Description
The Fishmongers' Company has its origins in at least the C12th and was granted its first Charter in 1272. The Company has had premises here since the C16th, the current Hall built in 1831-35 to replace an earlier hall when part of its site was needed for the new London Bridge Approach. Additional offices were built it 1976/7 facing Upper Thames Street and Swan Lane, at which time the courtyard between the wings was enlarged and laid out as a small garden open to the river. It is on two levels and largely paved with a flower border and a few trees. A statue of James Hulbert, benefactor of the Fishmongers' Company, was brought from the Fishmongers' Almshouses at Bray in Berkshire, and on one wall are the arms from the entrance of the C17th Hall.
Practical Information
| Site location | off Swan Lane Lower Thames Street/London Bridge Approach |
|---|---|
| Postcode | EC4R 9EL |
| What3Words | ///dish.defend.flag |
| Type of Site | Private Garden |
| Borough | City of London |
| Open to Public | Occasionally |
| Opening Times | Visits by appointment may be possible, plus tours and open days. Contact the Fishmongers' Company |
| Public Transport | Tube: Monument (District, Circle) / Bank (Central, DLR, Northern, Waterloo & City); Cannon Street (District, Circle). Bus: 63, 242 |
| Research Updated | 1 December 2002 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The Fishmongers' Company has its origins in at least the C14th with the Stockfishmongers (traders in wet fish) and the Saltfishmongers (traders in dried fish) and trading on the Thames riverside dates from at least the C13th. The Hall is on the site of previous premises of three important fish-merchants John Lovekyn, Sir William Walworth and William Askham, all one-time Mayors of London, who came here in the late C14th and provided business facilities for the trade including a great hall. The Hall was secured for the Fishmongers' Company in 1433-44 with assistance from, among others, Henry IV's brother-in-law, John Cornwall, Baron Fanhope. The Company built new wharfside premises here and until 1666 had sole use of the wharf, but from 1669 and 1827 there was public pedestrian access. It later again became a private wharf between 1835 and 1975. In the C2nd the area west of the Hall was a Roman quay, and later a medieval house, remnants of which were found in 1974 when the area was excavated. The medieval hall was destroyed in the Great Fire in 1666, although the proximity to the river enabled much of the important documents and other items to be saved. Following the fire the Company was able to acquire more land and the new premises were built around three sides of a courtyard.
The current Hall was designed by Henry Roberts in 1831-35 who won the competition to replace the earlier hall when part of its site was needed for the new London Bridge Approach. Additional offices were built it 1976/7 facing Upper Thames Street and Swan Lane, at which time the courtyard between the wings was enlarged and is laid out as a small garden open to the river, from which it is partially visible through railings. It is largely laid to paving and is on two levels, with a flower border and two or three trees. In 1978 a stone statue of the benefactor of the Fishmongers' Company, James Hulbert by Robert Easton, dated 1728, was brought here from the Fishmongers' Almshouses at Bray in Berkshire. The stone arms from the C17th Hall's entrance are on the wall.
The current Hall was designed by Henry Roberts in 1831-35 who won the competition to replace the earlier hall when part of its site was needed for the new London Bridge Approach. Additional offices were built it 1976/7 facing Upper Thames Street and Swan Lane, at which time the courtyard between the wings was enlarged and is laid out as a small garden open to the river, from which it is partially visible through railings. It is largely laid to paving and is on two levels, with a flower border and two or three trees. In 1978 a stone statue of the benefactor of the Fishmongers' Company, James Hulbert by Robert Easton, dated 1728, was brought here from the Fishmongers' Almshouses at Bray in Berkshire. The stone arms from the C17th Hall's entrance are on the wall.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ328806 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 0.0701 |
| Site Ownership | The Worshipful Company of Fishmongers |
| Site Management | The Worshipful Company of Fishmongers |
| Dates | 1831-5; 1977/8 |
| Listed Structures | LBII* and SAM: Fishmongers Hall |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | City of London |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | Yes - Thames Policy Area |
| Other LA Designation | Strategic Viewing Corridor; Monument Views and Setting |
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
A church dedicated to St Magnus the Martyr has been on the site from at least the C11th. An earlier building destroyed in the Great Fire was rebuilt by Wren in 1671-84, the stone tower completed some 30 years later, its projecting clock once the only clock visible to those crossing London Bridge. Among those buried here were various City dignitaries including Lord Mayors of London of the C14th-C17th. The church was substantially altered in the 1760s firstly following a fire and soon after this when the road onto Old London Bridge was widened. A pedestrian route was created by demolishing two of the church's west bays, when the lower storey of the tower became an external porch. In the churchyard is a fragment of timber, one of the oak baulks of which the early Roman embankment was built, and fragments of stone arches from Old London Bridge.
St Laurence Pountney is so-named after Sir John Poultney or de Pulteney, Lord Mayor of London in the 1330s, who founded Corpus Christi College in the parish of St Lawrence. Church and college were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666 and not rebuilt, the parish then united with that of St Mary Abchurch. The site consists of two raised and railed gardens divided by a lower pedestrian passage to Martin Lane, the area in the north being the site of the church, which was used for burial after its destruction, with the original burial ground to the south. Both gardens are private, and contain trees, shrubs and a number of tombs, that to the south for private use of adjoining residences.
The church of St Martin Orgar formerly stood here, its name arising from a Deacon called Ordgarus who owned the church, which he presented prior to c.1181 to the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's. It had a churchyard by c.1250. The building was damaged but not entirely destroyed in the Great Fire and part of the tower and nave were subsequently repaired and converted as a meeting place and chapel for French Huguenot Protestants. By c.1820 this had become ruinous and all but the tower was demolished, which acted as the entrance to the burial ground for the parish of St Clement and now occupied the site of the old church. The former churchyard remains as a raised garden in private use.
