100 ft. high. The old church was taken down in 1741, and
the present edifice, designed by Dance, was finished in
1744. The plan is a square, with the altar on the north side of
the building, and the entrance (surmounted by a square tower
with a spire) on the south side. The spire was lowered in 1797,
rebuilt in 1841, and again repaired in 1881. There are now
eight bells in the tower. The arrangement of nave and aisles
is managed by four rectangular piers of large dimensions
forming a smaller square in the centre of the larger ground
plan. The monuments which were in the old church are all
carefully preserved in the present building. The altar is of
marble, inscribed Deo et Ecclesia, 1812. When Hatton
wrote in 1708 (during the incumbency of the Ven. Archdeacon
Kennett, D. D. ) there was Daily Service in this church :
" prayers at II and 7 daily.'" The organ, happily still in the
south gallery, was built by Thomas and Renatus Harris,
and in 1676 it was " y e gift of Thomas Whiting to y e hole
parrish, " thus quaintly recorded in an escutcheon in front
of the organ. Prior to that date the organ had been in
Mr. Whiting's house in the parish of S. Botolph. Mrs.
Whiting who was probably an amateur musician and organ
player having died in 1676, her husband finding no further
use for the instrument after her death, gave it to the church.
The donor's arms still grace the inscription, and are thus
heraldically described by Hatton : Party per Saltire
S. BOTOLPH, ALDGATE. 139
Axure and Ermine, in the Nombril point a Leopard" s Face
Or, with three Bezants in Chief. Dr. E. J. Hopkins
states that the original organ was one of the single manual
kind, and contained the following nine stops :
Op. Diap., 52 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; i2th, 52; isth, 52;
Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 208: Furniture, III ranks, 156; Cornet
(from CJ), V ranks, 130; Trumpet. 52. Compass, GG short
8ves to d :t in alt.
Mr. Henry Leffler gives the specification as he found
it in 1807 :
" 3 setts of keys, short octaves from GG to D 3 ; Swell from Middle C to
D 3 ; Drum pedal tuned to D.
Great [as specified above], (9 stops).
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diap., 27 pipes; Stop. Diap, 27; Cornet, IV
ranks, 108 ; Trumpet, 27 ; Hautboy, 27.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 52 pipes; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; Bassoon,
>x Humana, No. i, 52 ; Vox Humana, No. 2 [to Tenor C], 39."
Of the two Vox Humanas in the Choir, the first was sub-
sequently removed in favour of a Dulciana, the second was
re-named " Bassoon." An octave and a half of pedals were
also added, and the Swell was extended downwards to
Tenor E.
The organ was rebuilt and modernized by Messrs. Hill
& Son in 1867, who put in concave pedals CC to E, also
Op. Diap. on pedals ; the manuals were converted to CC to
F. They also took out the Sesquialtera on the Great and
added an Op. Diap., 8 ft. to the Swell, as well as Bourdon,
1 6 ft., Cornopean, 8 ft. and Mixture, III ranks, with the
following Couplers : Sw. to Gt. ; Sw. to Fed. ; Gt. to Fed. ;
3 comp. peds. to Gt. ; 2 comp. peds. to Sw. ; and a Gt. to
Fed. on and off.
In 1898 Messrs. Bishop & Son renovated the organ
and made several additions (marked *) so that the specifi-
cation now (1907) stands as follows :
Manuals, CC to F ; Pedals, CCC to E.
Great (3 stops)-Op. Diap., No. i (old), 8 ft.; Op. Diap., No. 2 (Hi If),
8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft. tone; Prin., 4ft.; *Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; isth,
2 ft.; Mixture, IV ranks; Trumpet, 3 ft.
Swell (n stops) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap.,
3 ft. tone ; "Viol di Gamba, 8 ft.; *Voix Celeste, Tenor C ; Prin.,
4 ft.; rjth, 2 ft.; Mixture (re-arranged), II ranks; Cornopean, 8 ft.;
Hautboy, S ft ; *Clarion, 4 ft.
Choir (6 stops)-3top. Diap., treble, 8 ft. tone; Stop. Diap., bass, 8ft.
tone; Dulciana (Tenor C), 8ft.; Prin., 4ft.; Flute, 4ft.; Bassoon
(Tenor C), 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; "Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (3) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comb. peds. to Gt.; 2 ditto to Sw.;
a T ped. on Gt to Ped. on and off.
140 S. BOTOLPH, ALDGATE.
The organ case is an unusually good one. It includes a
central tower and two outside towers of speaking pipes (Op.
Diap.), with intervening "flats" or curtains surmounted
by cherubs playing on instruments, said to be carved by
Grinling Gibbons. The carving is certainly fine. The
corbelled bases of the towers have carved cherubs' heads
with wings.
Amongst the organists of S. Botolph, Aldgate, have been :
James Worgan, who held this post in connection with
S. Dunstan in the East, died 1753.
John Worgan, Mus. D., Cantab., who held this post in
connection with S. Andrew, Undershaft, 1758-1790.
Jacob Cubitt Pring, Mus. B., Oxon. , 1797-1799.
John Harrison, 1867.
W. T. Goold, 1880.
_ Phillips, 1896.
Frederic Lacey, 1896,
I am indebted to my friend, Mr. Frederic Lacey, the
present organist, for much of the above information.
WOOD STREET AND ITS CHURCHES. 141
36. WOOD STREET AND ITS CHURCHES.
S. PETER'S, WEST CHEAP (destroyed) ; S. ALBAN'S ;
S. MICHAEL'S (destroyed).
'ood Street, a narrow turning out of the north side
of Cheapside, not far from its western end, is
familiar to readers of W. Harrison Ainsworth's
delightful book Old Saint Paul's, as having been the
residence of Stephen Bloundel, the heroic grocer who victualled
his house, closed it, and lived in it all through the dreadful
plague which ravaged London in 1665. Wood Street is
easily found because of the tall tree which spreading its
branches of thick green foliage over the small houses beneath
it, marks the entrance from Cheapside. This sturdy tree
grows on what remains of the site of S. Peter's, West
Cheap, a church destroyed in the Great Fire, and never
rebuilt. Stow suggests that Wood Street is named after
Thomas Wood, one of the sheriffs in 1491, who gave
largely to the building fund of S. Peter's Church, which was
a place of some importance in its day. The great cross
erected by Edward I to the memory of Queen Eleanor,
at the place in West Cheape (or Cheapside as it is now
called) where her body rested on the funeral journey to
Westminster Abbey, stood close by S. Peter's Church.
In his English Medi&val Church Organ, Dr. E. J.
Hopkins has the following references to the organs in
S. Peter's, Cheap (as the church was succinctly called)
taken from the churchwardens' accounts. They are here
arranged in chronological order :
1433. It'm for ye Organs mendying ... ... vis. viij/.
1522 It'm, for mendyng of ycporta(yvys that serve for
owre lady's masse. [The " portative " was a portable
organ sometime!; carried in processions, and fre-
quently used for secular purposes.]
1524. It'm, payd for iiij. porters for Removynge of the
organs into the Roode lofte ... ... ... xi) S. Andrew :
i. S. Andrew, Holborn (still remaining),
z. S. Andrew Undershaft (still remaining).
3. S. Andrew Hubbard (destroyed in the Great Fire, 1666).
4. S. Andrew-by-the- Wardrobe (still remaining).
Two of these, viz., S. Andrew, Holborn, and S. Andrew
Undershaft, have already been described.
XLV1I. S. Andrew Hubbard, Hubbert or Hoi-
bard (probable corruptions of some founder's name), formerly
called " S. Andrew juxta Eastcheap," was not rebuilt after
its destruction in the Great Fire of 1666. It stood in " Little
Eastcheap," between Botolph Lane and Love Lane, near the
west end of S. Mary-at-Hill ; on a site afterwards partly
occupied by the large dissenting meeting-house known as
"The King's Weigh House Chapel," a place of worship
long since transferred to the more congenial and fashionable
neighbourhood of Grosvenor Square. S. Andrew's Church
was founded in the XlVth Century (if not earlier). Stow
merely mentions it whilst writing about Billingsgate Ward ;
it was probably a building of no great size or importance.
The parish is now annexed to that of S. Mary-at-Hill.
From the old churchwardens' accounts of S. Andrew
Hubbard, we gather the following information respecting the
payment of organists and organ-builders in the XVIth
century :
1504 Paid for mendying of the organs viijt/.
1506 Paid to John Smyth, organ-plaier, for a
quarter ending at our Lady Day in Lent ... vj.
1568 Paid to Hewe [Howe], the organ-maker, for
the kepinge of our orgaynes, his fee, for ij yeres vj.
164 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC.
XLVIII. 5. Andrew-by-the -Wardrobe. This
church anciently denominated " S. Andrew juxta Barnard
Castle" is a large red brick building with stone 4i dressings,"
which stands on the east side of S. Andrew's Hill, nearly
opposite the S. Paul's station of the London, Chatham and
Dover, and South Eastern Railways, in Queen Victoria
Street. It derives its curious name from its proximity in
bygone days to the site of "Wardrobe Court" a portion
of Barnard Castle in which the royal wardrobe was anciently
housed. The castle itself (depicted in Hollar's Long View
of London, 1660), occupied a considerable site by the river-
side, but no trace of the once interesting old building
remains ; the land on which it formerly stood has long since
been covered with warehouses. Richard III and Henry VII
sometimes held court at Barnard Castle, and it is stated that
secret letters and documents touching the estate of the realm,
were in those days enrolled in the "Wardrobe," instead of
being kept in Chancery.
Stow remarks that in his time (1598) S. Andrew's was
"a proper church, but few monuments hath it." It was
destroyed in the Great Fire, but was rebuilt by Sir Cristo-
pher Wren, and finished in its present shape in February
1692, at a cost of 7060, i6s. lid. The ground plan
consists of a nave and aisles, with a tower at the west end of
the south aisle. T. he eastern portion of each aisle is screened
off by a tall iron railing with a gate. The length of the
church is about 75 feet, its breadth 59 feet, and its altitude
38 feet. The tower is about 86 feet high. Hogarth has
introduced the pulpit of S. Andrew's into one of his pictures
representing the interior of a church, evidently regarding this
pulpit as a typical specimen of its kind. On the north side
of the altar is a monument (by Bacon) erected to the memory
of the Rev. W. Romaine, rector of the parish from 1765
to 1795, an d a preacher of some eminence in his day. The
first organ erected in the west gallery was presented to the
church in 1774 by Mr. Romaine, who died July 26th, 1795.
The first Sunday school in the city is said to have been
opened by the Rev. W. Qoode, in 1809. He was Rector
of S. Andrew's from 1795 to 1816. There is a monument to
him as well as to his successor the Rev. Isaac Saunders.
The present organ was originally built by Robert Gray
in 1805, and is thus specified by Mr. Henry Aveling,
who visited it on July isth, 1855 :
"3 manuals Great and Choir, GG to F in alt., (GG J on pedal pipes
only) ; Swell, Tenor C to F in alt. ; Pedals, GG to D (if octaves).
Great (7 stops) Op Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft. tone; Prin., 4ft.;
lath, 28 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquia'tera, III ranks; Trumpet, 8 ft.
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC. 165
Swell (7 stops) Op. Diap. (No. i), 8 ft.; Op. Diap. (No. 2), 8 ft.;
Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Prin., 4 ft : isth, 2 ft.; Hautboy, 8 ft.;.
Trumpet, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops) Stop Diap., 8 ft. tone; Dulciana, 8 ft. [Tenor C] ;
Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop)^-" Pedal pipes. '
Couplers (s)-Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt. No composition
pedals.
This organ was rebuilt to modern CC compass, etc., by
Messrs. Hill & Sons, in 1876. It still stands (1908) in
the western gallery, and the specification is as follows :
Great (9 stops) Large Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Small Op. Diap., 8 ft ; Hohl
Flote, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Wald Flute, 4 ft.; i2th, 2 ft.; isth, 2 ft.;
Baryton [soft reed], 16 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (7 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone; Op. Diap , 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft tone; 8ve, 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Choir (7 stop.-) Op Diap., 8 ft ; Dulciana, 8 ft ; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
Flute, 4 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft ; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft ; Bourdon, 16 ft. tone ; Bass Flute, 8 ft.
Couplers (5) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.;
Gt. to Ped.
Compass -Manual, CC to G, 56 notes ; Pedal, CCC to F, 30 notes.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 2 comp. peds. to Sw.; tracker
action to manuals; backfall couplers; tubular-pneumatic action to
peds ; pedal-board radiating and concave.
An electric motor for blowing was installed by H. R. Pycock
in 1907. In 1907 Messrs. Brindley & Foster added
the Pedal Bass Flute, replaced an old III rank Mixture on
the Great with the Baryton, extended the Choir Dulciana
to CC, and added a third feeder and reservoirs to bellows.
Amongst the organists of S. Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe,.
have been :
Mr. A. M. Colchester, 1873-1878.
Mr. Smart (a nephew of Henry Smart), 1878-1882.
Mr. W. H. Bamford, 1882-1906.
Mr. Frank Swinford, 1906-
I am indebted to my former pupil, Mr. Frank Swin-
ford, the present organist, for much of the foregoing
information.
With this parish was united (after the Great Fire) that of
S. Anne, Blackfriars, once within the precinct of the
great religious house of the Black Friars. The painter,
Vandyck, was an inhabitant of S. Anne's parish, and in
1641 he died in it, but was buried in old S. Paul's Cathedral.
Benjamin Payne, a parish clerk of S. Anne's in the
XVIIth century, published a book entitled The Parish
Clerk's Guide, in which he gave full instructions for the
efficient rendering of Sternhold & Hopkins' Metrical Psalms
one line at a time.
1 66 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC.
XLIX.-S. Anne and S. Agnes, with S. John
Zachary, Gresham Street. This church, which stands
on the north side of Gresham Street, near the General Pose
Office in S. Martin's-le-Grand, Aldersgate Street, is dedicated
to S. Anne, mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and S.
Agnes, Virgin and Martyr of Rome, who suffered in the
tenth general persecution under Diocletian, A.D. 306.
S. Anne's Feast day is July 26th ; S. Agnes is commem-
orated on January 2ist.
Mr. William McMurray, the present parish clerk (to
whom I owe a great deal of the following information, and
who also has in preparation an exhaustive history of the
church and parish), states that, until after 1460, the church
was never referred to as " S. Anne and S. Agnes," only one
of these saints' names being given each as frequently as ths
other. But in the earliest mention of the church (about
1200) it is referred to as S. Agnes. In connection with this
fact, it may be remarked that in early times Agnes was pro-
nounced Annis, which sounds very like Anne.
In olden time it was known as " S. Anne-in-the-Willows,"
so called "because of willows growing thereabouts" but,
adds Stow, "now (1598) there is no such void place for
willows to grow, more than the churchyard, wherein do
grow some high ash trees." The churchyard is happily still
a pleasant, green, leafy spot in summer-time.
Destroyed by fire in 1548, the church was " beautifully re-
paired " in 1624 ; again destroyed forty-two years later in the
Great Fire, it was afterwards rebuilt by Sir Christopher
Wren, who finished it in 1680 at a cost of 2448, os. locf.
Its ground plan is square, being 53 ft. every way ; its altitude
is 35 ft, and the tower and turret 84 ft. high. The exterior
presents a somewhat uninteresting appearance, but the
interior creates a far more satisfactory impression ; four
Corinthian columns which mark out a smaller square in the
middle of the ground plan, serve to give some idea of aisles.
There was no organ in the church before the Great Fire,
nor until a century and more after that calamitous event.
The present organ, erected in the west gallery in 1782 (by
subscription) was the work of Robert Gray. It is thus
described by Mr. Henry Leffler in 1809 :
"Two setts of keys from GG to F, long octaves; Swell from
Tenor F to F.
Great (3 stops)-Op. Diap., 58 pipes; Stop. Diap., 3; Prin., 58;
i2th, 58; isth, 58; Sesquialtera, III ranks [Bass], 84 ; Cornet,
1 1 1 ranks [Treble], 90 ; Trumpet [from middle C], 37.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap., 37 pipes; Stop. Diap , 37; Trumpet, 37;
Hautboy, 37.
The lowest octave of the Open Diapastn has Principal pipes."
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC. 167
The organ was rebuilt by Thos. Hill in 1827 thus :
Great (10 stops) Bourdon [Tenor C], 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 3 ft.; Stop.
Diap., S ft. tone ; Dulciana [Tenor C], 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; rath, ft.,
1 5th, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Trumpet [Tenor C], 8 ft.;
Clarinet, 8 ft.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap. [grooved to Gt. Stop. Diap.], 3 ft; Stop.
Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.
Couplers (2) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Fed.
Compass Great CC to F, Swell Tenor C to F.
This organ was enclosed in a mahogany case with gilded
show-pipes (taken from the Great Open Diapason and
Principal) arranged in a " flat " flanked by two " towers."
A Pedal Bourdon and Swell Oboe were subsequently
added. Messrs. Gray & Davison made some alterations
in 1869. Nineteen years later (in 1888) the organ was again
rebuilt by Messrs. T. C. Lewis & Co., of Brixton, to
the following specification drawn up by the present able
organist, Mr. J. A. Batchelor, to whom I am indebted
for much information :
Great (8 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone; Op. Diap., 3 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft tone; Dulciana [Tenor C], 8 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.;
Sesquialtera, II ranks; Clarinet [Tenor C], 8ft.
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft ; Giegen Prin., 4ft ;
Oboe, 8 ft.; Horn, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Sub-Bass, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (3) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt.
Accessories 3 composition peds. to Gt.
Manual Compass, CC to G.
Pedal Compass CCC to F.
The organ now (1908) occupies a position on the north
side of the choir stalls at the east end of the church.
The following is a complete list of organists of S. Anne
and S. Agnes :
1783. Mrs. Milward.
1804.-- William Taylor.
1809. John Goodman (died).
1836. George Cooper (resigned).
1844. Henry Wylde (resigned).
1847. East John VVestrop (died).
1856. Miss E. Northcote (died).
1873. Walter Hastings.
1883. George Cooper (resigned).
1887. John Arthur Batchelor.
Of these, the first George Cooper was afterwards organist
of S. Sepulchre's and the Chapel Royal, and sub-organist of
S. Paul's Cathedral. The second George Cooper was his
son. Miss E. Northcote was a blind lady, and a remarkably
clever player. She was a most expert performer on General
Perronet Thompson's Enharmonic Organ. Henry Wylde
1 68 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC.
afterwards became Mus. D., Cantab., and Gresham Professor
of Music. E. J. Westrop was a well-known organist and
composer of organ music in his day.
William Dyer (who, in 1682, published a volume of
sermons, Chrisfs Titles, and a Believer's Golden Chain),
formerly a Nonconformist minister at Chesham and Choles-
bury (Bucks), was a lecturer at S. Anne and S. Agnes.
The church of the affiliated parish of S. John Zachary
(dedicated to S. John the Baptist) was destroyed in the Great
Fire and not rebuilt. Stow describes it as "a fair church,
with the monuments well preserved." There was no organ
in the church at the time of its destruction in 1666. Zachary
was the name of a Xllth century priest, bestowed upon the
church to distinguish it from S. John the Baptist upon
Walbrook.
L. S. Antholin, Watling Street (destroyed). A
monument, bearing an excellent pictorial representation in
relief of this needlessly destroyed church, still marks the
ancient site at the ?outh-west corner of Sise Lane, at the
junction of Watling Street and Budge Row. S. Antholin is
a corruption of 5. Anthony, an Egyptian hermit who was
founder of the order of Eremites. The living was in the gift of
.the canons of S. Paul's as early as 1181. The church was
rebuilt first in 1399 at the cost of Thomas Knolles, twice
Lord Mayor of London, and again rebuilt in 1513. Repaired
and beautified in 1616, it was destroyed fifty years later in the
Great Fire, but rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren in 1682
at a cost of $68$, $s. iod., to the following dimensions:
length, 66 ft. ; breadth, 54 ft. ; height, 44 ft. ; height of tower
and spire, 154 ft. The extremely graceful spire was
universally regarded as one of Wren's closest approximations
to the Pointed Style of architecture. The altar was a large
marble slab placed on a richly-carved frame. When Hatton
wrote in 1708, Morning Prayer was said daily in this church
at 6 a.m. The organ (which stood in the west gallery) was
built by Abraham Jordan about the year 1733, the Swell
being afterwards added by England & Russell. The
specification is given thus by Mr. Henry Leffler, who
wrote in 1800 :
" 3 setts of keys, the compass in the Great organ from GG to D short
octaves ; the Choir organ from CC to D ; the Swell from Fiddle G to D.
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52; isth, 52; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 156; Cornet [from
middle C], V ranks, 135 ; Trumpet, 52.
Swell (5 stops)-Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop Diap., 32; Prin., 32;
Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32.
Choir (4 stops)-Stop. Diap., 50 pipes; Flute, 50; i 5 th, 50; Vox
Humana, 50."
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, E1C. 169
It will be observed that each keyboard had a different
compass.
The organ remained very much in this condition as late as
1864, in the autumn of which year it was cleaned (not altered)
by Mr. Henry Jones, of West Brompton. The great
Cornet was then in disuse, but the general tone of the
instrument was satisfactory; even the reeds (especially the
Choir Vox Humana) had a fair quality of tone. Mr. Ward
was organist in 1760, Mr. Joseph Da:e in 1800, and Mr. Cash
in 1855. When the church was destroyed in 1875, the parish
of S. Antholin was united to that oi S. Mary Aldermary.
A new church, built of red brick, from the designs of Mr.
Ewart Christian, dedicated to S. Antholin, was built
near Peckham Rye Railway Station, at Nunhead, out of the
proceeds arising from the sale of the city site.
LI. - S. Augustine and 5. Faith, Watling Street.
This small but beautiful church, happily still (1908) standing
at the corner of Old Change and Watling Street, is dedicated
to S. Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury, who was
sent to this country, A.D. 596, by S. Gregory, Bishop of
Rome, to convert the people to the Christian Faith. The
affiliated parish of S. Faith (Virgin and Martyr) anciently
had its parish church situated in the crypt below the choir of
S. Paul's Cathedral ; the original church having been pulled
down in 1256 to make room for the eastward extension of
the Cathedral. Readers of Harrison Ainsworth's novel,
Old S. Paul's, will remember his graphic account of the
burning of S. Faith's Chapel in 1666, when the torrent of
molten lead streaming from the roof of the cathedral carried
everything before it in its resistless cataract, destroying the
booksellers' and stationers' goods removed to S. Faith s for
safety during the progress of the Great Fire. Hatton
records the following quaint but edifying inscription which
was to be seen on the tombstone of William Lamb in old
S. Faith's Chapel before the Great Fire :
As I was : so are ye.
