Sir Christopher Wren was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician- physicist. [1] He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including what is regarded as his masterpiece, St Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710. [2]
According to Kerry Downes, "there is considerable evidence that Wren," by the end of the 17th century, "delegated particular projects to [Nicholas] Hawksmoor." The nature and extent of Wren's involvement in the designs his office produced towards the end of his career is debated by scholars. [3]
Image | Name | Location | Date | Listing | Comment | Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
St Olave Old Jewry | Ironmonger Lane, Walbrook, City of London | 1670–79 | Grade I (1950) | Body of the church was demolished in 1887. Tower is part of an office building. | 51°30′52.15″N 0°5′28.70″W / 51.5144861°N 0.0913056°W | |
Christ Church Greyfriars | Newgate Street, Farringdon Within, City of London | 1677–91 | Grade I (1950) | Destroyed in the Blitz. The ruins are a public garden; the tower is a private residence for Jimmy | 51°30′56.94″N 0°5′56.93″W / 51.5158167°N 0.0991472°W | |
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St Augustine Watling Street | Watling Street, Bread Street Ward, City of London | 1680–87 | Grade I (1950) | Destroyed in the Blitz. Tower part of St Paul's Cathedral Choir School | 51°30′48.52″N 00°05′49.00″W / 51.5134778°N 0.0969444°W |
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St Alban's, Wood Street | Wood Street, Bassishaw, City of London | 1682–87 | Grade II (1950) | Destroyed in the Blitz. The tower is a private dwelling | 51°30′59.69″N 0°5′38.95″W / 51.5165806°N 0.0941528°W |
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St Mary Somerset | Upper Thames Street, Queenhithe, City of London | 1686–94 | Grade I (1950) | Body of the church demolished in 1871. Tower surrounded by small garden | 51°30′40.92″N 0°5′48.80″W / 51.5113667°N 0.0968889°W |
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St Dunstan-in-the-East | St Dunstan's Hill, Billingsgate, City of London | 1698 | Grade I (1950) | Rebuilt in 1817–21, but destroyed in the Blitz. Ruins are a public garden | 51°30′34.82″N 0°4′57.80″W / 51.5096722°N 0.0827222°W |
Image | Name | Location | Designed | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Early scheme for rebuilding Whitehall Palace [20] | 1660s | |||
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Remodelling of Old St Paul's Cathedral | St Paul's Churchyard, Castle Baynard, City of London | 1666 | Old St Paul's Cathedral was severely damaged by the Great Fire of London and Wren's proposed additions were never realized. Wren ultimately designed its replacement. |
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London Plan | London | 1666 | Wren's masterplan for the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire [21] |
Commencement (Senate) House | University of Cambridge, Cambridge | c. 1675 | ||
Arundel House | St James's, City of Westminster | c. 1676 | Building executed to designs likely supplied by Edward Pearce. | |
Rebuilding of Royal Mews [22] | Charing Cross, City of Westminster | c. 1676 | ||
Mausoleum for Charles I | Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire | 1678 | Not financed [23] [24] | |
Proposal for renovation of Ingestre Hall | Ingestre, Staffordshire | c. 1684-85 | ||
Church | Lincoln's Inn Fields, Holborn and Covent Garden | c. 1695–96 | ||
Post-fire scheme for rebuilding the Palace of Whitehall | Palace of Whitehall, City of Westminster | 1698 | ||
Renovation of Upper Ward [25] | Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire | 1698 | ||
College Bridge | St John's College, Cambridge | c. 1698 | Though ultimately executed to a design by Grumbold, [26] the bridge is today known as the Wren Bridge | |
Cottonian Library [19] | Old Palace of Westminster, City of Westminster | 1703 | ||
St Mary le Strand | Strand, City of Westminster | 1713 | Ultimately executed to the design of James Gibbs | |
Hyde Park Barracks [27] | Hyde Park | 1713 |
A number of structure have, without supporting documentary evidence, been attributed to Christopher Wren. Speaking of this tendency, biographer Adrian Tinniswood has written that "If Wren was connected with a building, however remotely, it was slotted into the rapidly expanding canon." [28]
