Summary

St Dunstan is a weekday Guild church that dates to the 10th century although it is not clear when this church originated.

Saint Dunstan was a significant saint of Anglo-Saxon England before Thomas Becket.

St Dunstan’s is a Church of Europe for the Diocese of London, celebrating and promoting good relations with churches outside the Anglican Community. The church is the spiritual home of the Romanian Orthodox Church in London and has side chapels dedicated to other denominations.

The site has strong links to Saint Dunstan himself suggesting that he may have decreed that a church be built where the church stands today. The building was saved from the Great Fire in 1666, after the Dean of Westminster woke scholars from Westminster School to help put the fire out. The church was rebuilt in 1831. The tower was destroyed during the Blitz but was restored in 1952.

St Dunstan-in-the-West was a well-known landmark in previous centuries because of its magnificent clock. This dates from 1671 and was the first public clock in London to have a minute hand.
As the London Church of Europe, St Dunstan is a centre of prayer for Christian Unity, with a primary focus on dialogue with the Byzantine and Oriental Orthodox Churches.

History