Description
St John's Churchyard was once within the Priory of St John of Jerusalem founded in 1144 by the Knights Hospitallers. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries in c.1540, the Priory and its church were used for other purposes including a private chapel and library, a tavern, and later became a parish church of St John's Clerkenwell. Jerusalem Passage was the site of the Priory's postern gate, demolished in 1780. In 1931 the church was acquired by the modern Order of St John as their Priory Church. After it closed to burial, St John's Churchyard was laid out by the MPGA as a small enclosed public garden with a few headstones remaining and a fine plane tree.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | Priory of St John of Jerusalem Burial Ground |
|---|---|
| Site location | Jerusalem Passage/St John Street, Clerkenwell |
| Postcode | EC1 |
| What3Words | ///topic.scuba.bravo |
| Type of Site | Public Gardens |
| Borough | Islington |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | 8am - dusk |
| Facilities | none |
| Public Transport | Tube: Farringdon (Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan, Circle). Rail: Farringdon. Bus: 55, 243 |
| Research Updated | 1 October 2012 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The Priory of St John of Jerusalem was founded in 1144 by the Knights Hospitallers, on land given by a Suffolk man who had property in Clerkenwell. The Priory Church was consecrated in 1185. The Priory once covered a 10-acre site within which there was an inner precinct reached through a gatehouse. St John's Gate, now the Museum of the Order of St John, was the southern entrance to the Priory. Jerusalem Passage was the site of the Priory's postern gate, which was demolished in 1780. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII, the Priory was used for other purposes including a private chapel and library for the Earls of Aylesbury. It was restored in the early C18th and became a new parish church of St John serving Clerkenwell from 1722/3. In the C20th when the parish had diminished and was absorbed into that of St James's Clerkenwell (q.v.), in 1931 St John's was acquired by the modern Order of St John as their Priory Church. The English Order had been refounded in 1831 and given a Royal Charter by Queen Victoria in 1888. It had established St John's Ambulance in 1871 and in 1874 had acquired St John's Gate as its headquarters.
During WWII in 1941 the Priory Church was damaged by bombing and was restored in 1955-58 by Lord Mottistone. Adjacent to the church he also created a new Cloister Garden with memorials to St John Ambulance members from London District. The Priory Church and its Cloister Garden (q.v.) are now opened as part of the Museum of the Order of St John.
During WWII in 1941 the Priory Church was damaged by bombing and was restored in 1955-58 by Lord Mottistone. Adjacent to the church he also created a new Cloister Garden with memorials to St John Ambulance members from London District. The Priory Church and its Cloister Garden (q.v.) are now opened as part of the Museum of the Order of St John.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ317822 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 0.02 |
| Site Ownership | Order of St John/LB Islington |
| Site Management | Greenspace |
| Dates | C18th; 1890s |
| 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 | Islington |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Clerkenwell Green |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | Yes - Archaeological Priority Area |
| Other LA Designation | Local /Strategic View. Shopping Policy Area |
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
The Cloister Garden of the Priory Church of the Order of St John of Jerusalem was laid out by Lord Mottistone when the bomb-damaged church was restored in 1955-58, as a memorial to members of St John's Ambulance from London District. Overlooking the garden is a crucifix by Cecil Thomas of 1960, and 2 brick arches on the south wall of the adjacent church are believed to be where an early C16th chapel pierced the walls. After the Priory was dissolved the buildings had a number of uses, the church later becoming a parish church in 1722/3, but now back in use by the Order of St John. Until recently the garden was largely grass with a central fountain, but has been re-landscaped with funding from HLF and the Wellcome Trust and now contains medieval herbs of the monastic period. It is entered via the fine Docwra Family Memorial Gateway off St John's Square.
Not strictly speaking a village green, Clerkenwell Green was open space between St John's Priory and St Mary's Nunnery and was once the centre of the village. In the C17th houses of the nobility and the wealthy were built here and the Green was planted with trees, which later blew down in 1796. By the C18th there was a pound, pillory and watch house here, with a turnstile at the entrance of Clerkenwell Close.
St James Clerkenwell Church Garden is on the site of the former C12th St Mary's Nunnery run by Augustinian canonesses. When the Nunnery was dissolved in 1539 its church was converted into the Clerkenwell parish church of St James. The old church was rebuilt in 1625, later replaced by the current building in 1788-92. The steeple was rebuilt in 1849 and the church was later restored in 1882. Among those buried here are many of the 200 Islington Protestants martyred at Smithfield in the Reformation in the 1550s. The churchyard was laid out and opened as a public garden in 1890. The garden has notable London plane trees and is enclosed by C19th railings and piers. In 1987 part of the medieval cloisters from the former C12th nunnery were excavated in the churchyard garden.