St Benet Fink

St. Benet Fink was a church and parish in the City of London located on what is now Threadneedle Street. Recorded since the 13th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666, then rebuilt to the designs of Sir Christopher Wren. The Wren church was demolished between 1841 and 1846.

History

‘St. Benet’ is short for ‘St. Benedict’. There were four churches with this dedication in London before the Great Fire of 1666. The earliest surviving reference to the church is in a document of 1216, although the discovery of a 10th-century wheel-headed cross in its former churchyard suggests a Saxon foundation. In the case of St. Benet, it is certain that the Benedict referred to Benedict Biscop the 7th century Anglo-Saxon founder of Jarrow Priory, and St. Benedict Fink referred to St. Benedict of Nursia, the 6th century founder of Western monasticism. "Fink", according to John Stow, is derived from Robert Fink (alias Finch), a 13th-century benefactor who paid to have the church rebuilt. Finch Lane (originally being named as “Fink” or “Finck” Lane), off Threadneedle Street, was named after the same family.