As I am : you shall be.
That I had : that I gave.
That I gave : that I have.
Thus I end all my cost,
That I left : that I lost.
This epitaph occurs again almost verbatim on a small plate
inscribed to the memory of John Orgene (died 1584) in the
Church of S. Olave, Hart Street.
Stow writes of 5. Augustine's as "a fair church lately
(1598) well repaired." It was rebuilt by Sir Christopher
Wren after the Great Fire, at a cost of .3145, 3*. icxf.,
170 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC.
to the following dimensions: length, 51 ft.; breadth, 45 ft.;
heigh!, 30 ft.; height of steeple, 145 ft. The church was
re-opened for service on Sept. 23rd, 1683, but the steeple
was not finished until twelve years later, in 1695. The
church consists of a nave and aisles, with a square tower
occupying the western end of the south aisle, and consequently
comprehended within the general ground plan. The church
was re-arranged with open seats in 1866, when the west
gallery was removed, but a gallery on the north side of the
church still remains. Amongst former rectors may be men-
tioned Dr. John Douglas, afterwards Bishop of Salisbury
from 1791 to 1807, and Richard Harris Barham, author
of Ingoldsby Legends, who occupied the living from 1842 to
1845. The present rector (1908) is the Rev. W. H.
Milman, M.A., Minor Canon of S. Paul's, and son of the
late Dean Milman, a distinguished poet and hymn-writer,
the author of The Martyr of Antioch, and of the hymns,
" Ride on, ride on in majesty," "Bound upon the accursed
tree," "O help us, Lord, each hour of need," and "When
our heads are bowed with woe."
The organ, which was originally erected in the west gallery
in 1766, was the work of Messrs. Rawlins & Pettier.
At first it had only one row of keys (Great), but Hugh
Russell added a Swell towards the end of 1808, which was
opened early in the following year. The organ is thus
specified by Mr. Henry Leffler, who visited it on
April 2nd, 1809 :
"2 setts of keys and shifting movements. Great compass, GG to D,
long octaves. Swell from Fiddle G to D.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap. [wood], 55 pipes ; Stop. Diap. [wood], 55 ;
Flute [wood], 55 ; Prin. [metal], 55 ; izth. 55 ; isth, 55 ; Sesquialtera,
III ranks, 165 ; Trumpet, 55 ; Cornet, V ranks [from Middle C], 135.
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diao., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Prin., 32;
Cornet, II ranks, 64 : Trumpet, 32.
This organ was replaced in the west gallery by a new
instrument erected in 1854 by Messrs. Gray & Davi-
SOH. My old friend Mr. C. F. South, has furnished
me with the specification of this organ as he remembers it :
Two Manuals Gt. from CC to F ; Sw. from Tenor C to F.
Fed. CCC to D.
Great (6 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Claribel Flute, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.;
i2th, 2$ ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera.
Swell (7 stops < Bourdon, 16 ft. tone; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop Diap.,
8 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft ; Hautboy, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.
[The lowest octave of the Swell was carried down on the Great
Claribel Flute].
Pedal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (2) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Ped.
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. ANDREW, ETC. 171
This organ in its turn gave way to the present beautiful
instrument erected in 1873, on the south side of the chancel
choir stalls, by Mr. Henry Willis, the specification of
which is as follows :
3 Manuals all CC to G ; Fed. CCC to F.
Great (10 stops)-Contra Gamba, 16 ft.; Op. Diap. [No. i], 8 ft.;
Op. Diap [No. 2], 8 ft.; Claribel Flute, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Flute
Harmonique, 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera ; Trumpet, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
Swell (8 stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Lieblich Gedact,
8 ft.; Salicional, 3 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Hautboy, 8 ft.;
Cornopean, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops) [added in i88i]-Gamba, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Lieblich
Gedact. 8 ft.; Flute Harmonique, 4 ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft.; Corno di
Bassetto, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Violone, 16 ft.
Couplers (6) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt.
Ch. to Gt.; Sw. toCh.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.; double-acting
T ped. to Gt. to Ped. ; double-acting T ped. to Pedal Op. Diap.
The tone of the organ may be fairly said to represent
Henry Willis at his best. I am obliged to the kindness of
the present organist, Mr. Sydney H. Lovett, for much
of the above information.
Amongst the organists of S. Augustine and S. Faith's,
have been :
Miss Wilson, 1868.
C. F. SOUTH, 1868-1883, afterwards organist of Salisbury
Cathedral.
C. E. Miller, 1883-1893.
C. E. Read. 1893-1895.
H. A. Burry, 1895-1901.
E. C. Birch, 1901-1905.
S. H. Lovett, 1905
172 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
.CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. BARTHOLOMEW,
S. BENEDICT AND S. CHRISTOPHER.
VJI^ HERE were originally three City churches dedicated
\9 to S. Bartholomew :
1. S. Bartholomew- the-Great, Smithfield (still remaining).
2. S. Bartholomew-the-Little-by-the-Exchange (removed
1841, ultimately destroyed 1904).
3. S- Bartholomew-the-Less, Smithfield (still remaining).
The first of these S. Bartholomew-the-Great, Smithfield
has already been described.
LII. S. Bartholomew-the-Little-by-the-Exchange was
so named because of its position at the south-east corner of
Bartholomew Lane, facing the Royal Exchange ; its site is
now occupied by the "Sun Fire Office." A church had
existed on this spot from very early times ; it had been
rebuilt in 1438, and in 1509 Sir William Capel, the
then Lord Mayor, added a " proper chapel on the south side
thereof" (Stow). The tower, and certain portions of the
walls of this church, having been left comparatively un-
injured by the Great Fire of 1666, Sir Christopher Wren
restored the burnt-out building at a cost of .5077, is. od. t
finishing the work in 1679. The dimensions of this church
were : Length, 78 ft. ; breadth, 68 ft. ; height, 41 ft. ;
height of tower, 90 ft. Miles Coverdale, the translator
of the Bible, was buried here in 1568, but when the church
was pulled down in 1841, his body was removed to S. Magnus,
London Bridge, where a monument still marks the place of
his re-interment. Byfield built an organ in the west
gallery in 1740, which is thus specified by Mr. Henry
Leff ler, writing sixty years later :
" 3 setts of keys, GG to D, short octaves ; Swell Fiddle G to D."
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
I2th, 52; isth, 52; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 208; Furniture, III
ranks, 156; Trumpet, 52; Clarion, 52; Cornet [down to Middle C],
V ranks, 135.
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Prin., 32; Cornet, III ranks,
96 ; Trumpet, 32 ; Hautboy, 32.
Choir (4 stops)- Stoo. Diap., 52 pipes ; Prin., 52; Flute, 52 ; isth, 52.
S. BARTHOLOMEW, ETC. 173
At the beginning of the XVIIIth Century, Evensong was
aid daily in this church at ^ p.m. In 1762, the organist
was Henry Duncalf. After S. Bartholomew's had been
pulled down in 1841, a new church, similarly dedicated,
intended by its builder, Cockerel!, to be an exact imitation
of Wren's church by the Exchange, was erected in Moor
Lane, Cripplegate, on a site close to Moorgate Street
Station (Metropolitan Railway). To this new building into
the walls of which much of the very masonry of S. Bartholomew-
by-the-Exchange was built were transferred the pulpit, organ
and a great deal of the carved woodwork of the older building.
Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, who visited S. Bartholomew's,
Moor Lane, on Jan. I4th, 1856, found the organ very much
in the condition described above by Mr. Lefficr, with these
exceptions :
(1) The manual compass had been altered CC to F, except
the Swell, which still began at Fiddle G.
(2) There was a small CCC pedal-board, but no pedal
pipes.
(3) The Great Cornet had been taken away.
(4) The Swell Cornet had been reduced to a single rank
of pipes (i$th).
The case was a magnificent one, but the internal mechanism
remained in a sad state of neglect and inefficiency until the
very end. The Diapason tone, however, was most excellent
in quality ; the present writer remembers it quite well. One
of the last organists of S. Bartholomew, Moor Lane, was
Mr. F. Smith, who was appointed in 1873. Mr.
Hutchinson was organist in 1867. Under the incumbency
of the Rev. W. Denton, excellent services of a Catholic
type were sung in this church, and "Father Ignatius"
(Rev. L. Lyne) was, for a time, one of the parochial clergy.
The church was needlessly demolished in 1904, when the
parish was united to that of S. Giles, Cripplegate.
LIII.-S. BarthoIomew-the-Less, Smithfield, is
situated within the precincts of S. Bartholomew's Hospital,
having been founded in 1102 by Rahere as a Chapel to the
Hospital. On the dissolution of the Priory, this hospital-
chapel became a parish church with the title of "S. Bartholo-
mew-the-Less," to distinguish it from the great monastic
church outside the hospital. Its dimensions were : Length,
99 ft. ; breadth, 42 ft. ; height, 34 ft. ; height of tower, 70 ft.
It escaped the Great Fire, but having become much dilapi-
dated during the XVIIIth Century, it was remodelled on an
octagonal interior plan by Dance in 1789. It was practically
174 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
rebuilt by Thomas Hard wick in 1823, who may have had
some idea of imitating the style of the Temple Church, and
has since then been " restored." Inigo Jones was baptized
here on July ipth, 1573. There is a black marble tablet,
erected by Sir Thomas Bodley (founder of the Bodleian
Library at Oxford) to the memory of his wife Anne. Hatton
states that Matins was said daily here at II in 1708. An
organ in a somewhat handsome mahogany case was erected
in the west gallery in 1794. Mr. Henry Leffler thus
describes the instrument :
" Builder unknown. One sett of keys from GG to D, short octaves.
(8 stops) Op. Diap. [from Gamut G upwards], 44 pipes ; Stop.
Diap., 52; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; i2th. 52; isth, 52 ; Sesquialtera,
III ranks, 156 ; Hautboy, Middle C to D [in a swell box?]."
A new organ was built by Gray & Davison in 1863.
At present (1908) the organ is placed at the south of the
chancel, and contains the following stops :
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap.. 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft. tone; Dulciana,
8 ft; Clarinet Flute, 8 'ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Hute, 4 ft.; isth. 2 ft.;
Clarinet, 8 ft.
Swell (6 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft.; Salicional, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft.
Couplers (3) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. acting on Gt. organ.
Amongst the organists of S. Bartholomew-the-Less have
been :
Mrs. Cooper (nee Miss Probyn), 1825-1863.
G. H. Robinson (afterwards Mus. B., Cantab), 1863-1872.
H. J. GAUNTLETT. Mus. D., CANTUAR, 1872-1876.
effries, 1876-1881.
Essex, 1881-1905.
Bruce Steane, 1905-.
I am indebted to the present organist, Mr. Bruce
Steane, for the specification of the organ as it now stands
(1908). The services are fully choral, and there is an ex-
cellent choir, largely made up of nurses and students of
S. Bartholomew's Hospital.
S. Benedict, who was born in Norcia, an Italian town,
was the founder, about the year 529, of the great monastic
order which still bears his name. He is commemorated in
the Kalendar of the English Church on March 2lst, the day
of his death, which occurred in 542. There were originally
four of the City churches dedicated to this Saint, whose
name in each case was always written and pronounced in
the abbreviated form Bene't :
. .
J. Jeffri
W. T.
S. BARTHOLOMEW, ETC. 175
(1) S. Benet Fink (destroyed in 1844 to make room for
the Royal Exchange).
(2) S. Benet, Gracechurch Street (destroyed in 1868).
(3) S. Benet, Pauls Wharf (still remaining as the Welsh
Church).
(4) a. Benet, Sherehog (not rebuilt after the Great Fire).
The first of these, S. Benet Fink, has already been
described, as the church in which Cardinal J. H. Newman
was baptized. A portion of its site is still not built over, and
is graced (?) by the Peabody statue.
LIV.- S. Benet, Gracechurch Street, was situated
on the east side of that street, at the south-west corner of
Fenchurch Street. It was of Norman foundation, and
boasted of some highly interesting parish records. Here are
a few "items"
1549 Paid for mending six organ pipes that were broken
at taking downe the high altar, 85. [This seems to
show that the organ was in the choir, close to the altar.]
1553 May. Paid to a prieste and six clerks for singing of
Te Deum and playing upon the organs for the birtb
of our Prince (which was thought then to be), i 8s.
[Thus we find not only the birth, but the very sex of
Queen Mary's baby pre-supposed. The queen, however,
died childless.]
1557 Paid for six ells of buckram at is. per ell, to make
the sexton a surplice ; for making it, $d.
In 1630 the church was repaired and beautified. In
1633 it received the addition of a new "clock dyal and
chymes." In 1666 it was destroyed in the Great Fire. In
1685 it was rebuilt at a cost of ^3583, gs. $\d. by Sir
Christopher Wren to the following dimensions : Length,
60 ft. ; breadth, 30 ft. ; height, 30 ft. ; height of tower and
spire, 149 ft. Owing to Quaker influence in the parish, no
organ was erected in the church after the Great Fire. The
church was unnecessarily destroyed in 1868, when its site
was sold, and the new church of S. Benet, Stepney,
Mile End Road, was built out of the proceeds. The
beautiful octagonal pulpit of oak, carved by Grinling
Gibbons, which stood against the southern wall of S. Benet's,
Gracechurch Street, was removed to S. Olave's, Hart Street.
S. Benet's parish was united with that of All Hallows',
Lombard Street.
LV.S. Benet, Paul's Wharf, has, since July 1879,
ceased to be parochial, being given over to a Welsh congre-
gation whose Welsh services are in conformity with those of
IJ6 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
the Church of England. The choir is surpliced and aug-
mented by women's voices, both soprano and contralto.
The church stands on Bennet's Hill, having its south front
in Upper Thames Street opposite Paul's Wharf. Placed in
an insulated position on a slope leading down to the river
side, the church is seen to advantage from the higher ground
of Queen Victoria Street. The old church is mentioned as
far back as 1180. William Stodely was rector in 1375.
Stow writes of it as " S. Benet, Hude (or Hithe), a proper
parish church." The churchyard, formerly on the north side
of the church, has been thrown into the street. This ancient
building having been destroyed in the Great Fire, was rebuilt
in 1683 at a cost of 3228, iSs. lod. by Sir Christopher
Wren to the following dimensions : Length, 54 ft. ; breadth,
50 ft.; height, 36 ft.; height of tower, 118 ft. Inigo Jones
was buried in the old church on June 26th, 1652. A costly
monument of white marble bearing a Latin inscriptioa was
erected to his memory on the north wall of the church ; it
would have been to the credit of Sir Christopher Wren had
he placed a fresh monument to his brother architect (and
mason) in the new S. Benet's. Elias Ashmole (afterwards
Windsor Herald) was here married to his first wife in 1638,
the year of his admission as a solicitor in Chancery. The
organ, which is in the small west gallery between the tower
and the south wall, was originally built in 1832 by J. C.
Bishop, at a cost of i$7, los. od., and erected in the
church in January, 1833. It was a "barrel" as well as a
" finger" organ, and contained the following stops :
One set of keys, GG to f, the whole of the pipes being in a " general
Swell."
Great (6 stops) Op. Diap. [to Gamut G] ; Stop. Diapason ; Dulciana
[to Tenor C] ; Prin.; isth; Sesquialtera, III ranks.
Accessories One octave of pedals to pull down the bass keys ; three
composition pedals.
I am informed by Messrs. Bishop & Son to whom I
am indebted for much of this information that the organ
was opened with a performance of Handel's Messiah* in which
the treble solos were sung by Master E. J. Hopkins,
afterwards organist of the Temple Church, and Senior Editor
of The Organist and Choirmaster.
The organ remained in this its original condition for sixty-
five years. So excellent were the workmanship and materials,
that when it was rebuilt, everything which was suitable for a
modern organ was used again, and the pipes needed nothing
but rounding out and regulating. Two barrels were supplied
in 1833, but when the organ was taken down in 1897, these
had disappeared, and no one then connected with the church
S. BARTHOLOMEW, ETC. 177
knew that they had ever been there. I am indebted to the
kindness of the present organist, Mr. J. E. Davis, for the
following specification of the organ as it stands at present
(1908) :
Two manuals, CC to G ; Pedals, CCC to F. Rebuilt by
the successors of the original builder, Messrs. Bishop &
Sons, in 1898 :
Great (6 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Clarabella, 8ft.; Dulci.ina, 8 ft. [to
Tenor C] ; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft. [prepared for].
Swell (s ps) Violin Diapason, 8 ft. [to Tenor C] ; Stop. Diap., 8 ft.;
Geigen Prin.. 4 ft.; Harm. Piccolo, 2 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.
Peoal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (3) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt.
Accessories z comp. peds. to both Gt. and Sw.
Amongst the organists have been the following :
George Cooper (afterwards of the Chapel Royal, S. James's),
-1836.
James Higgs (afterwards Mus. B.,Oxon, and Mus.D.,Cantuar),
1844-1852.
JOHN STAINER (afterwards M.A., Mus.D., Oxon, and
Knight), 1854-1856.
Miss Birkbeck was the organist when the church was trans-
ferred to the Welsh congregation in 1879.
Miss Jones, 1881-1896.
Miss Hughes. 1896-1897.
G. Vincent Davies, 1897-1904.
J. E. Davis, 1904-.
The services at this Welsh church are of the heartiest
description ; the congregation is a large one, and altogether
there is far more spiritual life and much greater religious
activity here at S. Benet's than can be found in the great
majority of the City churches at the present time.
LVI. S. Benet Sherehog, which was destroyed in the
Great Fire, and not afterwards rebuilt, stood in Pancras Lane,
opposite to Sise Lane. It was an old church somewhat rich
in monuments to bygone civic magnates and others. The
derivation of Sherehog is a curious one. The church was
originally dedicated to 5. Osyth, Saxon Queen and Martyr,
but after its restoration in the reign of Edward II by one
Benedict Shorne, citizen and fishmonger, this ambitious
person actually re-dedicated the church to himself I In the
course of time, S. Osyth may be said to have had her revenge
by the gradual popular corruption of Shorne into Shrog,
Shorehog, Sherehog! S. Osyth's Lane called after the
ancient name of the church became similarly corrupted into
Sythe's, Sies and Sise Lane. The parish of S. Benet Shere
hog is united with that of S. Stephen, Walbrook.
I 78 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
5. Christopher, according to the mediaeval legend, was
a Saracen giant of twelve cubits in stature, who made up his
mind to find the strongest monarch in the whole world and
to serve him only. For some time he served the Devil, but
finding that Satan could not pass a crucifix (from which he
fled in fear) Christopher determinined to find CHRIST. He
was advised by a holy hermit to dwell beside a river and
carry over any passenger who might solicit his assistance.
One night a little Child " prayed hym goodly to bere Hym
over the water." Christopher lifted the little One on his
shoulders and plunged into the stream, which rose higher and
higher as he proceeded, while the Child became heavier and
heavier. Christopher began to fear that the torrent would
bear him away to destruction, and was much relieved when
he reached the opposite bank, and set down his Burden,
saying, " Chylde, Thou hast put me in grete peryl : Thou
wayest alle most as I had had alle the world upon me.
I myght bere no greater burden." The Child answered,
"Thou hast not only borne alle the world upon thee, but
thou hast borne Hym that created and made alle the world
upon thy shoulders. I am JESUS CHRIST." Christopher
was ordered to plant his staff in the earth before his house,
and he found in the morning that it had borne branches,
leaves, flowers and fruit during the night.
" Be thou My servant, Christopher !
And serve ME evermore,
In carrying My little ones
Across from shore to shore.
And thou shall number'd be with those
Who are My faithful sons,
Who serves the STRONGKST in the Weak,
CHRIST in His little ones.
WILLIAM WHITING, Edgar Thorpe.
Converted to Christianity, he eventually became a martyr
for the Faith.
LVII. S. Christopher =le- Stocks stood on a site
now occupied by the western wing of the Threadneedle
Street front of the Bank of England. Finished in 1462
its beautiful tower, 80 ft. high (a replica of S. Sepulchre's,
Holbom) newly built in 1506 the church underwent a
complete restoration in 1621. Seriously damaged, but not
destroyed in the Great Fire, it was the first church taken in
hand by Sir Christopher Wren who completed his
repairs in 1671. In spite of much incongruous "Tuscan"
ornamentation which crept in, S. Christopher's still remained
a Gothic church, with an ascent of three steps from the nave
S. BARTHOLOMEW, ETC. 179
to the chancel. Its dimensions were : Length, 60 ft. ;
breadth, $2 ft. ; height, 40 ft. No organ was erected in the
church after the Great Fire, but at the beginning of the
XVIIIth century Daily Service was performed here
Matins at 6 a.m., Evensong at 6 p.m. although the value of
the living was only 120 per annum. The paintings on wood
of Moses and Aaron which once adorned S. Christopher's
can now be seen in the Church of S. Margaret, Lothbury,
to which the parish was annexed in 1781, when the church
was pulled down to make room for the westward exten-
sion of the Bank buildings. It was the first of Wren's
churches to be destroyed. Bishop Pearson of Chester,
author of the famous Treatise on the Creed, was Rector of
S. Christopher-le-Stocks from 1660-1662. "Stocks" was
the name of an ancient market place, the site of which is
now partially covered by the Mansion House ; it dated back
to the Xlllth century, and was chiefly used for the sale of
greengrocery, vegetables, fruit, &c. Whatever may be said
of the eighteenth century people who removed a church
dedicated to S. Christopher to make room for the storing of
mere money the "strongest" power on earth it is not to
the credit of twentieth centurv churchmanship that no church
dedicated to the Saint of little children exists now-a-days
in any part of our vast metropolis.
180 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. CLEMENT AND
S. DUNSTAN.
^ CLEMENT, writes Wheatly, " was a Roman by
J^5' birth. He was Bishop of Rome from about A.D. 64
to 81, and was the author of at least one Epistle
(to the Corinthians) which was for some time read in church
as canonical scripture." He suffered martyrdom by being
drowned in the sea with an anchor tied about his neck.
