St. Brides Church, Fleet Street by PhotoThirteen (2008)

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Description The parents of Virginia Dare, the first child born to English emigrants to North Carolina in 1587, were married at the church.One hundred girls and boys from the Bridewell Hospital orphanage were sent to Virginia in 1619.The building's most recent incarnation was designed by Sir Christopher Wren in 1672 on Fleet Street in the City of London. Due to its location on Fleet Street it has a long association with journalists and newspapers. The church is a distinctive sight on London's skyline and is clearly visible from a number of locations. It is the 2nd tallest of all Wren's churches, with only St Paul's itself having a higher pinnacle. The tiered spire is said to have been the inspiration for the design of modern tiered wedding cakes.The present St Bride's is at least the seventh church to have stood on the site. Traditionally it was founded by St Bridget in the sixth century. Whether or not she founded it personally, the remnants of the first church appear to have significant similarities to a church of the same date in Kildare, Ireland. The Norman church, built in the 11th century, was of both religious and secular significance; in 1210 King John held a parliament there. It was replaced by a larger church in the 15th century, but this burned down in the Great Fire of London in 1666. It was replaced by Wren with one of his largest and most expensive works, taking seven years to build.The famous spire was added later, in 1701-1703. It originally measured 234 ft but lost its upper eight feet to a lightning strike in 1764. The design utilises four octagonal stages of diminishing height capped with an obelisk which terminates in a ball and vane.The church was gutted by fire-bombs dropped by the Luftwaffe during the London Blitz of the Second World War, on the night of 29 December 1940, dubbed the 'Second Great Fire of London'. It was rebuilt at the expense of newspaper proprietors and journalists.

PhotoThirteen
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