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St Botolph's Aldgate is a
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...
parish church in the
City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...
and also, as it lies outside the line of the city's former eastern walls, a part of the
East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have univ ...
. The full name of the church is St Botolph without Aldgate and Holy Trinity Minories and it is sometimes known simply as Aldgate Church. The ecclesiastical parish was united with that of the Church of Holy Trinity, Minories, in 1899. The current 18th-century church building is made of brick with stone quoins and window casings. The tower is square with an obelisk spire.


Position and dedication

The church stands at the junction of Houndsditch and
Aldgate High Street Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...
approximately 30 yards east of the former position of
Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...
, a defensive
barbican A barbican (from fro, barbacane) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes. Europe In the Middle A ...
in London's wall The church was one of four in medieval London dedicated to Saint Botolph or Botwulf, a 7th-century
East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...
n saint, each of which stood by one of the gates to the City. The other three were near neighbour St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate (outside
Bishopsgate Bishopsgate was one of the eastern gates in London's former defensive wall. The gate gave its name to the Bishopsgate Ward of the City of London. The ward is traditionally divided into ''Bishopsgate Within'', inside the line wall, and ''Bisho ...
), as well as
St Botolph's Aldersgate St Botolph without Aldersgate (also known as St Botolph's, Aldersgate) is a Church of England church in London dedicated to St Botolph. It was built just outside Aldersgate; one of the gates on London's wall in the City of London. The church ...
(outside
Aldersgate Aldersgate is a Ward of the City of London, named after one of the northern gates in the London Wall which once enclosed the City. The Ward of Aldersgate is traditionally divided into Aldersgate Within and Aldersgate Without, the suffix den ...
) and St Botolph's, Billingsgate by the riverside (near
London Bridge Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It re ...
– this church was destroyed by the
Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Thursday 6 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall, while also extending past th ...
in 1666 and not rebuilt). It is believed the church just outside Aldgate is the first in London to have been dedicated to Botolph, with the other dedications following soon after. The Priory just inside Aldgate was founded by clergy from St. Botolph's Priory in
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
, just under fifty miles along the Roman Road from Aldgate. The Priory at Colchester, like the church at Aldgate (though not the Priory at Aldgate), lay just outside the South Gate (also known as St Botolph's Gate) in Colchester's Wall. The Priors held the land of the
Portsoken Portsoken, traditionally referred to with the definite article as the Portsoken, is one of the City of London's 25 ancient wards, which are still used for local elections. Historically an extra-mural Ward, lying east of Aldgate and the City wall ...
, outside the wall, and are thought to have built and dedicated the church, St Botolph without Aldgate, that served it. The church of
St Botolph's Church, Cambridge St Botolph's Church, Cambridge is a Church of England parish church in the city of Cambridge, England. The church is a Grade I listed building. History The church is dedicated to Botolph, a seventh-century abbot in East Anglia, who is a patron s ...
just outside the south gate of that city, may in turn, have taken its dedication from St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate to which it was linked by
Ermine Street Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London ('' Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earn ...
. By the end of the 11th century Botolph was regarded as the
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
of boundaries, and by extension of trade and travel. This association with travel was particularly strong before the legend of
Saint Christopher Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is venerated by several Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman emperor Decius (reigned 249–251) or alternatively ...
became popular. These aspects of Botolph's patronage are thought to be the reason why churches at the City gates have this dedication.


History


Medieval church

The earliest known written record of the church dates from 1115, when it was received by the Holy Trinity Priory (recently founded by
Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...
, wife of
Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the N ...
) but the parochial foundations may very well date from before 1066. The church was rebuilt in the 16th century at the cost of the priors of the Holy Trinity, and renovated in 1621. It escaped the
Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Thursday 6 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall, while also extending past th ...
, and was described at the beginning of the 18th century as "an old church, built of Brick, Rubble and Stone, rendered over, and ... of the Gothick order". The building, as it stood at that time, was and . There was a tower, about , with six bells.


Eighteenth century

St Botolph's was completely rebuilt between 1741 and 1744, to a design by
George Dance the Elder George Dance the Elder (1695 – 8 February 1768) was a British architect. He was the City of London surveyor and architect from 1735 until his death. Life Originally a mason, George Dance was appointed Clerk of the city works to the City of ...
. The exterior is of brick with projecting quoins, stone windows surrounds and a stone cornice. The tower, also of brick, has rusticated quoins, and a stone spire. The interior of the building is divided into nave and aisles by four widely spaced piers supporting a flat ceiling. There are galleries along three sides. The church is lit by two rows of windows in each side wall, one above and one below the gallery. The monuments from the old building were preserved, and reinstalled in the new church.