His Feast-day in the Kalendar of the Catholic Church is
Nov. 23rd. The manner of his death may have been the
means of making him the patron saint of sailors. The two
London churches :
(1) S. Clement Danes (in the west),
(2) S. Clement Eastcheap (in the east),
are situated at opposite ends of the city. Both are close to
the river-side ; and all down the Thames, from London to
the sea, we find churches on its banks dedicated to this patron
saint of sea-faring men. ending with the old parish church
of S. Clement at Leigh-on-Sea near Southend in Essex.
S. Clement Eastcheap, situated at the eastern end of
the city, has been already described.
LVIII. S. Clement Danes, although actually outside
the boundary of the city, being west of Temple Bar, deserves
nevertheless a notice in these pages on account of its historical
associations. There was a church on this spot in Norman
(if not in Saxon) times, and it has been stated that the
appellation "Danes" bears reference to the fact that when
King Alfred expelled the remnant of the Danish invaders in
A.D. 886, he permitted those who had married English wives
to still live in this neighbourhood. Very little, if anything,
is known about this ancient church. StOW says that between
the vears 1608 and 1633 a sum amounting to no less than
.1586 was expended in repairs ; but half-a-century later it
became absolutely necessary to pull down the old building
and replace it with a new one. This was done in 1682, when
S. CLEMENT AND S. DUNSTAN. iX*
the present structure was erected from the designs of Pierce,
who was greatly assisted by Sir Christopher Wren in
both the "contriving and building of it" as an inscription
on a marble slab on the Chancel wall quaintly records. Its
dimensions are : Length, 96 ft. ; breadth, 63 ft. ; height,
48 ft. ; height of steeple, about 1 16 ft. Its ground plan is
rectangular, with an apsidal termination at the east, from
which a smaller apse projects. The steeple at the west end
consists of what is practically a tower and spire ; but it is
somewhat difficult to say exactly without close examination
where the tower ends and the spire begins. The interior of
the church has a spacious and dignified effect. The pulpit
is enriched with much skilful and graceful carving, the
anchor (which symbolizes the patron saint) being an important
and appropriate feature of the general scheme of decoration.
There are many interesting memorials to departed worthies,
but the one monumental inscription which makes the church
famous is to be found in the front pew of the north gallery
where the seats begin to curve round towards the apse ; it
runs thus, In this pew, and beside this pillar, for many years
attended Divine Service, Dr. Samuel Johnson, the great
lexicographer. Boswell once remarked to a mutual friend,
" I think, Sir, Dr. Johnson and you only meet at church."
" Sir," said he, "It is the best place we can meet in, except
heaven, and I hope we shall meet there too."
The organ (which still happily retains its original place in
the west gallery) was built about 1690 by Father Schmidt
as Great, Choir and Echo, the last named being subsequently
altered into a Swell by Crang. Mr. Henry Leffler
gives the specification thus, after the repairs effected by
Hugh Russell in 1804 :
"Three setts of keys from GG to D, long octaves. Swell to f ;EE
Great (n stops) Op. Diap., 55 pipes; Stop. Diap., 55; Prin., 55;
Flute, 55; izth, 55; ijth, 55; Tierce, 55; Sesquialtera, IV ranks,
220; Mixture, III ranks, 165 ; Cornet, V ranks [from CJf upwards],
130 ; Trumpet [added by G. England], 55.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes ; Stop. Uiap., 34 ; Cornet, IV ranks,
136; Hautboy. 34; Trumpet, 34; Clarion, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 55 pipes ; Prin., 55 ; Flute, 55 ; isth, 55
Vox Humana, 55.
Pedals to C."
Robson subsequently added pedal pipes, and Walker a
Harmonic Flute in place of the Mixture on the Great organ.
In 1893 an entire rebuild became absolutely necessary, and
this important work was entrusted to Mr. Alfred Kirkland
under the supervision of Dr. E. J. Hopkins. The speci-
fication stands thus at present (1908) :
1 82 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Compass Manuals, CC to A, 58 notes ; Pedal, CCC to F, 30 notes.
Great (n stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. JJiap. (No. i), 8 ft.; Op. Diap.
(No. 2), 8 ft.; Stop. Diap. [oak], 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Stopped Flute
[<*], 4 ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; i2th, 2 ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft.; Sesquiakera,
III ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (12 stops)-Double Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8ft.; Salicional, 8ft.; Voix Celeste, 8 ft. ; Prin., 4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.;
Sesquialtera, III ranks; Contra Fagotto, 16 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Corno-
pean, 8 ft.; Vox Humana, 8 ft.
Choir (8 stops) Gamba, 8 ft. ; Dulciana [to Tenor C grooved], 8 ft. ;
Stop. Diap. [oak}, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Stopped Flute [oak}, 4 ft.;
Metal Flute, 4 ft.; i s th, 2 ft; Clarinet, 8 ft
Pedal (5 stops)-Sub Bourdon, 32 ft.; Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, i6ft.;
Violoncello, 8 ft. ; Trombone, 16 ft.
Couplers (6) Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch..; Sw. to Fed.; Ch. to Ped.; Gt. to
Fed.; Sub-8ve Gt. to Ped.
Accessories 4 comp. peds. to Gt. acting also on Ped. organ ; 3 comp.
peds. to Sw.; Gt. to Ped. " on and off."
Father Schmidt's handsome case of old black oak has been
carefully preserved; the front "show" pipes are gilded and
arranged in four "towers" with three intermediate "flats,"
each of two tiers. An extra tower (with intervening flats) has
been added right and left of the organ, thus widening the
original design of the front. The four stops of oak are as
sound to-day as they were when they first left the organ
factory, the joints in the pipes being so true and neat that
they almost escape detection. Amongst the organists of S.
Clement Danes may be mentioned :
J. Purkis, 1804 (blind, died 1849).
Scotson Clark.
Edwin M. Lott, 1860-1864.
Charles E. Stephens, 1864-1869.
W. H. Smart.
Charles King Hall, R.A.M., 1880-.
F. J. Marchment.
As might be expected of a church so near Temple Bar,
(through which royal, civic and other processions enter the
City from the west), S. Clement Danes has always possessed
a fine peal of bells. The original peal consisted of eight,
tuned to the scale of E, the tenor bell weighing I ton 4 c-wt. ;
these bells were cast in 1693 by William and Philip
Wightman, and were the gift of Edward Clarke. The
total weight of this peal was 4 tons 13 cwt. 2 qrs. 8 Ibs.
Two new trebles were cast in 1845 by Charles Oliver,
completing the present peal of ten. There is, in addition, a
" Saint's Bell," inscribed Roberts made me, 1588.
S. DUNSTAN, whose Feast Day is May igth in the
Kalendar of the Church, was a relative of King Athelstan.
Educated at Glastonbury Abbey, he afterwards became
Abbot of that famous house. Gifted in many ways, he was
S. CLEMENT AND S. DUNSTAN. I3
well skilled in music. A composition of his, Kyrie Rex
Splendens, is still not only extant, but is frequently sung
now-a-days. It begins thus :
The story of its composition was as follows : On a certain
Sunday, when King Edgar was violating the Sabbath by-
going a-hunting, he asked Dunstan to stay Mass until his
return. Towards the third hour, Dunstan put on his
eucharistic vestments, and awaiting the king, knelt before the
altar absorbed in tearful prayer. Suddenly overcome by
sleep, he dreamed that he was taken up into heaven, where
he heard a choir of angels sing Kyrie Eleison, Christe Eleison,
Kyrie Eleison. Awaking from his dream, Dunstan enquired
if the king had returned. No ! Again he became absorbed
in prayer, again he dreamed he was in heaven, where he
heard a loud voice saying Ite missa est. But when Deo
Gratias should have been responded, Dunstan was awakened
from sleep by the king's arrival. He declared he had
already heard Mass in heaven, and that he neither would
hear nor celebrate another Mass that day. On being asked
wherefore, he recounted his vision, and taking it for his
text, forbade the king's hunting any more on the Lord's Day.
The melody of the Kyrie, which he heard in heaven (a
portion of which is given above) he remembered sufficiently
to teach his clerks, and it has been handed down to posterity.
S. Dunstan was successively Bishop of Worcester and London,
and afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury ; he died on the
Sunday in the Octave of the Ascension, May igth, 988.
The two London churches :
(1) S. Dunstan-in-the-West,
(2) S. Dunstan-in-the-East,
are (like those of S. Clement) situated at opposite ends of
the City.
LIX. S. Dunstan-in-the-West, on the north side
of Fleet Street, between Fetter Lane and Chancery Lane, is
of very ancient foundation. The living, originally in the
gift of the Abbot and Convent of Westminster, passed, in
184 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
1237, into the hands of King Henry III ; transferred, sub-
sequently, to the Abbot and Convent of Alnwick, in
Northumberland, it passed into lay hands at the Dissolution
of the Monasteries, and is now in the possession of " Simeon's
Trustees." The old Gothic Church, a portion of which Hated
back to the beginning of the Xlllth century, escaped the
Great Fire of 1666, which ended only three houses east of it ;
its dimensions were : Length* 90 ft ; breadth [at the west
end], 60 ft. ; height, 36 ft. ; height of tower and turret, about
100 ft. The organ in this old church was built by Jordan,
and is thus specified by Mr. Henry Leffler, writing in
1800:
"Two setts of keys. Compass from GG to D short octaves.
Great (9 stops)-Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52 ; Prin., 52; izth,
52; isth, 52; French Horn [from Middle L) upwards], 37; Sesqui-
altera, III ranks, 156; Cornet, III ranks [from CJ upwards], 130;
Trumpet, 52.
Choir (4 stops)- Stop. Diap., 52 ; Flute, 52 ; isth, 52 ; Vox Humana, 52.
Swell (4 stops) [on the same keys as Choir] Op. Diap. 32 pipes ; Stop.
Diap., 32 ; Hautboy, 32 ; Trumpet, 32.
This organ was repaired and enlarged by Hugh Russell
in 1805, whose new stops are marked *.
Great (9 stops)-*Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52; isth, 52; Sesquialtera, III ranks; 'Mixture, II ranks;
Cornet, IV ranks [from C upwards], 125 ; Tiumpet, 52.
Swell [separate keyboard from Tenor F] (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes ;
Stop. Diap., 34 ; *Prin., 34 ; Cornet, III ranks, 102 ; Hautboy, 34 ;
Trumpet, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 52; *Prin., 52; Flute, 52; isth, 52;
Cremona [from Gamut G upwards], 44.
The Vox Humana was taken away 1805^ after having
acquired great celebrity in consequence of Mr. Readings
having been afflicted with palsy. Mr. Duncombe was elected
organist in 1764 to succeed old John Reading. "
The old church had been so defaced by alterations and
additions, and had become so unsafe that in 1830 the parish-
ioners decided to have it pulled down, and a new church
erected in its place. The materials of the old church were
sold by auction on Sept. 22nd, 1830.
The new church stands partly on the site of the old one,
partly on the churchyard, and partly on a piece of land taken
from Clifford's Inn. This altered position has had the effect
of widening the street by some thirty feet. Built at a cost of
.12,445 f rom tne designs of John Shaw, the architect of
the recently destroyed Christ's Hospital in Newgate Street,
the present Church of S. Dunstan in the West has an
octagonal ground plan about 5 feet in diameter, joined by a
vestibule on the south side to a square tower surmounted by
S. CLEMEMT AND S. DUNSTAN. 185
a pierced octagonal lantern, the total height of which is
130 feet. The idea of this tower and lantern would seem
to have been suggested to the architect's mind by the well-
known examples at S. Botolph's, Boston, and All Saints',
Pavement, York. The interior of the church is full of
interesting monuments ; a stained-glass window at the north-
west is in memory of Isaac Walton, author of The Compleat
Angler, and a parishioner of S. Dunstan's. The altar occupies
the northern recess of the building. In the south gallery,
over the entrance, is the organ built by T. R. Robson in
1839 to replace the old one by Jordan & Russell which was
re-erected in the new church, but was found to be in such a
bad condition that the organist, Mr. Thomas Adams, refused
to play on it. Robson's organ is specified thus by Dr. E. J.
Hopkins, writing in 1855 :
Three sets of keys, Gt. and Ch. : GO (with GGjf) to f in alt. Swell
Tenor F to f in alt. Pedal GG to Tenor C.
Great (9 stop>) Op. Diap. (large); Op. Diap. (small); Stop. Diap. ;
Prin.; I2th; isth; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Mixture, II ranks;
Trumpet.
Swell (7 stops) Dble. Diap.; Op Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin.; Flute;
Oboe; Trumpet.
ChoiP (7 stops) Dulciana [all through]; Stop. Diap.; Prin.; Flute;
Pedal d stop) Open pipes, 21 J ft.
Couplers (4) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Fed.; Ch. to Ped.; Ch. to Gt. sub-8ve.
Accessories 3 comp. peds.
There is just sufficient similarity between the above speci-
fication and that given by Mr. Henry Leffler in 1805 to sug-
gest that Robson's organ of 1834 may have contained some of
the best of Jordan's and Hugh Russell's work preserved from
the previous instrument. In 1876 the organ was rebuilt by
Q. M. Holdich ; it was afterwards rebuilt and enlarged by
Ingram in 1897, and still further enlarged by F. Hnlliday
in 1905. By the kindness of the present organist, Mr. E.
E. Allender, I am enabled to give the specification as it
stands at present :
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap. (No. i), 8 ft.; Op. Diap. (No. 2), 8 ft.;
Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Harm. Flute, 4 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.; i2th,
28 ft.; isth. 2 ft.; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Trumpet, i ft.
Swell (9 stops)-Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft. tone ; Salicional, 8 ft.; Voix Celeste, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Mixture,
III ranks: Horn, 8 ft.: Oboe, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Dulciana, 8 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Harm. Piccolo, 2 ft. tone ; Cremona (runs through), 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops) Sub-8ve, 32 ft.; Op. Diap., 16 ft; Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (6) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.;
Ch. to Gt.; Ch. to Gt. sub-8ve.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.
Compass- Manuals, CC to F ; Pedal, CCC to F.
1 86 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Amongst the organists of S. Dunstan-in-the-West have
been the following :
DR. MAURICE GREENE (afterwards organist of S. Paul's
Cathedral) 1716-.
John Reading, -1764.
William Duncombe, 1764-1814.
William Ling, 1818-1828.
Post of organist declared vacant during the rebuilding of the
church, 1829.
No record, 1829-1839.
THOMAS ADAMS (died Sept. 1858), 1839-1858.
Mrs. Alfred Plumpton (nee Miss C. E. Tasker), 1859-1874.
T. Martin Tilby, 1875-1895.
Horace Chant, 1895-1897.
F, G. M. Ogbourne, 1897-1900.
Ethelbert Edward Allender, 1900-.
For this list of organists I am indebted to the kindness of
the vestry clerk of S. Dunstan-in-the-West, Mr. Alfred
Tisley.
LX.S. Dunstan-in-the-East is situated between
Tower Street and Lower Thames Street at the convergence
of S. Dunstan's Hill and Idol Lane. Its churchyard is
pleasantly shaded with tall trees, in which rooks still build
their nests. The living is one of the " thirteen peculiars " in
the City of London which are in the gift of the Archbishop
of Canterbury. Described in ancient records as juxta turrim
(next the tower), S. Dunstan-in-the-East is probably ol older
foundation than even All Hallows', Barking, which dates as
far back as the end of the Xllth century. We read of old
S. Dunstan's Church as having been enlarged in 1382. when
a south aisle and porch were added by Lord Cobham.
This church contained two side chapels one (to the north)
dedicated to Our Lady, the other to the Holy Trinity.
There was also an organ in the church, for in the XVth cen-
tury churchwardens' accounts we read :
" Item Paide to John Haddok for playing at organs
3 qrter of a yere, that is to say, fro Mydsomer onto our
Ladyday aftyr, xb. xxxrf " [2 2s. 6d.]
The old church had been extensively restored at a cost of
.2,400 only thirty-three years before the Great Fire, which
completely burnt it out, leaving only the walls standing.
In 1669, Sir Christopher Wren completed his rebuilding
of S. Uunstan's, the dimensions of the church being then :
Length, 87 ft. ; breadth, 63 ft. ; height, 33 ft. The steeple,
which was completed in 1699, is generally ranked as one of
S. CLEMENT AND S. DUNSTAN. 1 87
Wren's most striking conceptions. It is i8oj ft. high from
the ground to the top of the vane, and consists of a tower in
Perpendicular Gothic style, surmounted by a spire resting on
four arched ribs which spring from the angles of the tower in
crown-like fashion after the manner of S. Nicholas' Cathedral,
Newcastle-on-Tyne, S. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, King's
College at Old Aberdeen, &c. This beautiful steeple (which
contains eight bells) is all that now remains of Wren's
rebuild. At the beginning of the XlXth century, the old
side walls of the church were found to be no longer capable
of supporting the "thrust" of the nave roof, being consider-
ably out of the perpendicular. The church was therefore
pulled down, and the foundation stone of the present building
was laid by Archbishop Manners Sutton on Nov. 26th,
1817. This church, which is 93 ft. long (exclusive of the
tower), 65^ ft. wide, and 40 ft. high, was built from the
designs of David Laing who adopted the Perpendicular
Style to bring the building into harmony with the steeple.
The cost was ^36,000. Many interesting monuments are to
be seen in this church. Over the altar is a baldachino,
an unusual feature in an English church. In the vestry is a
model of Wren's church carved in oak and chestnut.
The organ in Wren's church [1669-1817] was originally
built by Father Schmidt, and was the gift of Lady
Dionys Williams. It consisted of a Great organ only,
i he Swell and Choir being afterwards added by Byfield.
Its case was ornamented with the royal arms and two carved
fames gilded. Writing in 1800, Mr. Henry Leffler
specifies the organ thus :
" Three setts of keys ; Compass, GG to D, short octaves, Swell down
to Fiddle G.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap , 52 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 52 ; Prin., 52 ; isth,
52; i2th, 52; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 156; Trumpet, 52; Clarion,
52; Cornet, III ranks [down to Middle Cf|.
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Prin., 32 ft.; Cornet, III ranks,
96; Trumpet, 32; Hautboy, 32.
Choir (4 stops) Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52; Cremona, 52; Vox
Humana, 52.
This is a fine organ, particularly the open diapason. The
Sweli is one of the best in London. Salary, 23."
This organ was not re-erected in the new church.
Dr. E. F. Rimbault (History of the Organ, Ed. 1855,
p 84), states that it was removed to S. Alban's Abbey (now
the Cathedral). A new organ was built for S. Dunstan-in-the-
East by Gray, and erected in the west gallerv in 1821,
where it still remains. It consisted of Great, 9 stops, Swell,
5 stops, Choir, 5 stops, and 3 couplers, with " Pedal pipes."
1 88 S. DUNSTAN-IN-THE-EAST.
It was rebuilt and enlarged by Bryceson, in 1866. to the
following specification :
Compass Manual, CC to A ; Pedal, CCC to E.
Great (9 stops) Great Op. Diap., 8ft.; Bell Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stc
Diap , 8 ft. tone ; Quint, 4 ft.; i2th
iltera, IV ranks ; Mixture, II ranks
Diap , 8 ft. tone; Quint, 4 ft.; i2th, 3 ft.; Super-8ve. 8 ft.; Sesqui-
altera, IV ranks ; Mixture, II ranks ; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (14 stops) -Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Dulciana
[Tenor C], 8ft.; Lieblich Gedackt [Tenor C], 8ft.; Stop. Bass
pipes only], 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; 8ve Keraulophon, 8 ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft.;
lath and isth [drawing together], 3 ft. and 2 ft.; Full Mixture,
V ranks; Contra Fagotto, 16 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.;
Clarion, 4 ft.
ChoiP (6 stops) -Dulciana [Tenor C], 8 ft.; Rohr Flute [Tenor C], 8 ft.;
Mop. Bass [12 pipes only], 8 ft.; Flute
Super-8ve, 2 ft.; Clarinet [Tenor C], 8 ft
Pedal (2 stops)~Sub-bass, 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.
Couplers (7) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped ; Ch. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.
unison ; Sw. to Gt. super.; Sw. to Gt. sub.; Sw. to Ch.
Accessories 2 comp. peds. to Gt.; 2 ditto to Sw.; radiating and
concave pedal-board ; overhanging manuals.
The action is heavy and worn out. Pneumatic action and
re-voicing are contemplated this year (1908). The draw-
stops are thus arranged : Pedal, Great and Couplers on the
player's left hand ; Swell and Choir on his right hand. The
8 ft. Diapason stops are all labelled " unison."
Amongst the organists have been :
Mr ]. Martin Dunstan. 1862-1883.
Miss Vaughan, 1883-1895.
Mr. L. Lydford, 1895-1896 (who had been previously
choirmaster only).
Mr. Arthur Ernest Mason, 1896-.
I am indebted to the present organist, Mr. Mason, for
much of the foregoing information.
S. GABRIEL, ETC. 189
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. GABRIEL, S.
GEORGE, S. GREGORY, S. JAMES, S. JOHN-
THE-EVANGELIST, S. JOHN-THE-BAPTIST,
S. KATHERINE, S. LAWRENCE, AND S.
LEONARD.
LXI. S. Gabriel, Fenchurch Street, was a small
parish church which in Stow's time "stood in the midst
of the street," a position which gained for it the title of
"fore-church" as distinct from "back-church," a term
applied to S. Dionis, which formerly stood behind the low
houses on the north side of the same street. The increase of
street traffic makes it easy to understand why such an ob-
struction as S. Gabriel's church was not rebuilt after the
Great Fire : its churchyard still exists (with trees and flower
beds) in Fen Court, nearly opposite Mincing Lane, but slightly
further East. The parish is united to that of S. Margaret
Pattens.
LXII. S. George, Botolph Lane, was the only
church in the City dedicated to the Patron Saint of England,
whose Feast Day tails on April 23rd. It stood at the corner
of Botolph Lane and George Lane, near Eastcheap. Stow
remarks that in his time it was a small building, but that the
monuments therein were "well preserved from spoil" the
date of the earliest mentioned by him (that in memory of
Lord Mayor Adam Bamme) being 1397. In 1627 the
church was repaired and beautified ; but it was completely
destroyed 39 years later in the Great Fire. In 1674 it was again
6nished, after having been rebuilt by Wren to the following
dimensions length, 54 ft.; breadth, 36 ft. ; height,^ ft. ; height
of steeple, 84 ft. The organ which was in the west gallery
was built previous to 1708, for Hatton mentions it in his
Neio View of London as "a pretty but small organ. ''
Writing in 1800, Mr. Henry Leffler describes it thus :
" 2 setts of keys. Built by Griffin. Compass from GG to D, short
octaves ; Sw. from Fiddle G.
