London, England, UK

Bombed 1940

The Disappointed Tourist: Christchurch Greyfriars, Ellen Harvey, 2021. Oil and acrylic on Gessoboard, 24 x 18″ (61 x 46 cm). Photograph: Etienne Frossard.

Christchurch Greyfriars, also known as Christchurch Newgate Street, located in London opposite St. Paul’s Cathedral, was a church built to the design of Sir Christopher Wren to replace the medieval church destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. The church took its name from its original incarnation as a monastery for the gray habit-wearing Franciscan friars. The church was heavily damaged in the Blitz when a firebomb struck the building on December 29, 1940. Only the spire survived. The Church of England decided not to rebuild the church and has maintained the site as a memorial to this day. The painting is based on a Victorian engraving from the Illustrated London News found on Wikipedia.

Requested by Fred C. & Victoria P.