All Hallows by the Tower

All Hallows by the Tower is the oldest church in the City of London, founded in 675 AD by Barking Abbey three centuries before the neighboring Tower of London was built. Saved from the Great Fire of London in 1666 through controlled demolitions, the church contains a second-century Roman pavement in its crypt. The church served as a temporary burial site for execution victims including Bishop John Fisher in 1535 and hosted William Penn's baptism in 1644.

London Β· from the walk β€œSecret London: Hidden Alleys, Ancient Stones & Forgotten Stories” Β· audio ~3 min Β· Generated

All Hallows by the Tower, Byward Street, London EC3R 5BJ

How was All Hallows by the Tower saved from the Great Fire of London?

You're standing before a building that has witnessed nearly every chapter of London's story. All Hallows by the Tower is the oldest church in the City of London, founded by the Abbey of Barking in six seventy-five AD... three Hundred years before the Tower of London next door even existed.......... But this ground is far older than the church itself. Descend into the crypt beneath, and you'll find a second-century Roman pavement, discovered in nineteen twenty-six β€” the tessellated floor of a domestic house from the late second century. Imagine that. Nearly two thousand years ago, a Roman family walked across that very floor... and it's still here, beneath your feet.......... Now, here's a detail most people miss. That Roman pavement is cut across by the foundation wall of the original Saxon church β€” you can literally See one era slicing through another. Layers of London, stacked like pages in a book.......... And speaking of hidden things... in nineteen forty, during the Blitz, bomb damage revealed an archway built of reused Roman tiles and stonework, hidden within the medieval walls. A Saxon arch, possibly from the seventh century, concealed for a Thousand years... and it took a German bomb to set it free.......... The church's proximity to the Tower of London meant it acquired some grim connections. The beheaded victims of Tower executions were sent here for temporary burial β€” including Thomas More, Bishop John Fisher, and Archbishop Laud. When Cardinal John Fisher was beheaded by order of Henry the Eighth in fifteen thirty-five, his body was thrown naked into a rough grave in the churchyard.......... But the story I love most happened on September second, sixteen sixty-six. The Great Fire of London started in Pudding Lane, just a few hundred yards away. Admiral Penn β€” William Penn's father β€” along with his friend Samuel Pepys, watched London burn from the tower of this church. Pepys described it as "the saddest sight of desolation." And then Admiral Penn Saved this church β€” he had his men from a nearby naval yard blow up the surrounding buildings to create firebreaks! Controlled demolition... in sixteen sixty-six!......... William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, was baptised here in sixteen forty-four, and John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, was married here in seventeen ninety-seven.......... And one more treasure before you go inside. An unusual relic in the crypt is the original crow's nest from Ernest Shackleton's ship, the Quest β€” the vessel that took him on his final voyage to South Georgia, where he died in January nineteen twenty-two. How it ended up here... nobody knows for certain.......... This is a place where Roman, Saxon, medieval, and modern London all exist in the same space. Step inside... and walk through two thousand years.

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