Great (7 stops)-Op. Diap., 52 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 52 ; Prin., 52 ; izth,
52 ; isth, 52 ; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 208 ; Trumpet, 53.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Prin., 32;
Trumpet, 32.
I QO CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
In New Remarks of London, (collected by the* Company of
Parish Clerks, pub. 1732), this organ is described as " small,
but good."
In 1862 Mesrs. Hill & Son extended the Swell organ to
the modern CC compass, at the same time putting in a new
pedal keyboard of 27 notes, and an octave of Bourdon pipes.
The Diapasons and reeds were re-voiced, and the " Claribel "
transformed into a Flute : this looks as if the last-named stop
had then undergone a second re-christening, having originally
been called "Stop Diapason." Messrs. Hill (to whom I
am kindly indebted for the foregoing information) thoroughly
cleaned the instrument that year and tuned it to equal
temperament. The organ was in the care of this eminent
firm until 1883, when they lost sight of it. The organist in
1883 was Miss Boughey (appointed in 1861).
A photograph of the organ appears on p. 180 of Mr. A. E.
Daniell's London City Churches (Second Edition, 1907).
The frontal design was a handsome one with three " towers"
and intervening "flats" of a somewhat scroll-like form.
The church was closed upon the death of the last rector, the
Rev. Canon McColl, and some very uninteresting business
premises now occupy the desecrated site.
LXIII. S. Gregory by S. Paul's was a small parish
church which stood at the south-west corner of old S. Paul's
Cathedral. Dedicated to S. Gregory, Bishop of Rome (who
died in 604, and whose Feast Day is March I2th) this church
is thought to have owed its foundation to some of the disciples
or co-missionaries of S. Augustine, soon after the completion of
the first cathedral in 610. At each corner of the west end of old
S. Paul's stood a bell -tower. That on the south side adjoin-
ing S. Gregory's church was called the Lollard's Tower,
and was used as the Bishop's prison, in which, in pre-reform-
ation times, were confined and punished all such persons as
were detected holding religious opinions contrary to the doc-
trines of the National Church. Allen in his New History of
London, Vol. Ill, p. 365, gives a woodcut of the interesting
little church of S. Gregory by S. Paul's as it appeared nine-
teen years before the Great Fire, viz. in 1647. Martin
Pierson or Pearson (born c. 1580, d. 1650) was organist
of this church. This distinguished musician was appointed
Master of the Children of S. Paul's Cathedral and Almoner
in 1604, and in 1613 he took the degree of Mus. B. at
Oxford. Twelve anthems are attributed to him in Myles B.
Foster's Anthems and Anthem composers (1901) ; and he was
a contributor to Sir William Leighton's Teares or Lamentations
of a Sorrowfull Soulc, composed with Musical Ayres and
S. GABRIEL, ETC. TQ1
Songs both for Voyces and divers Instruments (1614). He
was the Master of Thomas Ravenscroft. By his will ht
bequeathed 100 to the poor of March, in the Isle of Ely.
S. Gregory's Church appears to have enjoyed the exceptional
possession of certain priceless church privileges during the
rough times of the Commonwealth ; for John Evelyn has
a note in his Diary (1641-1706) which reads thus : " 1655,
April 1 5th. I went to London with my family to celebrate
the Feast of Easter. Dr. Wild preached at S. Gregorie's,
the Ruling Powers conniving at the use of the Liturgy, &c.,
in this church alone." S. Gregory's was a "peculiar"
belonging to the Dean and Chapter of S. Paul's, who were
both ' ' patrons " and " ordinaries. " The church was destroyed
in the Great Fire, and was not afterwards rebuilt ; the ground
upon wh ch it stood being added to the open space of S.
Paul's Churchyard. The last Parish Clerk of S. Gregory's,
Robert Seal, survived the destruction of the church, ami
his office being a freehold one, he retained its title until his
death. In 1681 he was Master of the Worshipful Company
of Parish Clerks ; and his portrait is still to be seen in a
stained glass window in the Parish Clerks' Hall in Silver
Street, Wood Street. The parish was united to that of S.
Mary Magdalene, Knightrider Street, but upon the destruction
of that church by fire in 1886, it was annexed to S. Martin,
Ludgate.
LXIV. S. James's, Duke's Place, Aldgate, was a
small church built in 1622 out of the ruins of the adjacent
Priory of the Holy Trinity, founded by Queen Maud,
wile of Henry I, which was " surrendered " on Feb. 4th,
1531. S. James' Church escaped the Great Fire, but was
rebuilt in 1727 to the following dimensions: length, 65 ft.;
breadth, 42 ft.; height, 27 ft.; height of tower, 70 ft. Allen
states that an organ was erected here in 1815. When the
church was destroyed in 1874, the parish was annexed to
that of S. Katherine Cree.
LXV.-S. John the Evangelist, Friday Street.
This church stood at the east side of Friday Street, which is
a turning out of Cheapside on the south side. Stow says
that Friday Street was "so called of fishmongers dwelling
there, and serving Friday's market'' for the weekly fast
appointed by the Church. It was a small building, but
contained several monuments of civic interest. It was not
rebuilt after its destruction in the Great Fire. Its parish was
first annexed to that of All Hallows, Bread Street, but upon
the destruction of that church in 1877, it was united to S.
IQ2 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Mary-le-Bow. A portion of S. John's Churchyard is yet
(1908) unbuilt upon, and is to be seen at the corner of Friday
Street and Watling Street a pleasant green spot amidst very
dreary surroundings.
LXVI. S. John the Baptist upon Walbrook was
so called because its west end was "on the very bank of
Walbrook, by Horseshew Bridge," writes Stow. It was
situated on the north side of Cloak Lane, a narrow street
running parallel with Cannon Street, connecting Dowgate
Hill with Queen Victoria Street. It was enlarged about the
year 1421 by the addition of a north choir aisle 21 ft. long,
and 17^ ft. wide, and by widening the choir on its south
side by one foot. The church was not rebuilt after the
Great Fire, when its parish was united with that of S.
Mary, Aldermary. The churchyard, however, remained until
1884, when the extension of the District Railway near
Cannon Street Station necessitated its destruction ; the
human remains it contained being carefully collected and
re-interred in a vault beneath a monument which was then
erected to commemorate the former existence of the ancient
church and its burying ground.
LXVII. S. John Zachary, which was dedicated to S.
John the Baptist, has been already described in connection
with S. Anne and S. Agnes, Gresham Street, A portion of
its churchyard is still to be seen on the north side of Gresham
Street at the south-east corner of Noble Steet.
S. KATHKRINE, THE VIRGIN AND MARTYR, was born at
Alexandria, and was converted to Christianity about the year
305. She suffered for the Faith, by having her body broken
on a wheel. There were three city churches dedicated to this
saint, whose Feast Day is Nov. 2t;th.
(1) S. Katherine-by-the-Tower (removed in 1824 to Regent's
Park).
(2) S Katherine Coleman, still remaining.
(3) S. Katherine Cree, still remaining.
LXVIII.-The Royal Collegiate Church of S.
Katherine by the Tower formerly stood about 350 yards
east of the Tower of London, just outside the City boundary.
Founded circa 1148, by Queen Matilda, wife of King
Stephen, as a Hospital or Alms House, the stately church
consisted of an ante-chapel (or western transept somewhat
like that of Peterborough Cathedral) and choir; the former
6 ft. long (from west to east), and 60 ft. wide (from north to
south), the latter 63 ft. long by 32 ft. -wide. The height
S. GABRIEL, ETC. 193
from floor to roof was 49 ft. Built throughout in the Gothic
style, the choir resembled that of a cathedral, both as regards
spaciousness and ritual arrangement of stalls. In 1824
the church was pulled down, and the collegiate establish-
ment removed to some new buildings erected (from the designs
of Poynter) near Gloucester Gate, Regent's Park.
The present establishment (which remains as it ever was an
ecclesiastical foundation) is governed by a Chapter, which con-
sists of the Master (the Rev. A. L. B. Peile) three brethren, and
three sisters, with a chapter clerk and organist. The brethren
must be in Holy Orders, and they stand in the same relation to
the Master as Cathedral Canons stand to their Dean. These
priests not only take their turn at preaching in the chapel,
but also devote themselves as far as possible to helping in the
Diocese ; one of their number, the Rev. G. Brett (who died
in 1906) did some excellent work in connection with the
Diocesan Preventive and Rescue Association. The patronage
of S. Katherine's is vested in the Queen of England, and
belongs to her of right, as in ancient times ; it has been
exercised in unbroken succession from Queen Matilda to
Queen Alexandra.
To the new chapel was removed the fine organ built by
Samuel Green in 1778, under the direction of Joah Bates,
for the old church by the Tower. Mr. Henry Leffler,
who was organist of S. Katherine's-by-the-Tower, thus
describes the organ as it was when he played upon it at the
beginning of the XlXth century :
"3 complete setts of keys, GG to E (no GGJf), long octaves.
Sw to Gamut $3 E , tne remaining keys act on the Ch. organ.
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap., No. i, 57 pipes; Op. Diap., No. 2, 57;
Stop. Diap., 57; Prin., 57; i2th, 57; isth, 57; Sesquialtera, III
ranks, 171; Mixture, II ranks, 114; Cornet, IV ranks, 116;
Trumpet, 57.
Swell (6 stops)-Op. Diap, 46 pipes; Stop. Diap., 46; Prin., 46;
Cornet, III ranks, 138; Trumpet, 46; Oboe, 46.
Choir (5 stops) -Stop. Diap., 57 pipes; Prin., 57; Flute, 57 ; isth, 57;
Bassoon, 57.
Pedal Dble. Diapason ; an 8ve of open pipes to CCC, 16 ft. length.
Notes on Mixtures.
(1) III rank Sesquialtera :
from GG to Middle C is Tierce, Larigot and 22nd.
from Middle C J to B is isth, i?th and Larigot.
from B to the top is i2th, isth and 17th.
(2) 1 1 rank Mixture:
from GG to Tenor FJ is zznd and 24th, i.e., in thirds.
from Fiddle G to C (Treble 3rd space) is 1710 and 22iid, i.e.. in sixths
fromC J(Treble 3rd space) to the top is isth and 171:1, i.e., in thirds'''
194 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Mr. Leffler thought that the Mixture would have been
better thus :
" From GG to Tenor C, three ranks 2nd, 26th and 2gth.
from Tenor C to Middle C, two ranks 22nd and 26th.
from Middle C to C above, two ranks T2th and isth.
from Treble C to the top, two ranks 8ve and isth."
A quaint account of this organ appears in part 3 of Vol. X
oiBeautiesoJ 'England and Wales (pub. 1815). "The pipes,"
says this writer, "are of very large dimensions .... the
Swell Compass is five notes lower than that of S. Paul's
Cathedral." It was the largest Swell Compass in England,
at the time of its erection. The organ in Greenwich Hos-
pital, erected in 1789 by the same builder (Samuel Green)
had a Swell extending a whole tone lower, viz. to FF, with
48 pipes to each of the foundation stops. Green was specially
successful in his management of large pipes ; these were wide
in scale, low in mouth, closely nicked, and blown by a light
wind.
Dr. E. J. Hopkins prints this specification exactly as given
by Mr. Leffler, in the first edition of his Organ Book (1885),
and repeats it verbatim in the Second Edition (1877).
The Organ was rebuilt in 1886 by Messrs. Gray &
Davison, when the specification appeared thus :
Great (8 stops) Large Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; 12. h, 2ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks;
Trumpet {spotted metal], 8 ft.
Swell (8 stops) -Lieblich Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap.,
8ft.; Keraulophon, 8ft.; Prin., 4ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Corno-
pean [spotted metal], 8 ft.; Oboe [spotted metal~\, 8 ft.
ChoiP (6 stops) Dulciana, 8ft.; Stop, Diap., 8ft.; Prin., 4ft.; Flute,
4 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Violone, 16 ft.
Couplers (6)-Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch.
toPed.; Sw. 8ve on itself.
Accessories 5 comp. peds. (3 to Gt.; 2 to Sw.) ; Tremulant to Sw.
Compass Manual, CC to G, 56 notes ; Pedal, CCC to F, 30 notes.
By the kindness of Mr. John D. Knight, the present
organist of S. Katherine's, I am enabled to give the following
list of organists :
HENKY LEFFLER, ante 1806.
Henry Leffler (son of the above), 1819.
William Lovell Phillips (died March igth, 1860), 1848.
Steptien Austen Pearce (afterwards, in 1864, Mus. D.,
Oxon.), 1860.
Mrs. Green (nee Miss Fanny Roe), 1861.
G. Proust (appointed pro tern.), 1899.
John D. Knight, 1901 .
S. GABRIEL, ETC. IQ5
Of these, W. L. Phillips was a pupil of Cipriani Potter at
the Royal Academy of Music, and became professor of
composition at that Institution. He was also a violoncello
player (having studied under Lindley) and a member of the
orchestra of the Philharmonic Society.
Dr. S. A. Pearce was a pupil of Dr. J. L. Hopkins of
Cambridge, and died very suddenly on Palm Sunday, 1900, at
the First Presbyterian Church, New York, U.S.A., where he
had been organist for the last nine years of his life.
LX1X. S. {Catherine Coleman stands in a church-
yard pleasant with trees and flower-beds, on the south side
of Fenchurch Street, a little east of Mark Lane. The name
Coleman is derived from a yard or garden once close to it,
which was called "Coleman Haw." The rectory is of ancient
foundation, John de Hertford held the living in 1346. In
1883 the value of the living was ^1500 per annum, according
to Mackeson's Guide; but it was only worth "about 100
per annum" in 1708. Hatton states that he found the date
1182 carved on a pew near the chancel of the old church,
which was one of those not destroyed in the Great Fire,
This old building, which was repaired and enlarged in 1489,
1610, 1620 and 1703, was Gothic in style, and had the
following dimensions : length, 66 ft.; breadth, 36 ft.; height,
23 ft.; the tower, which contained three bells, was 60 ft.
high. Owing to street improvements in the early years of
the XVIIIth century, which considerably raised the ground
outside the building, the church was pulled down in 1734
and a new one erected in its place. The architecture is
exceedingly plain, there being no pillars in the interior which
is roofed in under one span as a mere room. The church
underwent considerable repairs, &c., in 1849 ; and in 1898
it was again restored, and the windows filled with "cathedral
glass." The organ is in a small West gallery especially
constructed for it. and approached by a spiral s'aircase in the
tower. Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, who sa* the organ
on August I2th, 1855, describes it as "a small flat-fronted
instrument, 'Englandish' in appearance." It practically
remains in its original condition now (1908), having escaped
the hands of both "restorer" and "destroyer " terms which
but only too often may be fittingly and appropriately applied
to the same person. Mere, in the City of London, almost at
the end of the first decade of the XXth century, is an organ
which to this day retains its XVIIIth century appearance and
tone. I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. A. Meynell
Sly, one of the churchwardens of S. Katherine's, for the
following information concerning it :
196 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
"3 setts of keys. Gt. and Ch., GG to E, short octaves ; Sw. Fiddle G
to E ; Pedals (pull-downs only), GG to D
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 54 pipes ; Op L)iap. {Middle C to E], 29 ;
Clarabella {Middle C tn E], 29 ; Stop. Diap., 54 ; Prin., 54 ; i2th, 54 ;
i5th, 54 ; Mixture, III ranks, 162 ; Trumpet, 54.
Swell (4 stops)-Op. Diap., 34 pipes; Stop. Diap., 34; Prin., 34;
Trumpet, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Op. Diap., 54 pipes; Stop. Diap., 54; Prin., 54;
Flute. 54 ; Cremona, 54.
The keyboards still (1908) have black naturals and white
sharps. There are no couplers (except Great to Pedal) and
the mahogany stop-knobs have no names on them. The
names of the stops are written on slips of paper pasted on
the jambs. The two Great Treble stops (Op. Diap. and
Clarabella) may have been subsequent additions to the original
instrument the Great Clarabella is to be found amongst
the Choir stops or they may be the remains of a Great
Cornet stop. By the kindness of the present organist, Mr.
Wilkinson, I tried the organ on June I4th, 1908, and
found the diapason tone admirable. The keyboards are in
an excellent state of preservation, and the touch is delightful.
One almost expected to meet with a "Nag's head Swell,"
but the Swell box has horizontal shutters. Is it possible that
J. C. Bishop may have built (or rebuilt) this organ?
Amongst the organists have been :
JONAS BLEWITT (died 1805)
A. S. Tremearne, 1876.
Mr. Ackerman.
Mr. Bevan.
Mr. Wilkinson (the present organist), 1898-
Of these, Jonas Blewitt was a musician of some consider-
able reputation. He was the author of A Treatise on the
Organ, with Explanatory Voluntaries ; a further set of ten
voluntaries, and twelve easy and familiar movements for the
organ. He held also the organist's post at S. Margaret
Pattens, his son Jonathan (who afterwards became a still
more distinguished musician) assisting him with his duties at
S. Katherine Coleman.
LXX. S. Katherine Cree Church is on the north side
of Leadenhall Street, at the south-east corner of Cree-church
Lane. " Cree Church " is a corruption of Christ Church, an
additional name given to S. Katherine's because of its
situation when first built in the cemetery of the conventual
church of the Holy Trinity, which was originally called Christ
Church. Writing in 1598 Stow remarks that "the parish
Church of S. Katherine seemeth to be very old ; since the
building whereof, the high street hath been so often raised by
S. GABRIEL, ETC. 197
pavements, that now men are fain to descend into the church
by Hivers steps, seven in number."
The difference between the level of the floor of the present
church, and that of its predecessor, is strikingly shown by the
appearance of one of the pillars of the old church, which was
left standing in its original position at the south-west during
the rebuilding in 1628-9 : this pillar is said to be 18 ft. from
base to capital, yet less than 3 ft. of its entire length can be
seen above the present floor level. The tower was built in
1504 at the cost of Sir John Percivall, merchant-tailor :
the rest of the church, built in 1630 trom the designs of
InigO Jones so it is said is an excellent specimen of the
style of architecture which prevailed in the time of the first
Stuarts. Its dimensions are : length, 90 fi.; breadth, 51 ft.;.
height, 37 ft. ; height of tower, 80 ft. The present church is
some seven feet wider than the old one, the width of an
outside cloister on the north side having been included in the
ground plan at the rebuilding. The tower contains six bells
to ring in peal. The east window which takes the form of
a " Katherine Wheel " in honour of the Patron Saint is
perhaps the most striking feature of the interior of this church
which happily escaped the Great Fire. The foundation stone
was laid on June 23rd, 1628, and the church was consecrated
by William Laud (then Bishop of London) on Jan. i6th,
1630, who on that memorable occasion gave great offence to
the Puritanical congregation assembled, by certain mild acts
of Catholic ceremonial. In consequence of this premature
"High Church" revival, S. Katherine's was profaned by the
Puritans during the Commonwealth, who destroyed the altar
and "brake down all the carved wood thereof with axes and
hammers." The church was restored (in the modern sense of
the term) in 1879. Here, on Whitsun Tuesday, is held the
annual Flower Service originated by the Rev. W. M,
Whittemore, D.D. (Rector), at which each young person
carries a nosegay. Describing this service in his Orthodox
London, Vol. 2 (1875), the Rev. Dr. C. Maurice C.
Davies remarks that " it was a pretty sight to see the long
lines of children in the grey City Church, each with his or her
nosegay, from a sprig of hawthorn or lilac, up to the bouquet
properly so termed, and redolent of Covent Garden Market.
I realised the vast dimensions of the congregation when I
stood up, as well as the fragrance of the flowers ; they per-
fumed the air when we rose, like fumes of incense from a
censer."
The organ, which still occupies its original position in the
west gallery, was built by Father Schmidt. Dr. E. J.
Hopkins gives the specification thus :
198 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
" i row of keys, GG short octaves to C s in alt.
10 stops) Op. Diap., 50 pipes; Stop. Diap., 50; Prin., 50; i2th, 50;
iSth, 50; Block Flute, 52; Sesquialtera, III rants, 150 [draws in
halves, Treble and Bass]; Mixture II ranks, 100 [draws in halves,
Treble and Bass]; Cornet, V ranks, 128 [from Middle C g ] ;
Trumpet, 50."
The following extracts are taken from an old Vestry
Minute Book :
Sept. i&th, 1686. "The organ being now finished, it is
ordered that Mr. Joseph Cox do procure Mr. Purcell,
Mr. Barkwell and Mr. Mosse, Masters in Music, and
Mr. White, Organ Master, or such other competent
Judges in Music as may be prevailed with, to be at our
church on Thursday next, the 3Oth of this instant
September, at two of the Clocke in the Afternoone, to
give their judgements upon the organ.
Ordered also that Mr. Beath, Mr. Niccolls, Mr. Snow
and Mr. Heath (Organists who have made application
for the Organist's place) be desired also to be at our
church in the Afternoone ; then and there to play
severally upon the said organ, before the said Music
Masters, Organists, and Vestrymen of this Parish." Of
these candidates Mr. Snow was selected by the umpires.
Sept. ^oth, 1686. Mr. Purcell appeared at our church, was
desired to play, and did play upon the organ, and after he
had done playing, they did all play upon the organ, and
they all reported to the vestry that in their judgment the
organ was a good one, and was performed and completed
according to contract.
May 24th, 1687. Paid Mr. Bernard Smith for making
the organ as per contract, 250.
Spent on Mr. Purcell and Mr. Smith, 145.
Paid for coach hire for Dr. Blow and Mr.
Purcell, 5s.
Writing in 1800, Mr. Henry Leffler gives the speci-
fication thus :
"2 setts of keys from GG to D short octaves; Sw. from Middle C
[played from the Ch. keys].
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap., 52; Prin., 52;
i2th, 52; isih, 52 ; Block Flute, 52; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 156;
Mixture, II ranks, 104; Cornet, IV ranks, 130; Trumpet, 52.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; Stop. Diap., 32; Trumpet, 32;
Hautboy, 32.
