Talk:City of London and Middlesex Towns and Villages W
Wapping
Following war damage, only the tower and part of the outside walls now remain, it has been rebiult as private dwellings. The churchyard opposite survives as a public open space with some grabestones in situ and others lining the boundary wall.
Westminster
The building in Bridcage Walk was opened in 1963 and replaces that which was destroyed on Sunday 18th June 1944 during morning service with the loss of 121 civilian and military lives. The chapel is open daily, and the Guards' Museum is opposite.
The plaque outside reads as follows: “This Church was founded in 1693 by Huguenot refugees who fled from France at the time of the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. In 1776 the chapel passed into the hands of the Church of England. The Rev. Augustus III Toplady author of “Rock of Ages” was one of its ministers. The Chapel passed into the hands of the Congregationalists in 1787. Adjoining the chapel was Sir Isaac Newton’s house which was built in 1710 and condemned in 1913. Mrs Jemima Luke, author of the beloved hymn “I think when I read that sweet story of old” was a teacher in the Sunday School. A copy of the hymn in her own handwriting is in possession of the church.”
The West Street chapel was built in 1700 and leased by the Methodists from 1743-1798, Charles Wesley preached there frequently.
Westminster, St James
The church is known a s St James Piccadilly or St James Westminster and is unlocked during the day. Concerts and recitals take place as well as services. Photographs of the font and altar by Grinling Gibbons can be obtained from Jill on the A272.
A Catholic chapel belonging to the Portuguese embassy existed here in the early 18th century until the Bavarian Embassy took over the premises in 1747. The chapel was seriously damaged by fire in the Gordon Riots of 1780, the present chapel opening in 1790. It became the parish church in 1854 with the title "Church of the Assumption" but continued to be known as the Bavarian Chapel until the early 20th century.