Image | Name | Location | Date | Listing | Legitimacy | Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Second Theatre Royal, Drury Lane [29] | Covent Garden, London | 1674 | Attribution challenged by some contemporary scholars; [30] it is unknown how closely the attributed design was followed. [29] | ||
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Church of St Mary the Virgin | Ingestre, Stafford, Staffordshire | 1676 | 52°49′11″N 2°02′10″W / 52.81974°N 2.03602°W | ||
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Royal Hospital Kilmainham | Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland | 1679–87 | Now attributed to William Robinson. [31] | 53°20′34″N 6°18′00″W / 53.34290°N 6.30003°W | |
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Tring Park Mansion | Tring, Hertfordshire | 1682–84 | Grade II* (1981) | Though "probably [designed] by Wren," the structure was substantially altered in the late 19th century. [32] | 51°47′30″N 0°39′27″W / 51.79176°N 0.65751°W |
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Boone's Chapel | Blackheath, London | 1683 | Grade I (1954) | 51°27′31″N 0°00′10″E / 51.4587°N 0.0029°E | |
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Fawley Court | Fawley, Buckinghamshire | 1684 | Grade I (1952) | 51°33′06″N 0°53′52″W / 51.5516°N 0.8978°W | |
Upper School, Eton College | Berkshire | 1689–91 | Destroyed and since rebuilt [33] | |||
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Morden College | Blackheath, London | 1695 | Grade I (1951) | 51°28′10″N 0°01′09″E / 51.4695°N 0.0192°E | |
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Wren Building | College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia, United States | 1700 | National Historic Landmark | Claimed to be a Wren building as early as 1724. Wren's connection is doubtful. | 37°16′15″N 76°42′32″W / 37.27082°N 76.70892°W |
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Winslow Hall | Winslow, Buckinghamshire | 1700 | Grade I (1959) | The structure's architect has been debated but it "is likely to have been" Wren. [34] | 51°56′29″N 0°52′48″W / 51.9415°N 0.88°W |
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Orangery, Kensington Palace | Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London | 1704–1706 | Grade I (1969) | "designed ostensibly by Wren, but more likely the work of Hawksmoor and (perhaps) Vanbrugh" [28] | 51°30′24″N 0°11′16″W / 51.50656°N 0.18773°W |
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All Saints' Church, Isleworth | Isleworth, London Borough of Hounslow | 1705–06 | Grade II* (1951) | According to tradition, Wren's plans were significantly altered due to financial constraints. [35] | 51°28′18″N 0°19′11″W / 51.4717°N 0.3198°W |
Sir Christopher Wren was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician- physicist. [1] He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including what is regarded as his masterpiece, St Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710. [2]
According to Kerry Downes, "there is considerable evidence that Wren," by the end of the 17th century, "delegated particular projects to [Nicholas] Hawksmoor." The nature and extent of Wren's involvement in the designs his office produced towards the end of his career is debated by scholars. [3]
Image | Name | Location | Date | Listing | Comment | Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
St Olave Old Jewry | Ironmonger Lane, Walbrook, City of London | 1670–79 | Grade I (1950) | Body of the church was demolished in 1887. Tower is part of an office building. | 51°30′52.15″N 0°5′28.70″W / 51.5144861°N 0.0913056°W | |
Christ Church Greyfriars | Newgate Street, Farringdon Within, City of London | 1677–91 | Grade I (1950) | Destroyed in the Blitz. The ruins are a public garden; the tower is a private residence for Jimmy | 51°30′56.94″N 0°5′56.93″W / 51.5158167°N 0.0991472°W | |
![]() |
St Augustine Watling Street | Watling Street, Bread Street Ward, City of London | 1680–87 | Grade I (1950) | Destroyed in the Blitz. Tower part of St Paul's Cathedral Choir School | 51°30′48.52″N 00°05′49.00″W / 51.5134778°N 0.0969444°W |
![]() |
St Alban's, Wood Street | Wood Street, Bassishaw, City of London | 1682–87 | Grade II (1950) | Destroyed in the Blitz. The tower is a private dwelling | 51°30′59.69″N 0°5′38.95″W / 51.5165806°N 0.0941528°W |
![]() |
St Mary Somerset | Upper Thames Street, Queenhithe, City of London | 1686–94 | Grade I (1950) | Body of the church demolished in 1871. Tower surrounded by small garden | 51°30′40.92″N 0°5′48.80″W / 51.5113667°N 0.0968889°W |
![]() |