Choir (4 stops) - Stop. Diap., 52 pipes ; Prin., 52; Flute, 52; isth, 52.
When Mr. J. W. Billinghurst saw the organ on April
2oth, 1856, he remarked that "the case has three towers,
but is not a very fine specimen of its kind. The tone (barring
the reeds) is tolerable. On the Great Organ the Block Flute
s. GABRIEL, ETC. 199
has disappeared and the Sesquialtera (Bass) and Mixture
(Treble) now form one stop only ; the Cornet is not used.
The Swell and Choir remain the same, and are played from
the same (lower) manual. The naturals on the manuals are
black and the sharps entirely white. There are no couplers,
composition pedals or pedal pipes, but an octave and a half of
pedals pull down the Great Organ keys."
The Musical Standard of Nov. 5th, 1864, reproduces this
specification exactly as given by Mr. Billinghurst above, but
gives greater praise to the organ case, which it describes as
"one of the most beautiful to be found in the City." The
organ was reconstructed and modernized two years later
(1866) by Henry Willis. At present the specification
stands thus : -
3 manuals CC to F, 54 notes.
Great (8 stops) Dble. Diap., i6ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Claribel Flute,
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; i2th, 3 ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera; Posaune, 8 ft.
Swell (8 stops) Dble Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap.. 8 top to complete the compass} ; Stop.
Diap , 8 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (4) Sw to Gt.; Sw. to Fed.; Gt. to Fed.; Sw. super-8ve
[on its own keyboard].
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt.; z ditto to Sw.
Much of the above information has been kindly given to
me by the present organist of the church, Mr. Joseph H.
Bell.
Amongst the organists of S. Martin's have been :
Henry Symonds, died 1730. | Mr. Hay ward, 1855.
Edmund Gilding,
about 1745-1762.
W. Reeve, 1792.
Dr. Neave, -1805.
William Henry Thomas, 1871.
Caleb Harrison, 1871.
F. A. Bridge, 1873-1878.
E. A. Morris, 1883
1883.
Master Prince, 1805-. | Joseph H. Bell, 1895-.
LXXVI1. S. Martin, Outwich, stood at the south-
east corner of Threadneedle Street where it adjoins Bishops-
gate Street. It derives its affix from the family of Oteswich,
who were either the founders or the proprietors of the church.
Stow mentions four members of this family who were
buried within its walls. The old church, which was built in
1 540, escaped the Great Fire, but it was so injured by a smaller
fire which occurred in Bishopsgate Street in 1765, that thirty
years afterwards it became necessary to pull it down and
erect another church in its place. Allen in his History of
London, Vol. Ill, p. 204 (published 1839), gives a small
engraving of the old church as it appeared the year before
it was pulled down. It consisted of a nave, choir, and south
aisle separated from the nave by arches springing from
clustered columns. The choir was approached by one step
from the nave. The church was 66 ft. long, 42 ft. broad, and
31 ft. high. The tower which contained four bells was
65 ft. hi ? h.
The following extracts from the churchwardens' books are
interesting :
1510-11. To Sir William [priest] for playing atte organs iij
q u ters, Vs.
To the same Sir William, for keeping of the
organs the same half year, vjj. viijo?.
Dr. Hopkins remarks that " three -quarters " and "one-
half" amounted to the same, in time, according to the
ancient scribe's method of calculation but there were no
Board Schools in those days.
206 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
1517. Payd on Seynt Marten's Day, for bred and drynke
for the fyngers, Vs.
No organ was placed in the old church after the Puritan
"dissolution."
The cost of building the new church in 1795, was
5256, 173. id. ; the architect was S. P. Cockerel I.
Its form was an oval, with a recess at the east for the
altar. The bell-turret was over the altar, at the east end.
This new church contained several of the XVIth Century
monuments preserved from the older building, and which
are now to be seen in S. Helen's Church, Bishopsgate,
close by, to which parish S. Martin's, Outwich, was
united in 1874 when the church was finally demolished.
Amongst these monuments may be mentioned those of John
Oteswich and his wife, Alderman Richard Staper and the
brasses of John Breux (rector in 1459), Nicholas Wotton (rector
in 1483), and several other worthies. The church which
was demolished in 1874 was small, by no means beautiful,
and very badly arranged as regards seats. But it contained
an organ erected by Q. P. England in the west gallery in
1805, which Mr. Henry Leffler thus specifies :
" Two setts of keys. Great, GG to F, short octaves ; Swell to Fiddle G.
Great (6 stops) Op. Diap., 55 pipes; Stop. Diap., 55; Prin., 55;
izth, 55 ; Sesquialtera and Cornet, IV ranks, 220; Trumpet, 55.
Swell (4 stop^) Op. Diap., 35 pipes; Stop. Diap., 35; Prin., 35;
Hautboy, 35.
At Fj the Swell joined the Great Stop. Diap. on a
separate row of pallets to Double G, thus making a complete
row of keys. There was an octave of pedal "pull-downs"
acting on the keys with a shifting movement. The organ
case was very plain and painted wainscot colour. The organ
remained in this condition until the destruction of the church.
The first organist (1805) was Miss England (a daughter of
the builder [?]).
LXXVIII. S. Martin, Pomary, was, according to
StOW, a "small parish church" which stood on the east
side of Ironmonger Lane. " It was called Pomary upon
what occasion I certainly know not. It is supposed to be
of apples growing where houses are now (1598) lately
built ; for myself have seen large void spaces there. Monu-
ments in that church none to be accounted of." After the
Great Fire the church was not rebuilt, and the parish was
united to that of S. Olave, Jewry ; but upon the destruction
of that church in 1888, S. Martin, Pomary, was annexed to
S. Margaret, Lothbury.
S. MARGARET, ETC. 207
LXXIX. S. Martin-in-the-Vintry stood at the
corner of Queen Street and Upper Thames Street, where
a portion of its old churchyard is yet (1908) to be seen. The
church, which was destroyed in the Great Fire and not
afterwards rebuilt, was, according to Stow, "newly built
in 1399 by the executors of Matthew Columbars," a
French wine merchant. It was particularly rich in monu-
ments, several of which had been erected in a still older
building. Stow quotes the following epitaph of the time of
Edward IV :-
" As flowers in the field thus passeth life,
Naked, then clothed, feeble in the end,
It sheweth by Robert DalllSSC, and Alison his wife,
Christ them save from the power of the fiend."
After the Fire the parish was united to that of S. Michael,
Paternoster Royal.
There were originally twelve City churches dedicated to
the BLKSSED VIRGIN MARY :
(1) S. Mary, Abchurch (still remaining).
(2) S. Mary, Aldermanbury (still remaining).
(3) S. Mary, Aldermary (still remaining).
(4) S. Mary-at-Hill (still remaining).
(5) S. Mary, Bothaw (destroyed in the Great Fire).
(6) S. Mary, Colechurch (destroyed in the Great Fire).
(7) S. Mary-le-Bow (still remaining).
(8) S. Mary, Mounthaw (destroyed in the Great Fire).
(9) S. Mary, Somerset (destroyed in 1871. The tower still
remains).
(10) S. Mary, Staining (destroyed in the Great Fire).
( 1 1 ) S. Mary, Woodchurch Haw (destroyed in the Great Fire).
(12) S. Mary, Woolnoth (still remaining).
Of these, the six which still remain have all been described.
It remains only to say a few words about each of the six
which have been destroyed.
LXXX.-S. Mary Bothaw, was (according to Stow)
a " proper parish church " by the river side to the south of
Cannon Street, "adjoining a haw or yard wherein of old time
boats were made, and landed from Downegate to be mended. "
There was a cloister adjoining the church, which in Stow's
time contained many defaced tombs and monuments ; but the
armorial bearings of the dead still remained in the stained
glass windows. After the Fire the parish was united to that
of S. Swithin, London Stone. When Allen wrote in 1839,
the eastern wall of the church still remained, with the arch
of the east window, containing bricks of Roman manufacture.
208 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
LXXXI. S. Mary Colechurch stood at the south end
of Old Jewry, and was " named of one Cole that built it,"
according to Stow, but Lof tie remarks that it " probably
stood in that part of the market where coal or charcoal was
sold." It was " built upon a wall above ground, so that men
are forced to go to ascend thereunto by certain steps. I find
no monuments of this church more than that Henry IV
granted license to William Marshall and others to found a
brotherhood of S. Katherine there, because Thomas
Beckett and S. Edmund the archbishop were baptized
there." After the Fire the parish was united to S. Mildred,
Poultry, but when that church was destroyed in 1872, it was
annexed to S. Margaret, Lothbury.
LXXX1I. S. Mary Mounthaw is called by Stow,
"S. Mary de Monte Alto or Mounthaunt; this is a very
small church, and at the first built to be a chapel for the
house of the Mounthaunts," which adjoined the church on
the west side of Old Fish Street Hill. After the Fire, the
parish was united to that of S. Mary Somerset, but upon
the destruction of that church in 1871, it was annexed to
S. Nicholas Cole Abbey. There were remains of the church
still existing in the churchyard when Allen wrote in 1839;
he describes a shield of arms within a quartrefoil on the
south wall, which belonged to the old church.
LXXXIII. S. Mary Somerset (of which the tower
alone remains) stood in Upper Thames Street at the south-
east corner of Old Fish Street Hill. "Somerset" is a
corruption of " Somers'-hithe " a small landing place or
hithe so-called from the owner's name Somers. Stow
describes it as "a proper church but the monuments are all
defaced." This old church (which according to Hatton dated
back to 1345), had been repaired in 1624 only to be destroyed
in the Great Fire forty- two years later, after which Sir
Christopher Wren rebuilt it at a cost of 6579, i8s. ijd.,
finishing it in 1695. The dimensions were : Length, 83 ft. ;
breadth, 36 ft. ; height, 30 ft. ; height of tower and pinnacles,
120 ft. In 1871, the body of the church was ruthlessly pulled
down, and the parish united to S. Nicholas Cole Ahbey.
The interior of the church was extremely plain, with no
pillars. Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, who visited the church
on June I3th, 1855, founa a very insignificant looking organ
there, which he thus specifies :
One st of keys from GG (no Gg) to F. Pedals to pull down the keys
from CC to E, zi octaves.
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Dulciana,
8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; izth, i\ ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Sesquialtera.
S. MARGARET, ETC. 209
Amongst the organists have been :
In 1855, Mrs. Thomas Perry (morning).
Miss M. B. Williams (afternoon).
Mrs. Thomas Perry was sister to Mr. Daniel Maskell,
a great enthusiast on organs and City churches generally.
She afterwards became organist of the London Orphan
Asylum, Watford. In 1866 the parish paid their organist a
salary of 10 a year, or fifty shillings quarterly ; probably
less than the clergyman paid his housemaid.
LXXXIV. S. Mary Staining stood at the north end
of Staining Lane, where its churchyard still (1908) remains
an oasis of greenery amidst very dismal surroundings. " A
small parish church," writes StOW, "being but newly built,
there remains no monument worth the noting." After the
Fire, the parish was united to that of S. Michael, Wood
Street, but upon the destruction of that church in 1896 it was
annexed to S. Alban's, Wood Street.
LXXXV.-S. Mary Woolchurch Haw stood next to
the Stocks Market, the site of which is now partially covered
by the Mansion House. "So-called," writes Stow, "of a
beam placed in the churchyard, which was thereof called
Woolchurch Haw of the weighing of wool there used ; and
to verify this, I find amongst the customs of London, writtec
in French in the reign of Edward II, a chapter intituled
Les Cuslomes de Woolchurch Haw, wherein is set down what
was there to be paid for every parcel of wool weighed. The
church is reasonable fair and large, and was newly built by
license granted in the twentieth year of Henry VI's reign,
with condition to be built 15 ft. from the Stocks Market, for
" sparing of light to the same stocks." The church contained
a font "very curiously wrought, painted and gilded," and
there was a porch at the west end. Destroyed in the Fire,
the church was not afterwards rebuilt, and the parish was
united to that of S. Mary Woolnoth. In digging the foun-
dation of the Mansion House in April 1739, the foundation
stone of S. Mary Woolchurch Haw bearing a Latin inscrip-
tion was found. Allen gives a wood-cut of this stone of
page 772 of Vol. Ill of his History of London (pub. 1839).
There were originally two City churches dedicated to
S MARY MAGDALENE, whose Feast day comes upor
July 22nd :
(1) S. Mary Magdalene, Milk Street.
(2) S. Mary Magdalene, Old Fish Street.
210 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
LXXXVI. S. Mary Magdalene, Milk Street,
stood on the east side ot that street towards the south end.
Stow speaks of it in 1598 as "a small parish church which
hath of late years been repaired," and gives the names of
twelve important civic dignitaries who were buried there,
with the dates of their decease. The church was not rebuilt
after the Great Fire, when the parish was united to that of
S. Lawrence, Jewry. The site of this church was, in the
early part of the XlXth Century, covered by Honey Lane
Market, with a market house standing on pillars with rooms
over it, and a bell tower in the middle.
LXXXVII. 5. Mary Magdalene, Old Fish Street,
was situated on the north side of Knightrider Street at the
south-west corner of Old Change. Stow describes it as " a
small church, having but few monuments." Founded about
the year 1181, it had been extensively repaired in 1630, but
being completely destroyed in the Great Fire, thirty-six years
later, it was rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren, who
finished the work in 1685 at a cost of ^4291, 12s. g%d.
The following were the dimensions : Length, 60 ft. ; breadth,
48 ft. ; height, 30 ft. ; height of tower, 86 ft. The area of
the rectangular ground plan was unbroken by columns, but
there were galleries on the north and west sides. The west
gallery contained a fine organ erected in 1786 by Samuel
Green, the cost being defrayed by subscription ; and on
a large tablet fixed to the north wall were inscribed the
names of those who had furnished the money for the
organ. In 1857 the organ was rebuilt by Messrs. Gray &
Davison.
The original specification of the organ has, unfortunately,
not been preserved. It was probably of the usual Green type
with Great and Choir keyboards down to FF, and with a
short range Swell manual ; but I am kindly informed by
Messrs. Gray & Davison that their 1857 alterations, additions,
etc., consisted of: new horizontal bellows with double
feeders, etc., new keyboards (CC to F for Great and Choir,
and Tenor C to F for Swell) ; two octaves and a half of
pedals (CCC to E) with Bourdon pipes, 16 ft. The new
Swell consisted of the following 6 stops :
Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft.; Prin., 4ft.;
i5th, 2 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.
The Swell keys below Tenor C acted on the bass of the
Choir organ. A Tenor C Dulciana was added to the Choir,
and a new Trumj. et was added to the Great. The 5 couplers
were as follows : Gt. to Fed. ; Ch. to Fed. ; Sw. to Gt. ;
Sw. to Ch. ; Ch. to Gt. sub-8ve. There were three com-
S. MARGARET, ETC. 211
position pedals to the Great organ. The front pipes and
case ornaments were re-gilded and varnished. The entire
cost of these alterations, etc., amounted to ^280 95. &/.
Amongst the organists of the church may be mentioned :
Miss Mary Hudson, died 1801.
Mr. J. S. Carter. 1865.
Mr. E. Smyth, 1881.
Mr. Douglas Stewart.
Mary Hudson was a daughter of Robert Hudson, Mus. B.,
Almoner of S. Paul's. She was buried in the crypt of the
Cathedral.
The Rev. William Fitzherbert, M.A., Minor Canon of
S. Paul's, was rector here from 1771 to 1797; he was the
composer of a well-known Double Chant in F. The last
rector was the Rev. Edgar Hoskins, M.A., sometime
curate of S. Martin's, Salisbury, and afterwards, for many
years, an assistant priest at All Saints', Margaret Street.
He was the author of The Treasury of Devotion, a handbook
largely used by Anglo-Catholic churcn-folk.
In December, 1886, the church was so seriously damaged
by a fire that it could no longer be used. It was allowed
to remain in ruins for several years, and was finally pulled
down to save the expense of repairing it ! A writer in the City
Press for 1890 thus describes the terrible scene of sacrilegious
desolation : " Three years ago this church fell again a victim
to the flames, which completely gutted it, leaving only the four
walls and the tower standing. Bracken fern and weeds are
growing by the altar rails, and clustering round the pulpit
wreck ; birds have made their nests in the cornices, while
the gilt letters of the Decalogue on the chancel wall, where
the altar picture [of the Ascension, painted by R. Browne,
1720] used to hang, are still to be made out. The large
organ in the gallery seems to have suffered less in the general
wreck, as its gilded pipes and case are still standing ; but
its keys, on which the rain and the snow have fallen for
three years, are as dead as the church itself. Memorial
tablets to the departed, placed years ago by loving hands,
are rotting on the walls, amongst them the following one,
which is worthy of a better resting-place : ' Sacred to the
memory of the Rev. Richard Harris Barham, B.A.,
for eighteen years rector of the united parishes of S. Gregory
and S. Mary Magdalene, and late of S. Augustine and
S. Faith's, who died June I7th, 1845, a g e( ^ 57 years. Also
to the memory of Caroline, wife of the above, who died
July gth, 1851, aged 57 years.'" Barham was author of the
Injjoldsby Legends. There was also an ancient brass
2T2 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
near the font which had escaped the flames of 1666 twc
hundred and twenty years before the final conflagration
it bore the date 1558, and represented one Thomas Berry
in a livery gown with some verses ending :
" How small so ever the Gift shall bee,
Thank God for him who gave it thee ;
XII penie loaves to XII poor foulkes
Give, every Sabbath Day for aye."
The parishes of S. Mary Magdalene and S. Gregory were
united after the 1886 fire to S. Martin, Ludgate. The last
organist of S. Mary Magdalene was Mr. Douglas
Stewart. .
S. MATTHEW, ETC. 2 1 5
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. MATTHEW,
S. MICHAEL, S. MILDRED AND
S. NICHOLAS.
was only one City church dedicated to S.
V*J MATTHEW, Apostle and Evangelist, whose Feast Day
falls on Sept. 2 1st. This was :
LXXXVIII. 5. Matthew, Friday Street, which
stood on the west side thereof at the north end, close to
Cheapside. It is uncertain who was the founder of the
church, but the living was in the gift of the Abbot and
Convent of Westminster in 1322. In the reign of Edward VI
the patronage was transferred to the Bishop of London. The
old church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, and the
building which replaced it has been described as one of the
humblest of Sir Christopher Wren's productions. Its
extremely plain exterior of red brick was nearly concealed by
the adjacent houses, and its interior was even less interesting
in character ; the dimensions were length, 60 ft. , breadth,
33 ft., height, 31 ft., height of tower, 74 ft. The cost of
rebuilding was 2381, 8s. 2d., and it was opened for service
on Nov. 29th, 1685. The East end was the only redeeming
feature of the building ; this was built of stone, the rest of the
church being constructed of brick. Over the altar were six
large circular-headed windows surmounted on the exterior
elevation by a boldly designed cornice and balustrade of rather
dignified design. The altar piece below the six windows
displayed excellent specimens of oak carving. Sir Hugh
Myddleton (designer and constructor of the New River)
served the office of churchwarden in 1598, 1599 and 1600;
several of his children were baptized in the old church, and
he himself was buried in the churchyard in December, 1631.
The organ was built in 1762 by George England.
Mr. Henry Leff ler gives the specification as be saw the
organ in 1800 :
"3 setts of keys from GG, short octaves to E. Sweu v.om Middle C to E.
Great (7 stops) Op. Diap., 5^ pipes; Stop. Diap., 5,; Prin., 54;
iath, 54; isth, 54; Sesquialtera, IV ranks, 216; Cornet [from
Middle C], V ranks. 145.
Swell (5 stops) Op. Diap., *9 pipes; Stop. Diap., 29; Prin., 29;
Trumpet, 29 ; Hautboy, 29.
Choir (4 stops) Stop. Diap., 54 pipes; Flute, 54; isth, 54; Vox
Humana, 54.
214 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Dr. Hopkins, in the first Edition of his Organ Book (1855)
states that he was informed that in 1790, a pedal board of
two octaves' range from CCC upwards was attached to this
organ under the direction of the Rev. Mr. Latrobe, and that
there was a complete set of Pedal Stopped Diapason pipes of
1 6 ft. tone.
In November, 1862, the organ was "overhauled and
repaired " by Messrs. J. W. Walker & Sons, who made
the following alterations : The compass of the Great and
Choir organs was made CC to F, 54 notes ; a new Swell of
9 stops to Tenor C (but " prepared " to CC) was added ;
three new keyboards ; three new composition pedals to the
Great organ ; three new couplers ; and a new pedal organ
were also supplied. The organ remained in the able hands
of Messrs.) . W. Walker & Sons until the demolition of the
church, when it was removed and re-erected in S. James's
Church, Forest Gate, E.
Amongst the organists may be mentioned :
1767. Mr. Martin Reynoldson. (Salary ^ao.)
1864. Mrs. Andrews.
When the church was needlessly destroyed in 1881 its
parish was united to that of S. Vedast, Foster Lane.
There were originally seven City churches dedicated to
S. MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL, viz. :
(1) S. Michael, Bassishaw, (destroyed in 1894).
(2) S. Michael, Cornhill, still remaining.
(3) S. Michael, Crooked Lane, (destroyed in 1831).
(4) S. Michael-le-Querne, (destroyed in the Great
Fire of 1666).
(5) S. Michael, Paternoster Royal, still remaining.
(6) S. Michael, Queenhithe, (destroyed in 1876).
(7) S. Michael, Wood Street, (destroyed in 1896).
Of these seven churches, the dedication does not appear
in any case to extend to " All Angels" as well as S. Michael.
S. Michael, Cornhill; S. Michael, Queenhithe; and
S. Michael, Wood Street, have already been described.
LXXXIX. S. Michael Bassishaw stood on the west
side ot Basinghall Street, slightly to the north of the Guild-
hall Library. The original church dated back to 1140.
StOW speaks of it as "a proper church, lately (1598) re-
edified or new-built." Repaired by the parishioners in 1630,
it was completely destroyed 36 years later by the Great Fire.
" Bassishaw " is a corruption of Basingshall or Basings' -
haugh, anciently the principal house in the street, and the
residence of the Basings, one of the most important families
S. MATTHEW, ETC. 215
in the City in mediaeval times. Originally founded in the
middle of the Xllth Century, the living was in the gift of the
Priors and Canons of S. Bartholomew the Great, Smithfield :
but in the XVth Century it passed into the hands of the Dean
and Chapter of S. Paul's. Rebuilt by Sir Christopher
Wren after the Great Fire at a cost of 2822, 173. id.
