page_title: Strand, London
section_title: Churches
hierarchical_section_title: Strand, London / Churches
caption_attribution_description: English: A view east down Strand, London, with St Clement Danes church in the distance, and a London Transport Routemaster bus operating route 1 .
context_page_description: Strand is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster, Central London. It runs just over ³⁄₄ mile from Trafalgar Square eastwards to Temple Bar, where the road becomes Fleet Street inside the City of London, and is part of the A4, a main road running west from inner London.
  The road's name comes from the Old English strond, meaning the edge of a river, as it historically ran alongside the north bank of the River Thames. The street was much identified with the British upper classes between the 12th and 17th centuries, with many historically important mansions being built between the Strand and the river. These included Essex House, Arundel House, Somerset House, Savoy Palace, Durham House and Cecil House. The aristocracy moved to the West End during the 17th century, and the Strand became known for its coffee shops, restaurants and taverns. The street was a centre point for theatre and music hall during the 19th century, and several venues remain on the Strand. At the east end of the street are two historic churches: St Mary le Strand and St Clement Danes.
context_section_description: The church of St Clement Danes is believed to date from the 9th century. The name may have come from Harold Harefoot, a Danish king who ruled England around 1035–1040 and is buried in the church, or from a place of refuge for Danes after the conquest of Alfred the Great. It was transferred to the Order of the Knights Templar by Henry II in 1189. It survived the Great Fire in 1666, but was declared unsafe and rebuilt by Christopher Wren in 1679. The building was damaged during the Blitz in 1941, gutting much of the interior, and was rebuilt in 1958 by Sam Lloyd, since when it has served as the central church of the Royal Air Force. The church is one of two possible origins for the "St Clement's" in the nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons", though more contemporary accounts suggest St Clement's, Eastcheap in the City of London to be more likely.
  St Mary le Strand was designed by James Gibbs and completed in 1717, to replace a previous church demolished to make way for Somerset House. It was the first building to be designed by Gibbs, who was influenced by Wren and Michelangelo. The column on top of the church was originally designed to support a statue of Queen Anne, but was replaced with a spire following Anne's death in 1714. It survived the Blitz but was in poor shape until John Betjeman led a campaign to restore it in the 1970s. Essex Street Chapel, the birthplace of British Unitarianism, abuts onto the Strand. The original chapel was built in 1774, but damaged in the Blitz. It was restored after the war, and now serves as the denominational headquarters of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches.
caption: An AEC Routemaster on route 1 heading down the Strand in 1981, with St Clement Danes church in the background
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