Roman era Excavations at the site in 2006 uncovered a group of burials dating from c A.D. 350, including a sarcophagus burial dating from c. A.D. 410. The site is outside the city limits of
Roman London (as was the usual Roman practice for burials) but is particularly interesting for being so
far outside (1.6 km or 1 statute mile west-south-west of
Ludgate), and this is leading to a reappraisal of Westminster's importance at that time. The burials are thought by some to mark a Christian centre of that time (possibly reusing the site or building of a
pagan temple) or possibly even developing around the shrine of a martyr.
Saxon The Roman burial ground was acknowledged by the Saxons, who also buried their dead there. To have such a long time span as a burial ground makes St Martin-in-the-Fields relatively unusual. It is possible that the Saxon town of Lundenwic essentially grew eastwards from the early burial group (Museum of London Archaeology).
Medieval and Tudor , circa 1562 The earliest extant reference to the church is from 1222, when there was a dispute between the
Abbot of Westminster and the
Bishop of London as to who had control over it. The
Archbishop of Canterbury decided in favour of Westminster, and the monks of
Westminster Abbey began to use it. At the same time, the church was, in the phrase of the time, thoroughly "repaired and beautified". but the commissioners considered this scheme too expensive. Gibbs then produced a simpler, rectilinear plan, which they accepted. The foundation stone was laid on 19 March 1722, and the last stone of the spire was placed into position in December 1724. The total cost was £33,661 including the architect's fees. The design was criticised widely at the time, but subsequently became extremely famous, being copied particularly widely in the United States. Although Gibbs was discreetly
Catholic, his four-wall, long rectangular floor plan, with a triangular
gable roof and a tall prominent centre-front
steeple (and often, columned front-portico), became closely associated with
Protestant church architecture world-wide. In Britain, the design of
St Andrew's in the Square church (built 1739–56) in Glasgow was inspired by the church. In the American Colonies,
St. Michael's Anglican Church (Charleston, South Carolina) (built 1751–61), was heavily influenced by St Martin-in-the-fields, though the columns of its front portico are of the Tuscan order, rather than the Corinthian order.
All Souls Church, Unitarian (Washington, D.C.) is also based on it, but without the royal insignia.
St. George's Church, Dublin (built 1802), though obviously influence by St Martin's-in-the-fields, that influence seems to be via St Andrews in the Square, as exampled in the copying of its Ionic columns instead of St Martin's Corinthian columns. In India,
St Andrew's Church,
Egmore (built 1818–1821), Madras (now
Chennai), is another example. In
South Africa, the Dutch Reformed Church in
Cradock is modelled on St Martin-in-the-Fields. Various notables were soon buried in the new church, including the émigré sculptor
Louis-François Roubiliac (who had settled in this area of London) and the furniture-maker
Thomas Chippendale (whose workshop was in the same street as the church, St Martin's Lane), along with
Jack Sheppard in the adjoining churchyard. This churchyard, which lay to the south of the church, was removed to make way for Duncannon Street, constructed in the 19th century to provide access to the newly created Trafalgar Square. Two small parcels of the churchyard survived, to the north and east of the church. The
Metropolitan Public Gardens Association laid them out for public use in 1887; unusually for the MPGA, it paved them with flagstones as well as planted them with trees. For many years covered in market stalls, the churchyard has been restored including with the provision of seating. Before embarking for the Middle East Campaign,
Edmund Allenby was met by General
Beauvoir De Lisle at the Grosvenor Hotel and convinced General Allenby with Bible prophecies of the deliverance of
Jerusalem. He told General Allenby that the Bible said that Jerusalem would be delivered in that very year, 1917, and by Great Britain. General Beauvoir de Lisle had studied the prophecies, as he was about to preach at St Martin-in-the-Fields.
Recent times Because of its prominent position, St Martin-in-the-Fields is one of the most famous churches in London.
Dick Sheppard,
Vicar from 1914 to 1927 who began programmes for the area's homeless, coined its ethos as the "Church of the Ever Open Door". The church is famous for its work with young and homeless people through
The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields, created in 2003 through the merger of two programmes dating at least to 1948. The Connection shares with The Vicar's Relief Fund the money raised each year by the
BBC Radio 4 Appeal's Christmas appeal. The crypt houses a café which hosts
jazz concerts whose profits support the programmes of the church. The crypt is also home to the London Brass Rubbing Centre, established in 1975 as an art gallery, book, and gift shop. A life-sized marble statue of
Henry Croft, London's first
pearly king, was moved to the crypt in 2002 from its original site at
St Pancras Cemetery. In January 2006, work began on a £36-million renewal project. The project included renewing the church itself, as well as provision of facilities encompassing the church's crypt, a row of buildings to the north and some significant new underground spaces in between. The funding included a grant of £15.35 million from the
Heritage Lottery Fund. The church and crypt reopened in the summer of 2008. Since 2012 its vicar is
Sam Wells. Twelve historic bells from St Martin-in-the-Fields, cast in 1725, are included in the peal of the
Swan Bells tower in
Perth, Australia. The current set of twelve bells, cast in 1988, which replaced the old ones are rung every Sunday between 9am and 10am by the St Martin in the Fields Band of Bell Ringers. The bells are also rung by the Friends of Dorothy Society each year as part of
London Pride. ==In popular culture==