St Peter, Paul's Wharf

St Peter, Paul’s Wharf was a City of London church first recorded in the 12th century. It stood north of Upper Thames Street in Queenhithe Ward, a riverside district where boats once unloaded goods. The parish kept to the Book of Common Prayer even during the Civil War, despite official changes. Its congregation resisted pressure to abandon traditional worship. The Great Fire of 1666 swept through the City and left the church in ruins. Sir Christopher Wren’s rebuilding committee chose fifty-one churches to restore, but St Peter, Paul’s Wharf was not among them. After the fire the parish merged with the nearby church of St Benet Paul’s Wharf. Today the site is a quiet corner beside the river, marked by a simple plaque. A narrow lane runs past where the walls once stood. The modern view shows modern buildings rising above the old wharf. The memory of the church remains only in records and the name of the ward.