(which did not include the steeple, added afterwards), the
church was 70 ft. long, 50 ft. wide, 40 ft. high. The tower
(of which the lower part was a remnant of the ancient building)
was 75 ft. high ; this was surmounted by a two-storied
lantern and spire 65 ft. high : total altitude, 140 ft. The
interior was a remarkably effective one. In 1893 S. Michael
Bassishaw was closed, and soon after needlessly destroyed.
Its parish was united with that of S. Lawrence Jewry.
The original organ, which (enclosed in a mahogany case of
mean appearance) stood in the west gallery was built by
Q riff in. According to Mr. Henry Leffler (writing in
1800) it had :
2 setts of keys ; Great from GG to E, Swell from ^^ to E,
Choir organ bass only from GG to Middle C. ** *
Great (9 stops) -Op. Diap., 54 pipes; Stop. Diap., 54; Prin., 54;
izth, 54; isih, 54; Tierce, 54; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 162;
Cornet from ioS^nziI V ranks, 145 ; Trumpet, 54.
J~$&'-
Swell (Treble only; 5 stops) Op. Diap., 29 pipes; Stop Diap., 29;
Prin., 29; Trumpet, 29; Hautboy, 29.
Choir (Bass only; 2 stops) Stop. Diap., 25 pipes ; Prin, 25.
A tolerably good organ. "
In 1860 a new organ by South was erected at the west
end of the church.
Amongst the organists may be mentioned :
Mr. John Raymond (Salary 25), 1800.
Sydney Naylor, .
Miss Carder, 1864.
Dr. J. C. Tiley, 1864-1879.
Alfred Whittingham, 1879 to end.
In July, 1865, Mr. Alfred Hard was appointed "teacher
of congregational singing;" he holding a similar appointment
at S. Magnus, London Bridge. Dr. Joseph Crispin
Tiley, graduated Mus.B. in 1866, and Mus.D. in 1874 at
Oxford. He was a somewhat voluminous composer, but not
much of his music has been published. A few organ pieces
of his appeared in the Organists' Quarterly Journal, 1882-84.
XC. S. Michael, Crooked Lane which was pulled
down in 1831 in order to make room for the new approaches
2l6 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
to London Bridge stood on the east side of S. Michael's
Lane at the corner of Crooked Lane. Stow remarks that
it "was sometime but a small and homely thing, standing
upon part of that ground wherein now (1398) standeth the
parsonage house. " William de Burgo gave two messuages
in Tandlewick Street (now Cannon Street) in 1317. Sir
William Walworth who arrested the rebel Wat
Tyler was a great benefactor to S. Michael's. He built a
new choir, and side chapels, and (by uniting several chantries
in the church) he founded also a college consisting of a
master and nine priests. He was buried in the " north chapel
by the choir" in 1385. An epitaph which was inscribed on
the tomb of John Shrow, 1487, is worth reproduction :
" Farewell, my friends, the tide abideth no man,
I am departed hence, and so shall ye.
But in this passage the best song that I can
Is teguiem cetemam, now Jesus grant it me,
When I have ended all mine adversitie,
Grant me in Paradise to have a mansion,
That sheddest Thy Blood for my redemption."
Destroyed in the Great Fire, S. Michael's was rebuilt by Sir
Christopher Wren in 1688 at a cost of 4541, 55. ud.
Its dimensions were length, 78 ft. ; breadth, 46 ft. ; height,
32 ft. At the west end, a tower and spire rose to the height
of 100 ft. The west gallery contained an organ (erected
subsequent to 1732) of which Mr. Henry Leffler gives no
account. S. Michael's Lane was corrupted into " Miles'
Lane," a name which has survived to this day in connection
with the well-known tune to the popular hymn "All hail the
power of Jesu's Name " :
' MILES' LANE TUNK."
This was the composition of William Shrubsole ( 1760-
1806) who was dismissed in 1783 from his post of organist
at Bangor Cathedral "for frequenting conventicles." He
appears to have named his tune after the Dissenting Meeting
House which in his time stood in Miles' Lane. " Meeting-
House Yard " survives to this day (1908); but all traces of
any place of worship have long since been removed. The
hymn-tune alone remains, and is likely to remain as a
souvenir of the spot.
XCI. S. Michael-le-Querne, i.e., at the com, "so-
called," writes Stow, " because in place there of was a corn
market, stretching by west to the shambles," was more
S. MATTHEW, ETC. 2IJ
correctly styled in mediaeval times " S. Michael ad Bladum."
It stood at the east end of Paternoster Row, slightly west of
Foster Lane on the north, and Old Change on the south.
The earliest account we have of S. Michael-le-Querne is in
1311, but the first rector Thomas Newton was not
instituted until 1430 ; he died in 1464 and was buried in the
choir. At the east end of the former building stood the Old
Cross in Westcheap which was removed in 1320, to
make room for an enlargement of the church. Allen in his
History of London, Vol. iii., p. 576, gives an engraving from
an original survey by R. Tresswell (1585) which shows
S. Michael-le-Querne standing at the end of Paternoster
Row, at the beginning of Cheapside. The church consisted
of a nave and choir only (with no side aisles), and a western
tower its extreme length from east to west appears to have
been nearly 60 ft. John Leland the famous antiquary
was buried here in April, 1552; but his monument perished
in the Great Fire. The church not being rebuilt, its site was
utilized for widening Cheapside, and the parish was united to
that of S. Vedast, Foster Lane.
XCII. 5. Michael, Paternoster Royal, is happily
still to be found in its ancient position on the east side of
College Hill. It derives its curious double name from the
ancient name "Paternoster Lane," which ran close to it, and
from its nearness to a large residence called Tower Royal,
which m its time was inhabited by King Stephen and other
royal people. Mention is made of the rectory as early as
1285, when Hugh de Derby was instituted, but the church
was rebuilt in 1410 by Sir Richard Whittington, the
famous Lord Mayor, who made it collegiate in the names of
the Holy Spirit and S. Mary, the establishment to consist of
a Master, who received a salary of 10 marks (besides "the
accustomed rights and profits of the church "), four fellows at
1 1 marks each, a chief clerk at 8 marks, a certain number of
other (secondary) clerks at 7a marks each, and choristers at
5 marks each. "But" (remarks Allen), "the extensive
charity and numerous acts of benevolence of the worthy Sir
Richard Whittington could not, however, secure an un-
disturbed repose to his ashes; for, in the reign of Edward VI,
the incumbent of the parish, Thomas Mountain, a wicked
and rapacious priest, imagining that Whittington's beautiful
monument was a repository of something more valuable than
his mortal remains, caused it to be broken open, but finding
no buried treasure, robbed the body of its leaden covering,
and recommitted it to the tomb." When Queen Mary had
succeeded to the throne, and the ancient Faith was for a time
2l8 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
restored, this sacriligious Protestant parson was ejected from
the living, and the body of Whittington was again covered in
lead and honourably interred, his monument being reverently
restored. The old church being destroyed in the Great Fire,
the present structure was erected in its stead, and made par-
ochial for this and the adjoining parish of S. Martin Vintry, the
church of which was not rebuilt. Edward Strong (Wren's
master-mason) was the builder, under the superintendence of
Sir Christopher himself. Its ground plan is rectangular, with
a tower of two stories comprehended within the general area.
The dimensions are : Length, 86 ft. ; breadth, 48 ft. ; height,
40 ft. ; height of tower, 90 ft. The cost of rebuilding was
^74SS> 7 s - 9^- The body of the church was finished in
1694, but the steeple of very elegant design was not added
until 1713. The altar piece (which is very fine) is the work
of Grinling Gibbons, over which is hung a picture by
William Hilton, R.A., representing S. Mary Magdalene
anointing the feet of Our Saviour this was presented to the
church in 1820 by the directors of the British Institution.
A font was presented to the church in 1700 by Abraham
Jordan (the organ builder?); but this was replaced by a
new one in memory of Alderman Conder (died 1865) when
the church was restored in 1866 by William Butterfield.
The organ (according to Mr. Henry Leffler) was built
originally by Renatus Harris for the Palace, Whitehall,
and was presented by King William III in 1691 to the
Church of S. Anne's, Soho. It was removed to S. Michael's
in 1780 by Gray, who enlarged it to the following
specification :
" 3 setts of keys from GG, short octaves to F, Swell from F Jjj=- [
Great (7 stops)-Op. Diap., 55 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 55 ; Prin., 55 ;
i2th, 55; Sesquialtera, III ranks, 160 ; Cornet [from Middle C
upwards], IV ranks, rzo ; Trumpet, 55.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap., 37 pipes; Stop. Diap., 37; Prin., 37;
Trumpet, 37.
Choir (4 stops) Stop. Diap., 55 pipes ; Flute, 55 ; isth, 55 ; Cremona, 55.
In 1866, when the church was "restored" by William
Butterfield, this instrument was removed from the west
gallery by Messrs. Gray & Davison and rebuilt by them
on the floor in the north-west corner of the church. In 1893
it was removed, and the organ from All Hallows-the-Great
(which church was destroyed in that year) took its place. This
instrument, which was played upon by Dr. Boyce when he
became organist of All Hallows in 1749, has already been
described under All Hallows. Rebuilt by Messrs.
Hunter & Sons, of Clapham in 1893, the specification at
present (1908) runs thus :
S. MATTHEW, ETC. 2 19
9 sets of keys Manuals, CC to g 3 ; Pedals, CCC to F.
Great (8 stops)-Op. Diap., 8ft.; Viol d'amour, 8ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.;
Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone; Gamba, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; I- lute, 4 ft.;
1 5th, 2 ft.
Swell (9 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Lieblich Gedact,
8ft.; Gamba, 8ft.; Voix Celestes, 8ft.; Prin., 4 ft.; Mixture, III
ranks ; Cornopean, 3 ft. ; Oboe, 8 ft.
Pedal (3 stops)-Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Violoncello, 8 ft.
Couplers (5) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. 8ve; Sw.
sub-8ve.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comp. pistons to Gt.; 3 ditto to Sw.;
ped. for Full Gt. ; reversible ped. for Gt. to Ped.
The action is pneumatic throughout, but rather slow ; the
organ is still blown by hand.
Amongst the organists have been :
H. Simmons, 1880
Charles J. Champion, 1894-1899.
S. W. L. Moore, 1899 .
Rev. Mr. Durham, 1907.
Herbert Wiseman, M.A., 1908.
I am indebted to the present able organist, Mr. Herbert
Wiseman, for much of the preceding information.
There were two city churches dedicated to S. MILDRED,
daughter of Merivaldus, Prince of West Mercia, and niece to
Penda, King of Mercia, who, having devoted herself to a
religious life, retired to a convent in France, from whence
she returned, accompanied by seventy virgins, and founded
a nunnery in the Isle of Thanet, of which she died abbess
in A.D. 676. These churches were :
(1) S. Mildred, Bread Street (still remaining).
(2) S. Mildred, Poultry (destroyed in 1872).
XC1II. S. Mildred, Bread Street, is situated a
little to the south of Cannon Street, having its west front on
the eastern side of Bread Street. Originally founded about
A.D. 1300, the old church had its stone spire struck by
lightning on Sept. 5th, 1559, and in consequence the spire
was taken down to save the expense of rebuilding. Repaired
and beautified in 1628 (the north wall being then rebuilt),
this old church was destroyed in the Great Fire, after which
it was re-built by Sir Christopher Wren and finished
and opened March 23rd, 1683, at a cost of 3704, 135. 6Jd.
Its dimensions are: Length, 62ft., breadth, 36ft., height ',
40 ft. [to the top of the dome, 52 ft.], height of steeple, 140 ft.
The only portions of the old building which still remain are
the walls which support the present floor. The interior is
decidedly elegant in style, the dome being a most effective
feature. The carvings about the altar and pulpit are said to
be by Grinling Gibbons. The sounding-board above the
pulpit is perhaps the finest in the City. The poet Shelley
220 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
was married to Mary Godwin in this church on Dec. 3Oth,
1816. The font-cover is said to have escaped destruction in
the Great Fire. The organ is, happily, still in the west
gallery. Allen, in his History of London, 1839 (Vol. Ill,
p. 170), states that this organ was erected in 1717. Yet in
New Remarks of London (collected by the Company of
Parish Clerks, and published in 732) we read that there was
then "no organ" in the church. Mr. Henry Leffler,
however, states that it was built by Griffin in 1744, and
gives the specification as follows :
"Two setts of keys, short octaves from GG to D- Swell to Fiddle G.
Great (9 stops) Op. Diap., 52 pipes; Stop. Diap.. 52; Prin., 52; i2th,
52; isth, 52; Furniture, II ranks [should be named Sesgnialiera\,
104; Sesquialtera Bass, IV ranks [Bb], 75 ; Cornet Treble, IV ranks
[C], 108 ; Trumpet [very finc\ 52.
Swell and Choir [on the same manual] :
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap., 32 pipes; German Flute, 32; Cornet, II
ranks, 64 ; Trumpet, 32.
Choir (5 stops) Op. Diap., 20 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 20 [both these stops
have their basses up to Ff, in the Tenor borrowed "by com-
munication "from the Gt. organ} ; Flute \.uf> to tenor fg,), 20 ; Flute
[treble], 32 pipes ; Cremona [from Middle C], 27 pipes.
Since 1823, the orean has been entrusted to the able hands
of Messrs. Gray & Davison, and at present the specifi-
cation stands as follows :
Great (8 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Stop. Diap., 8 ft. tone ; Prin., 4 ft.;
Flute, 4 ft.; 1 2th, 2]} ft.; isth, 2 ft.; Piccolo, 2 ft.; Trumpet. 8 ft.
Swell (7 stops)- Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft. tone; Prin., 4ft.;
15th, 2 ft.; Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops)- Stop. Diap.. 8 ft. tone ; Gamba, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.;
Prin., 4 ft.; Flute, 4 ft.; Cremona, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (4) Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt.; Sw. to Ch.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comp. peds. to Gt.
Compass Manuals, CC to F ; Pedals (R.C.O. pattern), CCC to F.
This organ is said to contain all the pipes which were put
into it in 1744. Amongst the organists may be mentioned :
Mr. Richard Hussey, 1744.
Mr. R. Hudson. 1800-1830.
Mr. Rolfe, 1830-1870
Mr. Rolfe (nephew of preceding), 1870-1900.
Mr. J. H. Ruston, 1900-1903.
Mr. Henry Tolhurst, 1903-.
I am indebted to the present able organist, Mr. Tolhurst,
for much of the foregoing information.
XCIV. 5. Mildred, Poultry, stood on the north side
thereof, and was destroyed when that street was widened in
1872. It was of ancient foundation, for we find John de
Asswel presented to the rectory in 1325. In 1457, the
church was' rebuilt on arches over the stream Walbrook,
S. MATTHEW, ETC. 22]
which flowed beneath the floor of the choir. In 1626 the
church was repaired at a cost of .183, and forty years later
it was destroyed in the Great Fire. In this old church was
buried, in 1580, Thomas Tusser, a former chorister of
the Collegiate Chapel in Wallingford Castle, and author ol
Five Hundred Good Pointes of Husbandrie, with the following
epitaph :
" Here Thomas Tusser, clad in earth, doth lie,
That sometime made the Poyntes of Husbandrie ;
By him then learne thou maist, here learne we must,
When all is done, we sleepe and turn to dust,
And yet through Christ to Heaven we hope to go,
Who reades his bookes shall find his faith was so."
The church was rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren,
and finished in 1676, at a cost of .4654, 9*-. 7f.r]-Salicional, 8 ft.; Dulciana, 8 ft.;
Lieblich Gedact (metal throughout), 8ft.; Gemshorn, 4 ft.; Wald
Flute (open throughout), 4 ft.; Piccolo Harm., 2 ft.; Clarinet, 8 ft.;
Orchestral Oboe, 8 ft.
Pedal (2 stops) Op. Diap., i6ft.; Violone, 16 ft.
Couplers (7) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. super-8ve; Sw. to Ch.; Ch. to Gt.
sub-8ve; Sw. to Ped.; Gt. to Ped.; Ch. to Ped.
Accessories Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comp. peds. to Gt; 3 ditto to Sw.;
Gt to Ped. by double-acting ped.
The Clarinet and Orchestral Oboe Ch. stops are enclosed in a separate
Venetian swell box. Radiating and concave ped. board. The Ch. organ
is placed in the south-west gallery, about 50 ft. from the rest of the organ.
224 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Amongst the organists of S. Nicholas, Cole Abbey, have
been :
Mr. S. Walford, 1879.
Mr. Norris.
Mr. Herbert Hodge.
S. Nicholas, Cole Abbey, is one of the few city churches
possessing a choir of men and women, most of whom are
paid. The choral services are therefore of a high standard
of excellence. I am indebted to my friend, Mr. Herbert
Hodge, the present accomplished organist, for much of the
foregoing information.
XCVII. S. Nicholas Olave, anciently stood on the west
side of Bread Street Hill. Mr. A. E. Daniell remarks
that " the name Olave, which is another form of Olaf, may
very possibly be derived from some benefaction of Danish
origin." Stow speaks of it as "a convenient church" with
a number of interesting monuments and brasses. Amongst
the last-named was one in memory of William Blitheman,
MllS. B., Cantab., organist of the Chapel Royal, who
died on Whitsun Day, 1591. The following was his epitaph :
" Here Blitheman lyes, a worthy wight,
Who feared God above ;
A friend to all, a foe to none,
Whom rich and poor did love.
Of Princes' Chappell, gentleman,
Unto his dying day,
Whom all tooke great delight to heare
Him on the organs play.
Whose parsing skill in musicke's art
A scholler left behind ;
John Bull (by name), his master's veine
Expressing in each kind.
But nothing here continues long, .
Nor resting-place can have ;
His soul departed hence to Heaven,
His body here in grave."
William Blitheman was master of the choristers of
Christ Church, Oxford, in 1564. He took his degree at
Cambridge in 1586, and was succeeded in his appointment
at the Chapel Royal by his pupil, Dr. John Bull. The
following compositions of his exist in MS. at the British
Museum : Motet, (a 4. voc) " lu pace si dedero " ; Motet
(a 4 voc), " Gloria, laus et honor (two settings). An organ
piece by him is printed in the Appendix to Hawkins' History
of Music, and there are other compositions of his to he met
with in the Mulliner MS., Queen Elizabeth's Virginal
Book, etc.
S. MATTHEW, ETC. 225
From a XVIIth Century Parish Book belonging to
S. Nicholas Olave, the following musical entries are taken :
1532, Dec. 6th. The chanters were paid two shillings for
their ale, bread and wine on the anniversary of
S. Nicholas.
1535. Paid the organist 33. 4d. for six months' exertions at
the orean.
1544 Paid William How, organist, 405. for a year's
duty [A most rapid advance, compared with the
6s. 8d. per annum of the preceding entry].
1543. Paid to Mr. Reynolds and his company for their
pains in the Lent Season for anthems, 2s.
226 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
CHURCHES DEDICATED TO S. OLAVE,
S. PANCRAS, S. PETER, S. STEPHEN, S. THOMAS,
AND THE HOLY TRINITY.
^T>f OLAVE was a Norwegian king who lived in the
^5- Xlth Century. He was a son of the King Olaf
immortalized in Longfellow's poem, and was canon-
ized on account of his zealous promulgation of Christianity
amongst his subjects.
There were three City churches dedicated to this Saint :
(1) S. Olave, Hart Street, still remaining.
(2) S. Olave, Jewry (destroyed in 1888).
(3) S. Olave, Silver Street (destroyed in the Great Fire).
XCVIIL S. Olave, Hart Street, is still (1908)
happily to be found in its ancient situation at the corner of
Hart Street and Seething Lane, close to the Fenchurch
Street terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend
Railway. It escaped the Great Fire, but that the present
building is by no means the first church erected upon this
spot can be proved at once by the style of its architecture,
which is XV th Century Perpendicular. The vaults beneath
the church show that the foundation walls are of rubble
work, consisting of pieces of unhewn stone and chalk
cemented together with mortar. The earliest allusion to the
church and parish dates back to 1319; when the rector,
William de Samford, entered into an agreement with
the brethren of the neighbouring monastery of the Crutched
Friars the name of which is still retained by one of the
streets adjoining the church. A century ago, the plan of the
church closely resembled that of S. Alban's, Wood Street,
viz, , a nave and aisles with the tower occupying the western
end of the south aisle, and a rectory house at the western end
of the north aisle. The base of the tower was opened into
the church in 1863 and formed into a well-appointed bap-
tistery. The tower contains six bells, to ring in peal. The
pillars between nave and aisles are of Purbeck marble. At
the restoration in 1871, carried out by Sir Arthur W.
Blomfield, under the direction of the Rev. A. Povah, the
church was re-seated in the modern manner and re-opened on
S. OLAVE, ETC. 22 7
Ascension Day of that year. The vestry is attached to the
eastern end of the south aisle. The dimensions of the church
are : Length, 54 ft. ; breadth, 54 ft. ; height, 31 ft. ; heighi
of steeple, 135 ft. There are many interesting monuments,
amongst which may be named : Sir Richard Haddon, Lord
Mayor in 1506 and 1512; Sir John Radcliffe, 1568; Dr.
William Turner, author of the first English Herbal, 1568;
Andrew Bayning, 1610; Paul Bayning, 1616 ; Sir Andrew
Riccard, 1672 ; and last (but by no means the least) Samuel
Pepys (the Diarist) and his wife Elizabeth, 1703. There
are also sixteen monuments (of no special interest), which
were removed to S. Olave's from All Hallows' Staining when
that church was destroyed in 1870. Some of the carved
work from All Hallows' is worth seeing, however ; as well as
the magnificently carved pulpit (ascribed to Gibbons),
which was brought from S. Benet, Gracechurch Street,
during its unhappy demolition in 1868. In the churchyard
were buried vast numbers of those who died in the plague of
1665 the year before the Great Fire. The organ still
occupies its original position in the west gallery. It was
built by Samuel Green in 1781, and is thus specified by
Mr. Henry Leffler writing in 1801 :
"3 setts of keys, GG to E, long octaves. Swell from C fa ut (Tenor C).
