St Bartholomew-the-Great stands in Smithfield in the City of London. Rahere, a canon of St Paul's, founded it as an Augustinian priory in 1123, on land granted by Henry I. It is in the Norman style, with lofty crossing arches and a choir that survive from the Middle Ages. The Lady Chapel is said to have been newly built in 1336, and a brick clock tower was added in 1628.
In 1543 about half the church was demolished, including most of the nave. The church survived the Great Fire of London in 1666 and escaped major damage in the Blitz. In the early 1720s Benjamin Franklin worked as a printer's typesetter in the Lady Chapel.
Sir Aston Webb led a major restoration from 1889. The church was listed Grade I in 1950. It is now an Anglo-Catholic parish church with free admission.
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