St Vedast Foster Lane

St Vedast Foster Lane stands in Foster Lane, a narrow street in the City of London. The church is dedicated to St Vedast, a French saint whose cult reached England through Augustinian clergy. Its history goes back to before 1308, when the first church was founded on the site. The poet Robert Herrick was baptised here in 1591. After the Great Fire of 1666, the church was rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren between 1670 and 1673, using old walls and some medieval fabric. The church’s three-tier spire, added between 1709 and 1712, is one of the most baroque in the City. It was built by Edward Strong the Younger, a friend of Wren. During the London Blitz of 1940 and 1941, the church was gutted by firebombs. Restoration began in 1953 under Stephen Dykes Bower, who reshaped the interior in a collegiate chapel style. He designed a plaster ceiling with gold and varnished aluminium leaf, and incorporated fittings from other destroyed City churches. Visitors find a small secluded courtyard beside the church, a ring of six bells cast in 1960, and fine stained glass windows showing scenes from the life of St Vedast. The organ, originally built in 1731, was moved here in 1959 after passing through several demolished churches. A parish room and a Georgian-style rectory stand nearby, the rectory containing a mural by Hans Feibusch and a stone head of Canon Charles B. Mortlock by Jacob Epstein.