St Bartholomew the Great

You are approaching a structure with a history that begins in a fever dream. Its founder, Rahere, was a courtier and musician who traveled to Rome on a pilgrimage following the tragic White Ship disaster of 1120. While gripped by a severe illness in Italy, he vowed that he would establish a hospital for the poor if he recovered. According to legend, the Apostle Bartholomew appeared to him in a vision, commanding him to build a church at a place called Smithfield in London. Rahere returned to England and successfully convinced King Henry the First to grant him the land for this holy work, which he established as an Augustinian priory in 1123.