Temple Church of St Mary, Temple, London EC4, UK

            The Temple Church, one of England's three surviving round Norman churches, was built in 1185 for the Knights Templar and consecrated by Heraclius, the Crusader Patriarch of Jerusalem, possibly in the presence of Henry II.  No wonder certain conspiracy theorists have been drawn to its colourful history.

The original round nave, ~17 m in diameter, was supplemented by a more conventionally rectangular chancel, viewpoint of this photo, in 1240.  The Gothic-Romanesque church was was renovated Sir Christopher Wren, despite having been undamaged by the Great Fire in 1666, then further renovated in 1841.
Unfortunately, the roof and all wooden parts, including the organ and Victorian renovations, were destroyed by incendary bombs a century later, on 10 May, 1941; entirely coincidentally, I'm uploading these photos on the 70th anniversary.

The night of 10/11 May 1941 saw the last major air raid of the London Blitz, with ~800 t of bombs causing ~2,000 fires and damaging or destroying some of the city's most iconic buildings: Westminster Hall in the Houses of Parliament, Old Bailey, Lambeth Palace and the British Museum were amongst those damaged, and the nearby Church of St. Clement Danes was also gutted by fire.

The current appearence, therefore, is a relatively recent restoration, rededicated by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1958; a measure of the church's significance to London is that the Queen, Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen Mother attended the ceremony.

It's a wonderful, airy space, partly the result of having been built in pale Caen stone, a limestone also seen in Canterbury Cathedral.

Note the famous knights' effigy tombs in the floor.

Taken in: United Kingdom / England / London / Lincolns Inn (show map)

Taken on: September 2, 2009

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temple church

temple

ec4

ec4y

city of london

inner temple lane

mary

arch

effigy

tomb

norman

gothic

romanesque

west

door

rose

stained glass

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purbeck

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Sets appears in: • London: Temple Church

Groups appears in: • Churches - Please read the rules before posting • Church Interiors more » • London: The Square Mile • London buildings • Architectural Interiors • Historic Buildings (Great Britain & Ireland) • Places of Worship in London • Churches and Cathedrals of the British Isles • Day Trips to London • London! • London - The big Smoke • MADE IN ENGLAND « less

Camera: Canon EOS 450D, f/3.5, 1/30 sec, 18mm, ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 450D
Aperture:	f/3.5
Exposure Time:	0.033 sec (1/30)
Focal Length:	18mm
ISO:	400
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS4 Windows
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