Nineteenth century

The interior was redecorated by John Francis Bentley, the architect of
Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral is the mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It is the largest Catholic church in the UK and the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster. The site on which the cathedral stands in the City o ...
in the late 19th century. St Botolph's was often referred to as the "Church of Prostitutes" in the late Victorian period. The church is sited on an island surrounded by roadways and it was usual in these times to be suspicious of women standing on street corners. They were easy targets for the police, and to escape arrest the prostitutes would parade around the island, now occupied by the church and
Aldgate tube station Aldgate is a London Underground station near Aldgate in the City of London. The station is on the Circle line between and , and is the eastern terminus of the Metropolitan line. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. Aldgate was opened in 1876 with ...
. The earliest record of the churchyard is in 1230; by 1875 it was being used as a public open space. The landscape gardener
Fanny Wilkinson Fanny Wilkinson (1855–1951) was a British landscape designer. She was the first professional female landscape designer in Britain, and responsible for the design and the layout of more than 75 public gardens across London in the late 19th centu ...
laid it out as a public garden in 1892. A drinking fountain, still extant, was installed in 1906 to the memory of the philanthropist Frederic Mocatta. The parish was united with that of Holy Trinity, Minories when it closed in 1899. St Botolph's inherited from that church a preserved head, reputed to be that of
Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 3rd Marquess of Dorset (17 January 151723 February 1554), was an English courtier and nobleman of the Tudor period. He was the father of Lady Jane Grey, known as "the Nine Days' Queen". Origins He was born on ...
, who had been executed for treason by Queen Mary I in 1554. During an archaeological investigation of the crypt in 1990, a preserved head, reputed to be Grey's, was rediscovered and buried in the churchyard.


Twentieth century

The church was severely bombed at intervals during
the Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...
in the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. The church was designated a Grade I
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...
on 4 January 1950. Following its restoration by Rodney Tatchell, the church was much damaged by an unexplained fire in 1965, necessitating further restoration. St Botolph's was rehallowed on 8 November 1966 by the
Bishop of London A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
, in the presence of
Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was th ...
and Sir Robert Bellinger, the
Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...
, who attended in state. In the early 1970s, the crypt of the church served as a homeless shelter at night and by day a youth club for Asian boys.


Organ

The organ by
Renatus Harris Renatus Harris (c. 1652 - 1724) was an English master organ maker in England in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. During the period of the Commonwealth, in the mid-seventeenth century, Puritans controlled the country and or ...
was built in the early 18th century. It has undergone a historical restoration by the organ builders
Goetze and Gwynn Goetze and Gwynn is an organ builder in England which has a specialism in restoring pre-Victorian British organs. Company Dominic Gwynn started organ building with Hendrik ten Bruggencate in Northampton in 1976, before going into partnership wit ...
, and been returned to its 1744 specification using many of the original components. The organ has been described as the oldest church organ in the United Kingdom. Although there are older pipes and cases, this is the oldest collection of pipes in their original positions on their original wind chests.http://www.goetzegwynn.co.uk/restored/aldgate.shtml Restorers website Because of its historic importance, the organ was filmed and recorded for the documentary ''
The Elusive English Organ Daniel Moult (born 1973) is a concert organist, educator and animateur, ensemble player and presenter of films about music. Education Daniel Moult was born in Manchester. He attended Manchester Grammar School and St John's College, Oxford, wh ...
''. Donated by Thomas Whiting in 1676, it was built between 1702 and 1704. It was enhanced for the new church (the current building) by Harris' son-in-law, John Byfield, in 1740. The organ was considerably enlarged several times in the 19th century and again rebuilt by Mander Organs in the 1960s. The decision to restore the instrument was taken by St Botolph’s in 2002 after which a fundraising campaign was launched. The restoration, which took nine months, was carried out under the consultancy of Ian Bell and the workshops of Goetze and Gwynn in
Welbeck Welbeck is a village in Nottinghamshire, England, slightly to the south-west of Worksop. The village population is included in the civil parish of Holbeck. Welbeck became a coal-mining centre in 1912 and has a famous stately home, Welbeck Ab ...
, Nottinghamshire. The instrument was reinstalled in May 2006.


Notable parishioners

*
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel '' Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its ...
was married in the church in 1683 *
Thomas Bray Thomas Bray (1656 or 165815 February 1730) was an English clergyman and abolitionist who helped formally establish the Church of England in Maryland, as well as the Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge and Society for the Propa ...
, founder of
SPCK The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) is a UK-based Christian charity. Founded in 1698 by Thomas Bray, it has worked for over 300 years to increase awareness of the Christian faith in the UK and across the world. The SPCK is th ...
, was rector from 1706 to 1730 * Adam Derkinderen, d. 1572, son of the 16th-century publisher of the Bible, Lenaert Der Kinderen


Other burials

*
Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy de Darcy Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy of Darcy or of Temple Hurst, ( 1467 – 30 June 1537) was an English nobleman, the only son, and heir, of Sir William Darcy (1443 – 30 May 1488) and his wife, Euphemia Langton, the daughter of Sir John Langton. Dar ...


References


External links


Church website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Botolphs, Aldgate Churches completed in 1744 Church of England church buildings in the City of London Grade I listed churches in the City of London 12th-century church buildings in England Rebuilt churches in the United Kingdom 18th-century Church of England church buildings
Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...
Diocese of London