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap. [No. i], 57 pipes ; Op. Diap. [No. a], 57 ;
Stop. Diap., 57; Prin., 57; i2th, 57; isth, 57; Sesquialtera, III
ranks, 171; Mixture, II ranks, 114; Cornet [from Middle C], IV
ranks, 116; Trumpet, 57.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 41 pipes ; Stop. Diap., 41 ; Prin., 41 ;
Cornet, III ranks, 133; Trumpet, 41; Hautboy, 41.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 57 pipes; Prin., 57; ijth, 57; Vox
Humana, 57 ; Bassoon, 57.
The organ was improved in 1860, and rebuilt by Messrs.
J. W. Walker & Sons when the church was restored in
1871. The same eminent firm entirely renewed the action
in 1906. The specification stands thus at present (1908) :
Three sets of keys, Great and Choir, GG to E. Swell Tenor C to E,
with the exception of the Stop. Diap. added to the lower octave in
1906, and connected by means of a separate composition pedal.
Concave and parallel pedals : two octaves from CC.
Great (to stops) Op. Diap., No. i, 8ft.; Op. Diap., No. a, 8ft.;
Stop. Diap., 8ft; Clarabella [from Middle C only], 8ft.; Prin., 4 ft;
i2th, ^\ ft; 1 5th, a ft; Sesquialtera, III ranks ; Mixture, II ranks;
Trumpet, 8 ft.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 8 ft; Stop. Diap., 8 ft; Prin., 4 ft; Cornet,
111 ranks; Oboe, 8 ft; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 8 ft; Dulciana [from Tenor C only],'
Prin., 4 ft.; i 5 th, 2 ft; Cremona [from Middle G only], 8 ft
Pedal (i stop)-0p. Diap., 16 ft
Couplers (^)-Sw. to Gt: Gt to Fed.; Ch. to Ped.
Accessories 3 comp. peds. to Gt; 3 ditto to Sw.
A very conservative rebuild!
228 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
Amongst the organists of S. Olave's have been :
Miss Mary Hudson, appointed in December, 1781, when Green's
organ was placed in the church. She was elected unani-
mously by 131 votes. Salary, 25 guineas.
Miss Linton, appointed April gth, 1801 (who apparently came
frfem S. Mildred's, Poultry, to take up the appointment).
Miss Maris .
Miss E. Silverlock, 1855-1885,
Mr. Leonard Butler Wrightson, 1885-1887.
Mr. T. Collier Grounds, 1887-.
I am indebted to the kindness of the present organist,
Mr. T. Collier Grounds, for the present specification of
the organ.
In 1875 the Church of S. Olave, Hanbury Street,
Mile End New Town, was built by the rector of S. Olave's,
Hart Street ; the endowment for the new church being
provided by this old City parish.
XCIX. S. Olave's, Old Jewry, was situated on the
west side of the street so named. "Old" Jewry is the
distinguishing name given to the neighbourhood appointed
for the common residence of Jews in London previous to
their expulsion from England in the reign of Edward I ; for
upon their subsequent re-admission to this country they
selected another place in the City for their habitation, which
is now simply known as "Jewry." S. Olave's is described
by Stow as a "proper parish church," called (in 1320)
S. Olave's "Upwell" because of a well under the east end
of the church. In 1598. the ancient monuments in this
church "remained less defaced than in many others," the
earliest being in memory of William Dikman, ironmonger,
one of the Sheriffs of London in 1367. Destroyed in the
Great Fire of 1666, S. Olave's was rebuilt by Sir Chris-
topher Wren in 1673 at a cost of 5580, 4-;. lod. ; its
dimensions were : Length, 78 ft. ; breadth, 34 ft. ; height,
36 ft. ; height of tower and pinnacles, 88 It. There were no
architectural features requiring notice. The interior was
a mere room with a low flat ceiling, and was lighted by two
windows at the west end, one at the east, and four on each
side. The organ (which was in the small west gallery) was by
Messrs. J. W. Walker & Sons; it had two manuals of
GG compass and no pedal-pipes. When the church was
wantonly destroyed in 1888, the parish was annexed to
S. Margaret, Lothbury, and the new church of S. Olave,
Woodberry Down (near Finsbury Park, N.) was built
out of the proceeds arising from the sale of the valuable
City site. Concerning this disposal of the money, the Rev.
Rowland Hill, M.A., Hon. Sec. of the City Church Pre-
S. OLAVE, ETC. 229
servation Society, wrote to the City Press of May 23rd, 1894 :
" The latest church built out of the proceeds of the sale of a
City church (S. Olave, Jewry) is S. Olave, Stoke Newington.
This is situated in a district where the rent of the houses
ranges from ;ioo to 200 a year, and where there is, ac-
cording to the testimony of people in the neighbourhood, not
a single poor person. As a clergyman well acquainted with the
facts told me at the late Diocesan Conference, the thing is a
perfect scandal." The Rev. Thomas Greene, D.D., rector of
S. Olave's, Old Jewry, and Prebendary of Salisbury Cathe-
dral (died Feb., 1720), was the father of Maurice Greene,
Mus. Doc., Cantab., organist of S. Paul's Cathedral and
of the Chapel Royal. Dr. Greene died in 1755, and was
buried in the "Minister's Vault" in S. Olave's Church.
There his remains rested until the l8th of May, 1888, when,
upon the demolition of the church, his coffin was removed to
S. Paul's, where it was solemnly re-interred in the crypt, in
the presence of a distinguished group of musicians, the
various great musical institutions of the metropolis and the
country generally being represented. The organ of S. Olave's,
after being removed to Christ Church, Penge, and
modernized, etc., by Messrs. T. C. Lewis, was sub-
sequently superseded by an entirely new instrument from
the factory of Messrs. Brindley & Foster.
C. S. Olave, Silver Street, stood on the south side
of that street at the north-eastern end t of Noble Street, where
a small portion of its churchyard laid out as a recreation
ground still (1908) remains to mark the spot. Stow
speaks of it somewhat contemptuously as "a small thing,
without any noteworthy monuments." Destroyed in the
Great Fire, it was not rebuilt, but its parish was united to
that of S. Alban's, Wood Street.
S. PANCRAS was a Phrygian saint a youth of noble
family who suffered martydom for the Faith under Diocletian.
CI. S. Pancras, Soper Lane, was one of the thirteen
"peculiars" of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The church
was destroyed in the Great Fire and not afterwards rebuilt.
Its parish was united to that of S. Mary-le-bow. Mr. A. E.
Daniell remarks that "the site of Soper Lane was, after
the Fire, occupied by Queen Street [Cheapside], so called in
honour of Queen Katherine of Braganza ; but the name of
Needler's Lane (in which S. Pancras actually stood) was
altered into Pancras Lane in memory of the vanished
church ; and on its north side may yet be observed a portion
of the old burial ground, situated a little to the west of that
ofS. Benet Sherehog."
23 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
There were five City churches dedicated to S. PETER,
Apostle and Martyr, whose Feast Day is observed on
June 2Qth :
(1) S. Peter-ad-Vincula (in the Tower), still remaining.
(2) S. Peter, Cornhill, still remaining.
(3) S. Peter-le-Poor (destroyed in 1907).
(4) S. Peter, Paul's Wharf (destroyed in the Great Fire of
1666).
(5) S. Peter, West Cheap (destroyed in the Great Fire).
Of these, three, viz., S. Peter, Cornhill, S. Peter-le-Poor,
and S. Peter, West Cheap, have already been described.
CM. S. Peter-ad- Vincula (so-called because the
church was dedicated to that Saint when he was in bonds) is
situated at a little distance to the north-west of the " White
Tower" at the north-west angle of the ballium or "bailey,"
the court or area enclosed by the walls of the great Norman
fortress. The Tower of London is a parish of itself, having
certain territories without as Tower Hill ; but S. Peter's
was extra-diocesan until King Edward VI placed it under
the control of the Bishop of London. It is now a cure of
souls, and the Sovereign's "donative." The chaplain of the
Tower discharges the duty of parish priest to the garrison,
although he is not necessarily an army chaplain.
The original church of S. Peter was large and spacious,
richly decorated, and contained stalls for the king and queen.
The present church, which was erected during the reign of
King Edward I, is a small, low building, consisting of a
nave, chancel and north aisle, the aisle being separated from
the nave by five arches springing from clustered columns.
But, whilst presenting no striking architectural features, this
apparently unimportant building has a history more pathetic
than that of any other church in the kingdom ; being the
resting-place of the greater number of those famous (and
infamous) persons who suffered death at the Tower during
the XVIth and following centuries "either at the altar of
offended justice, or to gratify the malignity of the reigning
sovereign." Here were buried Sir Thomas More, Bishop
Fisher, Anne Boleyn (the second wife of Henry VIII), her
successor Katherine Howard, Thomas Seymour Lord High
Admiral of England (beheaded in 1549), the Protector
Somerset, John Dudley Duke of Northumberland, Lady
Jane Grey and her husband Lord Dudley, Thomas Howard
Duke of Norfolk, his son Philip Earl of Arundel, the Earl
of Essex (once a favourite of Queen Elizabeth), James Duke
of Monmouth, Lords Kilmarnock, Balmerino and Lovat
(leaders of the 1745 rebellion), and Thomas Cromwell Earl
S. OLAVE, ETC. 231
of Essex, the infamous despoiler of the religious houses of
England, who was beheaded in 1540, despite his most
abject supplication for mercy. On the north side of the
chancel is a fine XVIth Century monument with four groups
of kneeling figures, erected to the memory of Sir Richard
Blount. Another fine tomb of altar shape containing
recumbent figures of Sir Richard Cholmondeley and his
wife, Elizabeth, who died in the early part of the reign of
Henry Vlllth, stands at the eastern end of the aisle, close
to the organ. The organ appears to have been removed to
S. Peter's from elsewhere, because Hatton in his New View
of London (1708), states that there was no organ there, and
a view of the interior of the church, given in Vol. I of
Goodwin & Britton's Churches of London (1839), shows
no organ. Could the organ, or a certain portion of it, have
been removed from the Chapel Royal, Whitehall, in 1844?
For a brass plate on' the organ states that the instrument
"was originally built by Father Schmidt in 1676 by
command of His Majesty King Charles II, being the first
built by him in England ; was rebuilt by Elliott in 1814,
and enlarged by Hili in 1844, under the superintendence of
Richard Massey, Esq., Organist of Her Majesty's Chapel
Royal, Whitehall, from 1837 to 1877. The organ was again
rebuilt and enlarged by Hill & Son, under the superin-
tendence of Charles Sherwood Jekyll, Esq., Organist of Her
Majesty's Chapel Royal, S. James's, and Whitehall, 1877."
Hopkins and Rimbault state that the first organ built by
Father Schmidt in this country was erected in the Chapel
Royal, Whitehall, in 1660. At present (1909) the specifi-
cation stands thus :
3 sets of keys-Manuals, CC to G ; Pedals, CCC to F.
Great (10 stops) Dble. Diap., 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Clarabel, 8 ft.
Cone Gamba, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft ; Harm. Flute, 8ft.; i2th, 3ft.; isth
2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks ; Posaune, 8 ft.
Swell (n stops) Bourdon, 16 ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft.
Viol da Gamba, 8 ft.: Prin., 4 ft.; Celestina, 4 ft.; istn, 2 ft
Mixture, III ranks; Oboe. 8 ft.; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Clarion, 4ft.
Choir (8 stops)- Op. Diap., 8ft.; Stop. Diap., 8ft.; Dulciana, 8ft.
Lieblich Flute, 4ft.; Prin., 4ft.; Flautina, 2ft.; Bassoon, 16 ft.
Clarinet, 8 ft.
Pedal (4 stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Violon, 8 ft.
Couplers (6) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.
Ch. to Sw.; Sw. to Gt. Sub-8ve.
Accessories Gt. to Ped. " swing" on and off: 3 comp. peds. to Gt
2 ditto to Sw.; draw stop for blower.
All the stops run through, and some of Father Schmidt's
original pipes are in the Choir organ. I had the pleasure of
playing on this organ on Sept. i8th, 1908, and found the
232 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
tone delightful in every respect. The Ch. to Sw. coupler
struck me as being unique, I had never seen such a coupler
before
I am indebted to the kindness of the present organist,
Mr. George F. Winney, who was appointed in 1899, for
this description of the organ.
CIII. S. Peter, Paul's Wharf, was, according to
Stow, "a small parish church called parva, or little, near
unto Powle's wharf; in this church no monuments do
remain." Destroyed in the Great Fire, it was not rebuilt.
Its parish was annexed to that of S. Benet, Paul's Wharf,
but when, in 1879, S. Benet's ceased to be parochial, it
became united to S. Nicholas, Cole Abbey. S. Peter's
burying ground may still (1909) be seen tastefully laid out
as a pleasure garden at the bottom of S. Peter's Hill, in
Upper Thames Street.
There are yet two City churches dedicated to S. STEPHEN,
the Protomartyr, whose Feast Day is observed on Dec. 26 :
(1) S. Stephen, Coleman Street, still remaining.
(2) S. Stephen, Walbrook, still remaining.
Of these, S. Stephen, Walbrook, has already been
described, but since the account of that beautiful church was
given in an earlier page of the present volume, the following
additions, etc., have been made to the organ :
Pedal (8 stops instead of 4)- Sub -Bourdon (lowest 10 notes resultant),
32ft.; Op. Diap , 16 ft.; Violone, 16 ft.; *Bourdon, 16 ft.; *Violon-
cello, 8 ft.; *Bass Flute, 8 ft.; Bombardon, 16 ft.; "Trumpet, S ft.
Of these, the four stops marked * are new.
Couplers (12 instead of 8) Sw. 8ve.; Sw. Sub. 8ve.; *Sw. Unison off;
Saw. to Gt ; Sw. to Co.; Sw. to Fed.; Gt to Fed.; *Ch. 8ve; *Ch.
Sub. 8ve ; *Ch. Uni-on off ; Ch. to Gt ; Ch. to Fed.
Of these, the four couplers marked. * are new.
Accessories Gt. pistons to comp. peds.; 4 draw-stops to set variable
combinations; 5 comb, pistons to Sw.; 4 to Gt. and 4 to Ch ; 4
comp. peds to Fed. crgan ; 3 pistons acting on couplers ; Tremulant
to Sw. ; pneumatic engine starter ; one comb nation movement on
each clavier is variable.
Action Tubular-pneumatic throughout.
Compass Manuals, 58 notes; Pedals, 30.
Pressures Gt. and Fed. reeds, si in.; Sw., Ch. and Fed. flues, 3;
motors, 3, 3$, 5, and 7.
Engine Brotherhood hydraulic.
Pedal-board Radiating and concave, D under D.
These important alterations were effected in 1907 by
Messrs. W. Hill & Son, under the able direction of the
organist, Mr. Henry J. White.
CIV. S. Stephen, Coleman Street, lies just off the
Bank end of Moorgate Street, on the west side of Coleman
Street (not far from its southern termination). The church
S. OLAVE, ETC. 233
is of very early foundation. Its patronage was vested in the
hands of the Dean and Chapter of S. Paul's who, in 1182,
transferred it to the prior and convent of Butley, who held
it until the dissolution of the Religious Houses, when it
devolved on the Crown. Since the reign of Elizabeth the
vicarage has been in the gift of the parishioners. In the
old church was a monument to the memory of Anthony
Munday, dramatist, arranger of the city pageants and
continuator of Stow's Survey of London, who died in 1633,
and was buried in the church. This monument, which
perished with the church in the Great Fire, thirty- three years
later, thus referred to Munday's antiquarian researches :
''He that hath many an antient tomb-stone read,
(I 1 th' labour seeming more among the dead
To live, than with the living) that survaid
Abstruse antiquities, and ore them laid
Such vive and beauteous colours with his pen,
That (spite of Time) these old are new agen."
It is much to be wished that a monument, with this
inscription restored, could be placed in the present church,
which was erected from the designs of Sir Christopher
Wren at a cost of ^4020, i6s. 6d. in 1676. The dimensions
of the church are -.Length, 75 ft. ; breadth, 35 ft. ; height,
about 24 ft. ; heighf of tower (with lantern), 85 ft. There are
eight bells in the tower, five of which came originally from the
great Priory of the Holy Trinity in Aldgate at the Dissolution.
In the upper part of the gateway leading from the churchyard
into Coleman Street is a curious piece of alto relievo sculpfTe
representing the Last Judgment. The interior of the Cuurch
is simply a low room with a flat ceiling formed into one
large panel, and coved at the sides ; groined openings in
the cove admit semicircular headed windows. The vestry
room at the west end of the church contains a painting
representing the stoning of S. Stephen.
The organ, which happily occupies its original position in
the west gallery, was built by John Avery in 1775.
Mr. Henry Leffler thus describes it :
" 3 setts of keys. Compass GG to E, long octaves (no GG Jf) ; Sw. to G.
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap., 57 pipes; Stop. Diap., 57; Prin., 57;
i2th, 57; isth, 57; Sesquialtera, 111 ranks, 171; Cornet to C,
V ranks, 45 ; Trumpet, 57 ; Clarion, 57 ; Mixture, II ranks, 114.
Swell (6 stops) Op. Diap., 34 pipes; Stop. Diap., 34; Prin., 34;
Cornet, III ranks, 102 ; Trumpet, 34 ; Hautboy, 34.
Choir (5 stops) Stop. Diap., 57 pipes ; Prin., 57 ; Flute, 57 ; isth, 57 ;
Cremona, 57.
A very fine organ."
Mr. J. W. Billinghurst, circa 1855, says: "This
instrument is delightful in tone." Dr. E. J. Hopkins, in
234 CHURCHES DEDICATED TO
that same year, remarks that the Cremona on the Choir went
only as far as Tenor C and that there was a Pedal Clavier
(without " pedal pipes ") from GG to Tenor C. No mention
is made of this organ in the 1877 edition of" Hopkins and
Rimbault." In 1907 the organ was rebuilt and re-voiced
under the direction of the organist, Mr. F. H. Cozens, by
Messrs. Thomas S. Jones & Son (of Upper Holloway)
to the following specification :
Great (n stops) Dble. Diap., i6ft.; Op. Diap., 8ft; Stop Diap.,
8ft.: Dulciana, 8ft.; Gamba, 8 ft.; Clarabella, 8ft.; Pnn., 4 ft.;
Harm. Flute, 4ft.; ijth, 2ft.; Sesquialtcra, III ranks; Trumpet,
Swell (10 stops) Lieblich Bourdon, i6ft.; Op. Diap., 8 ft.; Lieblich
Gedact, 8 ft.; Vox \ngelica, 8 ft.; Viol d' Amour, 8 ft.; Prin., 4 ft.;
Piccolo, 2 ft.; Mixture, III ranks; Cornopean, 8 ft.; Oboe, 8 ft.
Choir (6 stops) Stop. Diap., 8ft.; Salicional, 8ft.- Gemshorn, 4ft.;
Flute, 4 ft ; Clarinet, 8 ft.; Flautina, 2 ft.
Pedal (} stops) Op. Diap., 16 ft.; Bourdon, 16 ft.; Violoncello. 8 ft.
Couplers (7) Gt. to Fed.; Sw. to Ped.; Ch. to Fed.; Sw. to Gt.; Ch.
to Gt. sub-3vc ; Sw. super-8ve ; Sw. to Gt. super-8ve.
Accessories -Tremulant to Sw.; 3 comp. peds. to Sw. and Gt.; "on
and off" ped. for Gt. to Ped.
Amongst the organists of S. Stephen's may be mentioned :
Mr. John Groombridge. Salary 30 (also organist of
Hackney Parish Church, 1775-1827).
Miss Bradfield, 1827-1844.
Mr. Bobbett, 1844-1865,
Mr. F. H. Cozens, 1865-.
When Miss Bradfield was elected in 1827 she was not
among the competitors, but was elected by the parishioners.
Samuel Wesley and Dr. H. J. Gauntlett competed for the
vacant post at this time, and Thomas Attwood, of S. Paul's,
was the professional umpire. Mr. Bobbett, who was elected
in 1844, was a blind man. I am indebted to the kindness of
Mr. Fred. H. Cozens, the present organist, for much of
the foregoing information.
CV. 5. Thomas -the -Apostle, Knightrider
Street, was, according to Stow, "a proper church, but
monuments of antiquity be there none, except some arms in
the windows, as also in the stone-work, which some suppose
to be of John Barns, mercer. Lord Mayor in 1371, a great
builder thereof. More, Sir William Littlesbery, alias
Home (for King Edward IV so named him, because he was
a most excellent blower in a horn), he was a salter and
merchant of the staple, Lord Mayor in 1487, and was buried
in this church, having appointed by his testament the bells
to be changed for four new bells of good tune and sound, but
that was not performed." It would be interesting to know
S. OLAVE, ETC. 235
why the musical wishes conveyed in the last will and testa-
ment of this eminent parishioner of S. Thomas's were not
duly carried out after his death. The very grave of this
worthy amateur musician and distinguished horn player has
long since disappeared ; for, destroyed in the Great Fire of
1666, S. Thomas's Church (the only one in the city dedicated
to the Saint whose Feast Day is still [1908] observed by
" wardmotes" and other civic functions in every City "ward")
was strange to say not rebuilt, its parish being annexed
to that of S. Mary, Aldertnary.
CVI. It should be here remarked that the present
Mercers' Chapel, Cheapside, takes the place of the
collegiate church of S. Thomas, Acars or Aeons, being
the chapel attached to the military hospital founded by
Thomas Fitz-Theobald de Helles and Agnes his wife (who
was sister to S. Thomas a Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury),
in the reign of Henry II. The master and brethren of this
hospital were in connection with the Order of Knights
Templars.
The present Mercers' Chapel has a nearly square ground
plan with lofty walls, and a ceiling slightly coved at the
sides, and an octangular lantern light in the centre. The
two-manual organ, which was erected by Messrs. Beving-
ton in 1882, has since been supplied with hydraulic blowing
apparatus by Willis. At present [1908] it contains the
following stops :
Great (3 stops) Op. Diap., 3ft.; Dulciana, 8ft.; Claribel, 8ft.; Prin.,
4 ft.; Rohr Flute, 4 ft.; isth, a ft.; Full Mixture ; Clarinet, 8 ft
Swell (3 stops)- Op. Diap., 8 ft. ; Bell Gamba, 8 ft. ; Voix Celestes, 8 ft.;
Lieblich Gedaclct, 8ft.; Harm. Flute, 4 ft.; Full Mixture; Oboe,
8 ft.; Trumpet, 8 ft.
