All Hallows-by-the-Tower, Saxon church in City of London, England
All Hallows-by-the-Tower is a church in the City of London, close to the Tower of London. The building shows a mix of Anglo-Saxon masonry, medieval additions, and postwar rebuilding, with a seventh-century round arch in the nave and Roman bricks in the crypt.
The building was founded in 675 and remained intact during the Great Fire of 1666 because Admiral William Penn had nearby buildings torn down. During World War II the church suffered heavy bomb damage, and archaeologists discovered Saxon and Roman remains beneath the floor during the clearance work.
The name points to its position next to the Tower of London, whose shadow falls across the churchyard. Inside, visitors find a bronze relief remembering William Penn and his baptism here in 1644, while one corner honors Samuel Pepys, who watched the Great Fire from the bell tower.
The church opens Monday to Friday between 8 and 18, and weekends from 10 to 17, near Tower Hill underground station. Going down into the crypt requires stairs without a lift, and lighting below is dim, so allow time for your eyes to adjust.
Beneath the floor lie fragments of Roman paving that archaeologists uncovered during postwar rebuilding. A small piece of cloth recovered during excavations comes from a Saxon burial and ranks among the oldest textile remains in London.
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