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