Great St Helen's of Bishopsgate

Great St Helen's of Bishopsgate, originally uploaded by danellemac.

St Helen's Bishopsgate dates from 1204, when it was part of a priory for Benedictine nuns. It is unusual in that it was designed around two parallel naves, which give it a wide interior. Inside are many fifteenth and seventeenth century funerary monuments, including that of Sir Andrew Judd (d.1558), Sir William Pickering (d.1574) and Sir John Crosby (d.1475).

It was the parish church of William Shakespeare when he lived in the area in the 1590s. It is one of only a few City churches to survive both the Great Fire of London of 1666 and The Blitz during World War II.

In 1992 and 1993, St Helen's was badly damaged by two IRA bombs that were set off nearby.