Holy Trinity the Less

Holy Trinity the Less was a parish church in Knightrider Street in the City of London, destroyed in the Great Fire of London.[1] Following the fire the site was used for a Lutheran church, which was eventually demolished in 1871 to make way for Mansion House underground station.

Holy Trinity the Less
Current photo of site
Location	London
Country	United Kingdom
Denomination	Anglican
History
Founded	11th century
Architecture
Demolished	1666

Location

The church stood in Queenhithe ward, towards the eastern end of Knightrider Street, on the south side.[2]

History

The church was medieval in origin, and Stow traced its roots back to 1266.[3] By 1606, it had fallen into a ruinous state and had to be propped up. It was subsequently demolished and rebuilt[4] at the expense of the Merchant Taylor's and Vintner's Companies.[5] The patronage of the church belonged to the Prior and convent of St Mary Overie, Southwark, until the Dissolution, after which it passed to the Crown and then to the dean and chapter of Canterbury Cathedral.[2]

Along with most of the other parish churches in the City, it was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. Four years later, a Rebuilding Act was passed and a committee set up under Sir Christopher Wren to decide which ones should be rebuilt.[6] Holy Trinity the Less was not among the 51 chosen.[7] Instead the parish was united with that of St Michael Queenhithe.[8]

The site of the burnt-out Anglican church was used for a German Lutheran church, which opened in 1673. It survived until 1871 when it was closed and demolished to make way for the Mansion House underground station [9] The churchyard was cleared in 1872 to make room for the station.[10]

References

1. John Rogers was Rector here from 1532 to 1534 > "The London Encyclopaedia" Hibbert,C;Weinreb,D;Keay,J: London, Pan Macmillan, 1983 (rev 1993,2008) ISBN 978-1-4050-4924-5
2. Newcourt, Richard (1708). "Trinity the Less, Rectory". Repetorium Ecclesiasticum Parochiale Londinense. London. p. 555.
3. Stow, John A Survey of London: Originally 1598- this edn, London, A. Fullarton & Co, 1890
4. White, J.G. (1901). The Churches and Chapels of Old London. London. pp. 59–60.
5. "HOLY TRINITY THE LESS: CITY OF LONDON". AIM25. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
6. Whinney, Margaret (1971). Wren. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-20112-9.
7. Betjeman, John (1967). The City of London Churches. Andover: Pitkin. ISBN 0-85372-565-9.
8. A separate churchwarden was appointed for former Holy Trinity worshippers Church of England, Parish of St. Michael Queenhithe. - Rough registers of baptisms, marriages and burials, 1694. - M0013822CL. - M0003091CL cited in "City of London Parish Registers Guide 4" Hallows, A.(Ed) : London, Guildhall Library Research, 1974 ISBN 0-900422-30-0
9. "The history of Lutherans in Britain". Lutheran Council of Great Britain. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
10. "Church of Holy Trinity the Less". Find-A-Grave.

51°30′40″N 0°5′41″W

See also