St Dunstan-in-the-East | St Dunstan's Hill, Billingsgate, City of London | 1698 | Grade I (1950) | Rebuilt in 1817–21, but destroyed in the Blitz. Ruins are a public garden | 51°30′34.82″N 0°4′57.80″W / 51.5096722°N 0.0827222°W |
Image | Name | Location | Designed | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Early scheme for rebuilding Whitehall Palace [20] | 1660s | |||
![]() |
Remodelling of Old St Paul's Cathedral | St Paul's Churchyard, Castle Baynard, City of London | 1666 | Old St Paul's Cathedral was severely damaged by the Great Fire of London and Wren's proposed additions were never realized. Wren ultimately designed its replacement. |
![]() |
London Plan | London | 1666 | Wren's masterplan for the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire [21] |
Commencement (Senate) House | University of Cambridge, Cambridge | c. 1675 | ||
Arundel House | St James's, City of Westminster | c. 1676 | Building executed to designs likely supplied by Edward Pearce. | |
Rebuilding of Royal Mews [22] | Charing Cross, City of Westminster | c. 1676 | ||
Mausoleum for Charles I | Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire | 1678 | Not financed [23] [24] | |
Proposal for renovation of Ingestre Hall | Ingestre, Staffordshire | c. 1684-85 | ||
Church | Lincoln's Inn Fields, Holborn and Covent Garden | c. 1695–96 | ||
Post-fire scheme for rebuilding the Palace of Whitehall | Palace of Whitehall, City of Westminster | 1698 | ||
Renovation of Upper Ward [25] | Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire | 1698 | ||
College Bridge | St John's College, Cambridge | c. 1698 | Though ultimately executed to a design by Grumbold, [26] the bridge is today known as the Wren Bridge | |
Cottonian Library [19] | Old Palace of Westminster, City of Westminster | 1703 | ||
St Mary le Strand | Strand, City of Westminster | 1713 | Ultimately executed to the design of James Gibbs | |
Hyde Park Barracks [27] | Hyde Park | 1713 |
A number of structure have, without supporting documentary evidence, been attributed to Christopher Wren. Speaking of this tendency, biographer Adrian Tinniswood has written that "If Wren was connected with a building, however remotely, it was slotted into the rapidly expanding canon." [28]
Image | Name | Location | Date | Listing | Legitimacy | Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
Second Theatre Royal, Drury Lane [29] | Covent Garden, London | 1674 | Attribution challenged by some contemporary scholars; [30] it is unknown how closely the attributed design was followed. [29] | ||
![]() |
Church of St Mary the Virgin | Ingestre, Stafford, Staffordshire | 1676 | 52°49′11″N 2°02′10″W / 52.81974°N 2.03602°W | ||
![]() |
Royal Hospital Kilmainham | Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland | 1679–87 | Now attributed to William Robinson. [31] | 53°20′34″N 6°18′00″W / 53.34290°N 6.30003°W | |
![]() |
Tring Park Mansion | Tring, Hertfordshire | 1682–84 | Grade II* (1981) | Though "probably [designed] by Wren," the structure was substantially altered in the late 19th century. [32] | 51°47′30″N 0°39′27″W / 51.79176°N 0.65751°W |
![]() |
Boone's Chapel | Blackheath, London | 1683 | Grade I (1954) | 51°27′31″N 0°00′10″E / 51.4587°N 0.0029°E | |
![]() |
Fawley Court | Fawley, Buckinghamshire | 1684 | Grade I (1952) | 51°33′06″N 0°53′52″W / 51.5516°N 0.8978°W | |
Upper School, Eton College | Berkshire | 1689–91 | Destroyed and since rebuilt [33] | |||
![]() |
Morden College | Blackheath, London | 1695 | Grade I (1951) | 51°28′10″N 0°01′09″E / 51.4695°N 0.0192°E | |
![]() |
Wren Building | College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia, United States | 1700 | National Historic Landmark | Claimed to be a Wren building as early as 1724. Wren's connection is doubtful. | 37°16′15″N 76°42′32″W / 37.27082°N 76.70892°W |
![]() |
Winslow Hall | Winslow, Buckinghamshire | 1700 | Grade I (1959) | The structure's architect has been debated but it "is likely to have been" Wren. [34] | 51°56′29″N 0°52′48″W / 51.9415°N 0.88°W |
![]() |
Orangery, Kensington Palace | Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London | 1704–1706 | Grade I (1969) | "designed ostensibly by Wren, but more likely the work of Hawksmoor and (perhaps) Vanbrugh" [28] | 51°30′24″N 0°11′16″W / 51.50656°N 0.18773°W |
![]() |
All Saints' Church, Isleworth | Isleworth, London Borough of Hounslow | 1705–06 | Grade II* (1951) | According to tradition, Wren's plans were significantly altered due to financial constraints. [35] | 51°28′18″N 0°19′11″W / 51.4717°N 0.3198°W |