Heritage: The Four Churches

The imposing parish church of St Marylebone which stands today, with its grand frontage and opulent interior, is, in fact, the fourth parish church building and a far cry from its first predecessor, a far humbler structure.

The first parish church was dedicated to St John the Evangelist and was built c.1116. The origin of the area known today as Marylebone can be traced to an ancient hamlet east of the River Tyburn, near today’s Marble Arch, and the first parish church was built on the present-day intersection between Oxford Street and Marylebone Lane.

While today, this location is a busy metropolis, in the 12^th century this area was still countryside and, thus, the simple church building was established to serve its parishioners of farmworkers and villagers.

The first church building stood until 1400. However, by then, thieves and vandals had practically destroyed it and driven it to dereliction. The church building was particularly vulnerable to crime as it was located along a main highway leading west out of London. By 1400, the building was so derelict that the Bishop of London, Robert Braybroke, granted a license for its demolition and the construction of a new parish church along the High Street near the River Tyburn.