Monuments & Ruins

Not every statue in London. The ones worth crossing the road for: Roman wall, medieval ruins, and the monuments that earn a detour.

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Tower of St Mary Somerset

A Wren tower left standing on Upper Thames Street after the church was taken down around it.

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Photo by Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Fourteen churches in the pre-Fire City were dedicated to the Virgin and six were rebuilt after 1666; this was one of them. Where Somerset comes from is not settled - either Ralph de Somery, who turns up in records at the right moment, or Summer's Hithe, a haven on a Thames that came a good deal closer to the door than it does now. In 1370 the mayor ordered the Brabant weavers to do their hiring in this churchyard, and the Flemish weavers to do theirs at a safe distance at St Laurence Pountney, the two communities having fallen out. The body of the church was demolished in 1871 and only the tower was spared.

Where
Upper Thames Street, EC4V
Nearest station
Mansion House · 2 min walk

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Data is compiled from public sources including OpenStreetMap, under the ODbL. Hours change often, so check before making a journey.

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