Painted sitting on my folding stool with an umbrella tied to my waist as the weather came and went - it was a day of alternate sun and rain. The church is a wonderful piece of architecture, often said to be the loveliest baroque church in London. It was the first of twelve new churches built in London under the Commission for Building Fifty New Churches, at a cost of some £16,000. Construction began in February 1714 under the architect James Gibbs, and this was his first major project following his return from Italy, where he had trained as an architect.
