The church actually was built a long time ago, it has almost a 900-year history. It was named for St Dunstan, a tenth-century monk. And since the day it was built, the church has survived many unfortunate calamities like the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the Blitz during WW2.
The church has almost a 900-year history
After the war, with much of London in rubble, the slow rebuilding process began. But St. Dunstan-in-the-East remained in ruins. In 1967, the City of London Corporation decided to turn the bombed-out shell of the church into a public garden, which remains to this day.
The ruins of St. Dunstan-in-the-East is now a fascinating public garden at the center of London
