SAINT DIONIS, BACKCHURCH: CITY OF LONDON

Identity Statement

Reference code(s)	: GB 0074 P69/DIO
Held at	: London Metropolitan Archives   Click here to find out how to view this collection at https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/lma ›
Full title	: SAINT DIONIS, BACKCHURCH: CITY OF LONDON
Date(s)	: 1538-1949
Level of description	: Collection
Extent	: 9.75 linear metres
Name of creator(s)	: Parish of St Dionis, Backchurch, City of London | Church of England

Context

Administrative/Biographical history:

Saint Dionis Backchurch is first mentioned in records in 1098. 'Dionis' is a version of Denys, the patron saint of France. 'Backchurch' is thought to refer to a benefactor named 'Bac'. The church was rebuilt in 1450, with a chapel added in 1466 and a spire in 1632.

History of the united parish:

The parish of Saint Edmund the King and Martyr was united to the parish of Saint Nicholas Acons in 1670. The parish of Saint Benet Gracechurch was united to the parish of Saint Leonard Eastcheap in 1670. The united parishes of Saint Benet Gracechurch and Saint Leonard Eastcheap were united to the parish of All Hallows Lombard Street in 1864. The parish of Saint Dionis Backchurch was joined to All Hallows Lombard Street and united parishes in 1876. These united parishes were joined to the united parishes of Saint Edmund the King and Martyr and Saint Nicholas Acons in 1937 to form Saint Edmund the King and Martyr and united parishes.

The churches of All Hallows Lombard Street, Saint Benet Gracechurch, Saint Dionis Backchurch, Saint Edmund the King and Martyr, Saint Leonard Eastcheap and Saint Nicholas Acons were all destroyed in the Great Fire in 1666. Saint Edmund the King and Martyr was rebuilt by Wren and Robert Hooke in 1670-9 and the spire completed in 1708. Saint Dionis Backchurch was rebuilt by Wren in 1670-84, Saint Benet Gracechurch Street in 1681-87 and All Hallows Lombard Street in 1686-94. The churches of Saint Leonard Eastcheap and Saint Nicholas Acons were not rebuilt; however, the site of the former was retained as a burial ground until 1882.

The church of Saint Benet Gracechurch was demolished in 1867, the church of Saint Dionis Backchurch in 1878 and the church of All Hallows Lombard Street in 1938 and the sites sold off. The proceeds of these sales were used to fund the building of new churches namely Saint Benet Mile End Road, Saint Dionis Parsons Green, and All Hallows, Chertsey Road, Twickenham and All Saints Queensbury. The tower of All Hallows Lombard Street was reconstructed as part of All Hallows, Chertsey Road. Saint Edmund the King and Martyr remains the parish church.

Some information from The London Encyclopaedia, eds. Weinreb and Hibbert (LMA Library Reference 67.2 WEI).

Content

Scope and content/abstract:

Records of the parish of Saint Dionis, Backchurch, Lime Street, City of London, including parish registers (baptisms, marriages, banns, burials) dating from 1538; registers of coffins; Vestry minutes, correspondence and notices; financial accounts; papers of the Churchwardens; papers relating to parish poor relief; poor, church and tithe rate assessment books; and papers relating to parish charities and properties.

Access & Use

Language/scripts of material:
English

System of arrangement:

P69/DIO/A: Parish Registers; P69/DIO/B: Vestry and Parish Officers; P69/DIO/C: Rate Assessments and Inhabitants Lists; P69/DIO/D: Charities and Estates.

Conditions governing access:

These records are available for public inspection, although records containing personal information may be subject to access restrictions.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Copyright to these records rests with the depositor.

Finding aids:

Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm

Archival Information

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

The most recent deposits for each parish are as follows: All Hallows Lombard Street and St Edmund the King and Martyr, 2001; St Benet Gracechurch, 1999; St Dionis Backchurch, 1994; St Nicholas Acons, 1993; and St Leonard Eastcheap, 1964.

Allied Materials

Related material:

Publication note:

Description Notes

Archivist's note:

Rules or conventions:
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions:
April to June 2010.