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St Bartholomew the Less

Address: St Bartholomew's Hospital, 57A W Smithfield, London EC1A 9DS
Telephone: 020 7600 0440
Usual opening times: Daily: 7am to 8pm or later
Description: St Bartholomew the Less was an Anglican parish in the City of London and the church of St Bartholomew's Hospital within the ancient hospital precincts. Since 1 June 2015 it has been a chapel of ease in the Parish of Great St Bartholomew, formed out of its parish and that of its neighbour St Bartholomew the Great.
The present establishment is the latest in a series of churches and chapels associated with the hospital over the past 800 years. Its earliest predecessor, known as the Chapel of the Holy Cross established in 1123, moved to the present site in 1184. Henry VIII established it as a parish church in 1547, the parish being the St Barts Hospital site. The entrance, original tower and vestry of the present building are 15th century in origin. The octagonal worship space was originally designed by George Dance the Younger in 1789-91, adapted by Thomas Hardwick in 1823-25 and embellished in 1862-63 by P.C. Hardwick. After suffering bomb damage in the Second World War the repaired church was re-opened in 1957.

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