Within the precinct of the hospital, at the north-west angle, stands the parochial church of St. Bartholomew the Less, founded in , by the original founder of the hospital for a chapel to it; but, at the dissolution of the priory of St. Bartholomew the Great, this was converted into a parish church for the inhabitants of the precinct of the said hospital. It is a vicarage, in the patronage of the lord mayor, aldermen, and citizens of London ; and the

This church had been previously rebuilt by the younger Dance, who fearing his fame would not be sufficiently handed down to posterity by the

matchless

Saracenic Gothic stile;

The plan is a parallellogram reduced to a square by a portion at end being taken off, which is in part occupied by a square tower, and the residue by a vestibule. The outline of the body of the church is an irregular octagon inscribed in a square.

The west front has a doorway with a pointed arch, having enriched spandrils, and surmounted by a weather cornice which rests oil small half statues of angels holding shields, and above it is a modernized pointed window, made by a mullion into lights; this portion constitutes the portion of the tower; the story has no light, and the has a pointed arched window of light in every aspect, the elevation is finished with a parapet above this story; at the south western angle of the tower is a staircase turret which rises considerably above the parapet, and is finished with a cupola. In the portion of the western front of the church, which is northward of the tower, is a modern arched window. The south side of the church has windows; the arches are pointed, the has mullion and the other mullions, crossing each other in the Chinese style in the head of the arch, the and windows alone are glazed, the others are blank. the octagon is seen above the wall, where it forms a clerestory, having pointed arches glazed as windows in of the sides; the north side of the church is uniform with the south. The east end is occupied by an angular bow window, in the domestic stile of

Elizabeth's reign. The older portions are apparently about the period of the century; the modern works are in the poorest style of

carpenter's Gothic.

The interior, though far from faultless, is in a superior style to the outside, and possesses a degree of merit which helps at once to atone for the defects of the other portion. The font is an octagon basin enriched with quatrefoils on a pillar of the same form: it is formed in composition, and situated in the vestibule beneath the organ. The central portion of the eastern window is highly ornamented with modern painted glass; it consists of lights. In the upper are effigies of the saints Bartholomew and Lazarus in the centre; in the other lights are shields in quatrefoils; inscribed on ribbons below the arms, as follows: Henry viii

Quarterly. France and England. St. Barthom.

party per pale

argent

and

sable

, a chevron counter-changed; the

four

lights below these sustain the Evangelists. St. Matthew is writing with his pen in his

left

hand. In the lower tier are the following shields, with the names as before, viz.

1st

,

gules,

two

lions passant guardant in pale, in chief

two

ducal coronets, or.

2nd

.

gules

,

three

covered cups or. on a chief

argent

, a ship on the sea, sailing, all proper, on a dexter canton

gules

, the sword and mace of the mayor of London in saltier of the

second

; on an escutcheon of pretence, the cognizance of a baronet of Ulster, being the arms of sir James Shaw, bart. president.

3

d,

or. a bend between

six

roses

gules

, being the arms of J. C. Warner, esq.

4th

,

gules

, on a bend

or.

three

leopards faces

sable

, being the arms of Rowland Stephenson, esq. treasurer. The colours of the whole are glaring; the reds have the hue of brick dust, and the purples, even now, are changing colour; the heraldry affords a striking contrast to the old shields next to be described, which are placed in the

four

windows of the clerestory, viz.

1

. The royal arms, crest, and supporters, poorly executed.

2

. The hospital, beneath is the date of

1619

.

3

. The city with the same date; the diapering of these shields very fine.

4th

.

Or.

a fesse checky,

argent

and

azure

, surmounted by a bend engrailed

gules.

Crest on a wreath, a pelican in her nest feeding her young

argent.

The sword, mace, and cap of dignity accompany these arms, which belong to sir William Stewart, lord mayor A. D.

1722

. In the west window the following arms,

azure

, a saltier

argent

on a chief

gules

,

three

mullets of the

second.

Crest, on a wreath, a blackmoor's head couped

proper

, inscribed

The ancient monuments have been preserved; the most interesting is a handsome composition consisting of a flat pointed arch in relief, below the western window it is surmounted with a cornice of strawberry leaves, and ornamented with pannels and tracery; as the inscription was gone, it has been appropriated most absurdly, to another person, by a large inscription recording the name of Elizabeth Freke, A. D.

1741

. A brass thus described by Mr. Gough still exists on the pavement,

Hic facent Will«mo Markeby de Londoniis gentlemo«qui obiit xi die Julii A D«ni Mccccxxxx, et Alicia uxor ei...

Over their heads were shields, now gone. Against the south wall is a kneeling effigy in an arched niche of the period of James I. inscribed to the memory of Robert Balthrope, sergeant surgeon to queen Elizabeth, who died ... , . At the back of the pillar at the south angle of the altar is a brass plate recording the re-building of the church, as follows:

Thomas Covrtenay Warner armiger nosocomii D. Bartholomaei nvperrime thesavravivs extremis tabellis hanc fenestram vitro colorato exornatam proprio svmptv poni mandavit. A. D. MDCCCXXIV.

At the north angle the following:

Hanc aedem iam vetvstate collapsvram pristina campanarvm tvrre conservata hvivsce nosocomii patroni restavravervnt. Jacobo Shaw baronetto praeside. Rowland Stephenson armigero thesavrario Samveli Wix A. M. vicario. A. D. MDCCCXXV.

On the north side of the church is the monument of Anne, wife of sir Thomas Bodley, the founder of the celebrated library at Oxford, it is a plain black slab, with Corinthian pilasters supporting a pediment.

Thomas Bodleius, eques auratus, fecit Annae conjugi piissimae atque omnibus exemplis bene de se meritae, cum qua dilecter visit annos

24

.

[] Lond. Red. vol. i. page 303.

[] We have unintentionally led our readers into an error on the subject of this gentleman's works, which we hasten to correct. Misled by most other works on London, we attributed the new front of Guildhall, and the church of Allhallows (vide page 197) to the builder of the Mansion House, who was the father of the architect of these latter buildings; the last mistake is the more difficult to apologize for, as we state that Allhallows church was his first building, this is strictly true with regard to the son, but not so as respects the elder Dance. If our readers then will insert the son of the, prior to the builder of the Mansion House in page 197 of this volume, the mistake will be corrected.

[] Sepul. Mon. vol. ii. p. 122.