Pedal (i stop) Bourdon, 16 ft. tone.
Couplers (4) Gt. to Ped.; Sw. to Ped.; Sw. to Gt. unison; Sw. to
Gt. sub-8ve.
Amongst the organists of the Mercers' Chapel have been :
G. E. Manton. -1877.
Nathaniel W. B. Collyer, 1877-1901.
Percy G : Yonge, 1901-.
I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. G. H. Blakesley,
Clerk of the Mercers' Company, for the specification of the
organ.
There were two City churches dedicated to the HOLY
TRINITY :
o. Mixture, III ranks
ii. Trumpet
CC.
GG. Original Pipes.
GG. Do. do.
GG. Do. do.
Ten. C.
CC. Original Pipes.
GG.
GG. Original Pipes.
GG.
GG. New Stop from Tenor C.
APPENDIX. 239
Swell, CC to A. 58. (12 Stops).
12. Double Diapason .. 16 feet CC.
13. Open Diapason .. 8 ,, CC.
14. Stopped Diapason .. 8 ,, CC. Original Pipes.
15. Viol d'Orchestre .. 8 CC. New Stop Spotted Metal.
!6. Voix Celeste .. .. 8 Ten. C.
17. Principal .. .. 4 CC.
18. Fifteenth .. .. 2 CC.
19. Sesquialtera, III ranks CC.
20. Contra Fagotto .. 16 ,, CC
21. Cornopean .. .. 8 CC.
22. Oboe 8 CC.
23. Vox Humana .. .. 8 CC. New Stop.
New Tremulant on Swell, by Draw Stop Knob.
Choir, CC to A, 58 (8 Stops).
24. Gamba 8 feet CC. New Stop.
25. Dulciana . . . . 8 CC. 5 lowest grooved to 26.
26. Stopped Diapason .. 8 ,, CC. Original Pipes.
7. Salicional . . . . 8 Ten. C. New lo Choir from Swell.
28. Salicet
29. Stopped Flute . .
30. Fifteenth
31. Clarinet
Choir Tremulant, by pne
Four pneumatic combina
CC. New Stop.
CC. Original Pipes.
CC. Do. do.
CC.
matic piston in key slip,
ion pistons.
Pedal, CCC to F 30. ( 4 Stops).
32. Open Diapason . . 16 feet
33. Bourdon 16 . ,
34. Bass Flute .. .. 8 ,, Partly derived from 32.
35. Trombone .. .. 16 ,, New Stop
Couplers. Accessories.
36. Great to Pedal.
37. Swell to Pedal.
38. Choir to Pedal.
39. Swell to Great.
40. Swell to Choir.
41. Choir to Great.
42. Sub-Oct. Great to Pedal.
Four composition pedals to Great Organ.
Three Swell Organ.
Four pneumatic pistons to Choir Organ.
One ,, ,, Choir Tremulant.
One " on an d off " pedal to Great to PedaL
Swell Pedal to Swell.
,, to Choir.
The organ has been thoroughly renovated, repaired, and restored
throughout. New tubular-pneumatic action has been substituted in place
of the old heavy mechanical action to both Swell and Cnoir organs, and
ew pneumatic work has been added to Pedal organ. Five new pneumatic
pistons have been added to Choir organ, four for combinations and one
for actuating Tremulant. The Choir organ has been enclosed in a Swell
box, and a Tremulant added to both Choir and Swell organs. The
whole of the pipe-work has been carefully repaired, revoiced and
regulated. The reed stops have been revoiced and supplied with new
tongues throughout, and modern reeds.
The stops numbered 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 14, 26, 29, 30, are composed of the
original pipes placed in organ when first built by Father Schmidt about
A.D. 1690. These pipes have been very carefully dealt with, and are in
excellent condition.
The stops nnmbered 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, n, have the pipes carried down
to GG, thai is five notes below the CC of keyboards, and are available on
Pedals by drawing the Sub-Ocl. Great to Pedal Coupler. The original
compass of the organ was from GG to D, but without the lowest GG
sharp.
240 OLD LONDON CITY CHURCHES.
XV. S. Clement Eastcheap (p. 73). John Evelyn
writes in his diary, 1655, April I5th (Kaster Day), "Mr.
Pierson (since Bishop of Chester) preached at East Cheape,
but was disturb'd by an alarme of fire, which about this time
was very frequent in the cittie."
XXIX. S. Dionis Backchurch (p. 123). Dr. E. J.
Hopkins states in a MS. note that this organ was the last
instrument built by Renatus Harris, who in 1724 received
$2$ for it. The subscription list was opened in 1722, and
the committee had as its chairman, the Rector, the Rev.
Dr. Smith, President of Queen's College, Oxford.
LX. S. Dunstan in the East (p. 186). Mr. Mason,
the organist, died suddenly at his organ whilst playing a ser-
vice on Good Friday, 1909 He was succeeded by Mr. W.
Donne Smith, who was organist of Holy Innocents' Church,
Hornsey, for 12 years, and at S. Peter's, Hornsey, for 13
years.
XXII. The Dutch Church, Austin Friars (p. 99).
The organ which was destroyed in the fire of 1862, was built
in the I7th century and contained the following stops :
Great (12 stops) Op. Diap.; Stop Diap. ; Dulciana ; Principal ; Flute \
i2th; isth ; Sesquialtera, III ranks; Cornet; Trumpet (Bass) I
Trumpet (Treble) ; Cremona.
Swell (4 stops) Op. Diap; Stop Diap.; Principal; Hautboy.
No Couplers ; no pedal-board or pedal pipes.
It stood in the West Gallery, and its case presented an
imposing front with five towers. The Hill organ of 1864
was originally erected under one of the arches on the north
side, about half-way up the church. At a competition for the
post of organist held on March lith, 1858, Mr. James Turle
of Westminster Abbey being the umpire, Mr. Wicking
was selected out of a large number of candidates as the
player best fitted for the post.
VII. S. Giles, Cripplegate (p. 31). Mr. H. H.
Battley corrects Mr. Billmghuist's statement that the organ
was rebuilt by Gray & Davison in 1879. It was moved
from the west gallery in 1868-9 by that firm, and re-opened
on Sunday, Feb. I4th, 1869, when Bishop Jackson preached
his first sermon in the city after his translation from Lincoln
to the See of London.
The following names will complete the list of organists :
1673, Feb. 28th James Brookes.
1675, June 2ist Francis Florier.
1677, Feb. 2oth John Curtis.
APPENDIX. 241
1704 Henry Green (a blind musician).
1736, May 25th Charles Froud.
1770 Edmund Gilding.
1 782 -William Courtney.
1786, April i7th Miss Mary Worsley Bickerton.
March sotli John Immyns.
April 3oth Miss May Horth (afterwards Mrs. Deane)
1832, Feb. I 7 th William Miller.
XVIII. S. Helen's, Bishopsgate (p. 86). The organ
was rebuilt by Robson in 1 868, thus :
Great (10 stops) Op. Diap. I ; Op. Diap. II ; Stop. Diap.; Clarabella ;
Principal; i2th ; isth ; Sesquialtera ; Trumpet; Clarion.
Swell (6 stops) Double Diap.; Op. Diap. ; Stop. Diap. ; Prin.; Oboe;
Trumpet.
Choir (s stops) Op. Diap.; Stop. Diap.; Prin. (these three by commu-
nication) ; isth ; Cremona.
Pedal (i stop)-Op. Diap.
Couplers (3) Sw. to Gt.; Gt. to Fed.; Ch. to Fed.
Compass Gt. and Ch., CC to F ; Sw., tenor C to F ; Fed. CCC to F.
Dr. Bexfield, the organist, died on Oct. 2gth, 1853. The
subsequent oiganists were as follows :
1853 J. H. Deane. I 1864 F. Scotson Clark.
1856 William Cutler. 1867 Miss Annie Barton.
1860 H. W. Watson. I
It is sad to be obliged to add here that the neighbouring
Crosby Hall was pulled down in 1908, and modern
business premises were erected in its place.
LXIV. 5. James, Duke's Place, Aldgate (p. 191).
At the time of the "dissolution" in 1874, this church contained
a small organ with one manual and pedal built by Holdich
in 1859. The last organist was Mr. Nathaniel J. Holmes
(appointed in 1861) who was afterwards the owner of the
grand concert organ built by Bryceson for his residence at
Primrose Hill. This organ was sold to the Albert Palace,
Battersea, and is now (1909) in the Church of the Benedictine
Monastery of Fort Augustus, Scotland.
XIX. S. James, Garlickhythe (p. 90). Dr. E. J.
Hopkins had a MS. note to the effect that this organ
was not built until 1719, eleven years after the death of
Father Schmidt. At a vestry meeting held on Dec. ist,
1718, Mr. Cheeseborough, upper churchwarden, lent Mr.
Knopple, the organ maker, 100. On March 2ist, 1719,
Mr. Cheeseborough lent Mr. Knopple the further sum of
36, for the full discharge of the organ maker's account.
LXIX. S. Katherine Coleman (p. 195). Three of
the Choir stops (Op. biap., Stop Diap., and Prin.) are
borrowed from the Great organ.
242 OLD LONDON CITY CHURCHES.
X. S. Lawrence Jewry (p. 47). Mr. G. F. Harris,
a pianoforte composer who wrote largely under the pseudonym
of " Rudolph Nordman" was organist here for forty-six years.
Musical Standard, Dec. 7th, 1867. Mr. John Turner was
appointed July I3th, 1869. Mr. Edgar Adams (appointed
in May 1870) was a son of Thomas Adams, the famous
composer-organist.
VIII. S. Luke, Middlesex (Old Street) (p. 35).
Mr. William Crouch (father of F. W. Crouch and grandfather
of F. N. Crouch, both distinguished musicians) was organist
of this church for upwards of half-a-century. He held also
the post of organist at the Parish Church of Clapham.
XII. S. Margaret, Lothbury (p. 60). Mr. Henry
J. South was organist from June 1858 to July 1866, when he
resigned, and was succeeded by Mr. Cornish.
LXVII. S. Martin Outwich (p. 205). At the time
of the "dissolution" in 1874, the organ by G. P. England
was removed to the Church of S. Barnabas, Homerton.
XXXIX. S. Mary Aldermanbury (p. 152). The
organ built by J. C. Bishop in 1825 was taken down in 1886
and removed to Edgefield Church, Norfolk. A new organ
was built in that year for S. Mary Aldermanbury by Messrs.
Bishop & Starr, and opened by Dr. Warwick Jordan on
June 23rd ; this is the instrument described on page 152.
XXXVIII. S. Mary Aldermary (p. 149). The
musical services during the organistship of Mr. E. Deane
were only unsatisfactory from the Low Church point of view,
the singing (what little there was of it) being good as far as
it went.
XVII. S. Mary at Hill (p. 83). Mr. Samuel J. Noble
(appointed organist on June 1st, 1861) was a professor at the
Royal Academy of Music. During his tenure of office the
musical services were of a cathedral type, and were exceedingly
well rendered. The Rev. J. C. Crosthwaite, a good amateur
musician and composer of some excellent chants and hymn
tunes, was Rector at this time, and took a great deal of
interest in the music.
IX. S. Mary le Bow (p. 41). Mr J. G. Clarke,
Mus. B., Oxon., resigned the post of organist in 1908, and
was succeeded by Mr. Gerald Bullivant. An interesting
Tercentenary Commemoration of Milton was held at this
church on Dec. 9th, 1908, under the conductorship of
Dr. H. Walford Davies, of the Temple Church.
APPENDIX. 243
LXXXVIII. S. Matthew, Friday Street (p. 213) .-
At the "dissolution" of this church in 1881, the Walker
organ was taken to S. James' Church, Forest Gate, where
it was rebuilt, etc., by Mr. E. Ingram.
CVI. Mercers' Chapel, Cheapside (p. 235). The
first organ here was an interesting one. It was originally
built for the Chapel Royal, S. James, by Schneider in 1710,
and was afterwards improved by Bv field. In 1819, it was
removed to the Episcopal Chapel in Long Acre, and pedals
were added to it by Elliott. In 1866, it was taken down
and erected in Mercers' Chanel. Two years later (1868) it
was modernized by Robson as a three-manual instrument
with 7 stops on the Great, 6 on the Swell, 4 on the Choir,
and I on the Pedals. In 1882 it was replaced by a new
organ by Bevington.
XIV. S. Peter, Cornhill (p. 230). The following
stops, added to ihe organ by Hill in 1840, were at that time
said to be new to this country :
Great-Claribel Flute, 8 ft.; Wald Flute, 4 ft; Oboe Flute, 4 ft.
Swell Suabe Flute, 4 ft.; Echo Dulciana Cornet, V ranks ; Cornopean,
8ft.
XXI. S. Peter le Poer (p. 96). This church was
closed and destroyed in 1907. Its site was sold for .90,000
and is now (1909) covered by the business premises of the
Anglo-South-American Bank.
CII. 5. Peter ad Vincula [Tower of London]
(p. 230). A former organist, Mrs. N. O'Brien (now
organist of All Saints' Cathedral, Allahabad, India) writes
(June i8th, 1909) : " Having read with interest in The
Organist and Choirmaster the account of the organ at
S. Peter ad Vincula, I venture to send you a few further
particulars of the present instrument which were given me
by Mr. Jekyll himself, as I was organist at the Tower of
London at the time the organ was removed there from
Whitehall. Previous to that there had been a small organ
built by T. Willis, an organ builder in the Minories. This
instrument contained one manual only and pedals, no stops,
only an octave coupler. It was presented to the church by
Mrs. Milman (wife of Sir Bryan Milman, Governor of the
Tower). This lady played for several years until within a
short time of her death ; after which, about the year 1882, I
was appointed organist, and held the appointment till the
year 1899. Previous to my appointment no salary had been
allowed for the organist. I was therefore the first paid
organist, the salary being paid in equal portions by the
244 O LD LONDON CITY CHURCHES.
Constable, Lieutenant and Governor of the Tower. The
organ in the Chapel Royal, Tower of London, was originally
built by Father Schmidt about the year 1660 by command of
King Charles II, whose arms still embellish the case. The
oak case with its four towers elaborately carved and some of
the original pipes (the Stopped Diapason) in the Choir organ
still remain. It was rebuilt by Elliot & Hill in the year
1814 ; in the year 1844 it was enlarged by Hill. In 1877 it
was found to be beyond the requirements of the present age.
Tuned on what is called the unequal temperament system,
and totally unfit for modern playing, it was then entirely
rebuilt, converted into a C organ according to the accepted
modern plan, with new bellows to supply the Pedal organ,
new Great, Choir and Pedal organ sound-boards, and
entirely new mechanism. The pipe work of the Great
organ, with the exception of one stop, viz., the Double
Diapason, was all new. New pipe-work was also added to
the Pedal, Swell and Choir organs. This work was carried
out under the superintendance of Mr. Jekyll, organist of
Whitehall. The organ contains 1,968 pipes. The cost to
build a similar instrument, including oak case, would be
about .1,500. The organ was presented by the late Queen
Victoria to S. Pe'er ad Vincula, Tower of London, and was
removed from Whitehall about the year 1892."
LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. 245
LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS.
Several other names have been received too late for insertion.
ADCOCK, E. E., Esq., Norwich.
ADDISON, R. B., Esq., West Hampstead. (Two Copies).
ADSHEAD, E., Esq., Rochdale.
ANDERSON, C. M., Esq., Forest Hill.
ARCHER, J. STUART, Esq., London.
ARNOLD, J. A., Esq., Plumstead.
BARFF, REV. A., M.A., S. Giles', Cripplegate.
BARKER, H., Esq., Bow.
BATTLEY, H. H., Esq., Canterbury.
BEDWELL & SON, Organ Builders, Cambridge.
BENHAM, REV. CANON, Finsbury Square.
BENNETT, DR. G. J., Lincoln.
BlRCH, J. J., Esq., Birmingham.
BRIDGE, SIR FREDERICK, Westminster Abbey.
BRIMELOW, J., Esq., S. Albans.
BULL, JOHN, Esq., Northampton.
BURGESS, F., Esq., North Kensington. (Two Copies).
BURNETT, WM., Esq., Kingston Hill.
BUNNETT, DR. E., Norwich.
C ADM AN, R. M., Esq., Long Eaton.
CAMPBELL, J. E., Esq., Ramsgate. (Two Copies),
CARR, J. P., Esq., Wakefield.
CARTER, T. W., Esq., Sydenham. (Two Copies),
CARTWRIGHT, R., Organ Builder, West Green, N.
CHAPMAN, J. G., Esq., Manchester. (Two Copies),
CHISHOLM, A. J., Esq., Stoke Newington.
CLIFFORD, E., Esq., Spalding.
COLEMAN, Miss, Mansfield.
COPELAND J. A., Esq., Middlesborough.
COUPER, S. C., Esq., Aberdeen.
CRAWFORD, SIR HOMEWOOD, The Guildhall, E.G.
CROASDELL, W. H., Esq., Peckham.
DAVIES, J. E., Esq., Putney. (Three Copies)-
DE Ros, COLIN, Esq., Georgetown, Demerara.
DICKSEE, L. R., Esq., Haverstock Hill.
246 OLD LONDON CITY CHURCHES.
DOCKER, F. W., Esq., S. Andrew's, Wells Street, W.
FISHER, SHELLEY, Esq., Gerrard's Cross.
FRASEK, N., Esq., Glasgow.
FREEMAN, A., Esq., Streatham.
FRYE, F. R., Esq., Mus. B., Chelmsford.
GRAVES, A. H., Esq., Leyton, N.E.
GRAY & DAVISON, Organ Builders, London, N.W.
(Three Copies).
GILBERT, DR. W. B., Oxford.
GOODHART, A. M., Esq., M.A., Mus. Bac., Eton College,
Windsor.
HAMILTON & Co., Paternoster Row.
HANBURY, R., Esq., Sutton.
HANDS, J. D., Esq., Shebbear, Devon.
HANKINS, F. H., Esq., South Hampstead.
HAWLEY, S., Esq., Oxford Mansions, W.
HILL & SON, Organ Builders, Camden Road. (Two Copies).
HOGG, S. R., Esq., Mus. B., West Hampstead.
HOVVARTH, G. , Esq., Birmingham.
HYDER, H., Esq., Allahabad, India. (Two Copies).
JONES, D., Esq., Boxmoor, Herts.
KIRKLAND, A., Esq., Organ Builder, London.
KIRKLAND, F., Esq., London.
KNIGHT, H., Esq., Hendon.
LIBRARIAN, English Church Union, London. (Two Copies).
LIGHTWOOD, J. T., Esq., Lytham, Lancashire.
LITTLEWOOD, A., Esq., Sheffield.
LLOYD, DR. C. H., M.A., Eton College, Windsor.
LONGMORE, E. W., Esq., West Norwood.
MCLEAN, N. W. H.. Esq., Salop.
MAY, A. E., Esq., Camberwell.
MAYO, REV. C. E., Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
MARSHALL, J. T., Esq., Leeds.
MEADOWS, E. B., Esq., Thornton, Lancashire.
METCALF, T. L., Esq., Middlesborough.
MONK, DR. M. J., Truro.
MOSER, G. S., Esq., Earlswood Common, Surrey.
MOUNTAIN, T., Esq., Eastbourne.
NICHOLSON Co., Organ Builders, Worcester.
NORMAN, J. C., Esq., Walthamstow. (Two Copies).
NUNN, F. C., Esq., Upper Norwood.
ORMROD, T., Esq., Southport. (Two Copies).
PAGE, C. W., Esq., Lincoln.
PALMER, T. J., Esq., Toronto, Canada.
PAYNE, E. W., Esq., New Cross. (Three Copies).
PEARCE, REV. E. H., M.A., Christchurch, Newgate Street,
London.
LIST OF SUBSCRIBEUS. 247
PERRY, REV. G. H., M.A., S. Luke's, Old Street, London.
PIERSON, C., Esq., Tufnell Park.
RADBONE, W. P., Esq., Oxford.
RADZINSKI, C. A., Esq., New York, U.S.A.
REEVES. H. W., Esq., London.
RICHARDSON, W. W., Esq., West Kensington.
ROBERTS, W. A., Esq., Liverpool.
RYDE, E. H., E-q., Windsor.
SALMOND, W., Esq , Slateford.
SAUNDERS, DR. GORDON, Hampstead.
SCOTT, R., Esq., Newport, Fife.
SHAW, F., Esq., Stockport.
SLOG ROVE, A. J.. Esq., Merstharn.
SOUTHGATE, T. B., Esq., Lee, S.E.
SOUTHGATR. T. L , Esq., Lee, S.E.
SPOOXER-LILLINGSTON, S. E. L., Esq., Mus. B., London.
STAINER. J. F. R., Esq., London. (Two Copies).
ST. LEGER, W. D., Esq., Madras, India. (Two Copies).
SUTCLIFFE, W., Esq., Shipley.
SWANN, S., Esq., Mus. B., Tooting.
THOMPSON, H. R., Esq., Leytonstone. (Three Copies).
TRIGGS, T. W , Esq., Ilford.
TUCKER, J., Esq., Buckhurst Hill.
VALE, W. S., Esq., All Saints', Margaret Street, W.
WALL, H. E., Esq., Barnes.
WARRINER, DK. J., Denmark Hill.
WEBB, E. A., Esq., South Hampstead.
WEST, A. G. B., Esq., London.
WELLSTEAD, H., Esq., Wimborne.
WILKINS, G. C., Esq., London.
WILLIAMS, DR. A., Grenadier Guards, London.
WILLMOT, H. C., Esq., Tunbridge Wells.
WOOD, Miss M. L., Douglas. (Two Copies).
WOODS, K. C., Esq., Salop.
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Words in Singing C.J.Brennan
Organ Accompaniment to the Psalms C. W. Pearce
Dictionary of Organ Stops . . . . . ..J.I Wedgwood
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Voice Training Exercises and Studies F.C. Field Hyde
The First Principles of Voice Production . . . ^ homas Kelly
Practical Points for Choral Singers Robert Simmons
The Organist's Directory C W. Pearce
The Indispensible Theory Book Woodrow &* Rudd
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