Group    From 1181  To 1940

St Mary Aldermanbury church

Categories: Museums / Libraries, Religion

Countries: USA

This church, destroyed in the Great Fire in 1666 and rebuilt by Wren in 1676 was damaged in WW1 and then gutted in WW2, and then left roofless waiting for demolition - Londonist has a photo.

On 5 March 1946 Churchill (no longer Prime Minister) was awarded a degree at Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri. In the presence of President Harry S Truman Churchill gave the "Sinews of Peace" address, where he used the phrases "Iron Curtain" and "special relationship" for the very first time. Many historians date the beginning of the Cold War from this speech. See HPOL for the text.
This speech also somehow prompted the removal of 800 tons of Wren church from London to Fulton, Missouri, USA. Komu explains: "Life Magazine had done a spread on Christopher Wren churches, specifically on some of the churches that were damaged during the second world war. The president said 'wouldn't it be nice to get one of those London churches to make the Churchill Memorial.'"

The church houses a Churchill Museum. Shortly after the Berlin Wall came down in 1989 three sections of it were shipped out to Fulton and erected in memory of the speech.

2023: Restoration of the church was being planned.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
St Mary Aldermanbury church

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