The Great Fire of London of 1666 destroyed 86 of the 97 parish churches in the City of London.The Churches of the City of London; Reynolds, H. London: Bodley Head, 1922 By 1670 a Rebuilding Act had been passed and a committee set up under of Sir Christopher Wren to plan the new parishes.Wren; Whinney, M. London: Thames & Hudson, 1971 Fifty-one were chosen, but St Mary Colechurch was one of the minority not to be rebuilt.The City of London Churches; Betjeman, J. Andover: Pitkin, 1967 (reprint 1992) The parish was united with St Mildred, Poultry, although the parishioners objected on the grounds that This was a noisy, crowded parish perpetually disturbed by carts and coaches, and wants sufficient place for burials."Representations to Wren's Committee, 1670" in The London City Churches; Norman, P. London: the London Society, 1929
