St Anne's Church, Limehouse - London

Keith H.

One of Nicholas Hawksmoor's 6 London Churches & one of the 12 London Churches actually built in response to Queen Anne's decree to buid 50 churches in London to serve the burgeoning populations & also , quite likely , to counteract growing religious dissension.
I visited on a weekday & coveniently I chose to go whilst there was a photographic exhibition taking place , ensuring that I got to see the interior of the church.
Of course , there is a lot of fictitious speculation about Hawksmoor concerning psychogeography & his churches & you can indulge in that by admiring the white pyramid sitting hard by a fine London Plane in the churchyard. It is inscribed somewhat enigmatically , with " The Wisdom of Solomon ".
Apparently , there was or was intended to be another one.
The Churchyard is well maintained with scattered gravestones & tombs - look out for an upside down headstone. Also an impressive war memorial & lines of headstones against the brick wall in the car park.
Queen Anne decreed that St. Anne's was to be build as near to the River Thames as possible so as to serve as a registry for Sea Captains to record important events.
The golden ball is visible from the river & as such serves as a Trinity House marker.
This led to some planned housing blocks in the area being required to reduce their height in order that the ball remains unobscured.
In addition to this , St. Anne's is permitted to fly the second most important flag in The Royal Navy , The White Ensign.
The clock on the Church Tower is the highest in London.
Inside , the Church is in need of some work , as evinced when you examine the walls & ceiling but nonetheless it is very impressive.
The wooden galleries are accessed via a staircase & up here you can take a close look at the lovely organ which won first prize at The Great Exhibition of 1851 & replaced the original which was destroyed along with the interior of the church by a fire in 1850.
A stained glass window behind the altar is currently absent for restoration.

Joe S.

Just off the busy Limehouse Road, lies the elegant and spectacular St Anne's Church, designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor and completed in 1727. I think there were several churches with this name built on honour of the then Queen Anne.

It really is a stunningly beautiful design and flies the White Ensign on top of its flagpole. This is in recognition of the registry which sea captains used to record significant events at sea. Atop the flagpole, you can see a golden ball - this was used as a navigational mark on Trinity maps.

In the church yard, there is a mysterious pyramid which bears an inscription "The Wisdom of Solomon". Hawksmoor put it there though no one seems to fathom its meaning.

The church is a quiet haven and is well kept and also contains a war memorial with a bronze statue of Christ.

I didn't manage to enter the church but it does open! However, I enjoyed my time there and from there, you can stroll around the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames.

Desyana S.

Beautiful church.
A bit cold thou, but normal for a big church like this.
Only a few car parks are available. Came here for the baptism ceremony of my friend's son.

John R.

One of Hawksmoor’s wonderful churches in Tower Hamlets. Almost hidden amongst mature London plane trees it’s a cracker. Hoping to secure Heritage Lottery funding to refurbish the space.

Jason M.

Terrible experience here!
Travelled from far to come to see the Hawksmoor exhibition, as it was advertised as being opening from 9am-5pm.

Showed up at 1pm to find it was closed, called the telephone number and informed it would be open at 3pm...no one showed up, absolutely chilled to the bones having waited 2 hrs in the freezing cold.

Is it no wonder people are turning away from the church when they don't even have the basic courtesy of telling the truth. Absolutely bloody closing and shivering.

Bohdan S.

I am not a historian, but this is a very beautiful place. Being there... you seem to forget about everything. And you plunge into the world ... that of the Middle Ages, where peace and eternity of stone graves reign.

jeff B.

Grade I Listed, much restored, attributed to Hawksmoor, crowned with a massive and distinctive baroque lantern tower supporting an historical flagpole/weather vane, primitive navigational aid and tower clock aligned to Greenwich.
Unusually and by special dispensation the “White Ensign” continually flown here over the surrounding graveyard/garden studded with monuments, tombstones and a war memorial.
The western entrance approached through St.Anne’s Passage shows the design to best advantage.
An active community.

john C.

Spotted this from Commercial Road and thought it was a Hawksmoor and, reader? It was! Lovely interior in desperate need of repair and revitalisation. Very informative German/Austrian lady gave us an update and a bit of history. Great surprise!