ملف:St Alphege, Greenwich (36640238541).jpg

Following the collapse of the medieval church, the present building was constructed, funded by a grant from the Commission for Building Fifty New Churches, to the designs of Nicholas Hawksmoor, one of the commission's two surveyors. The first church to be built by the commissioners, it was begun in 1712 and basic construction was completed in 1714, it was not, however, consecrated until 1718. The church is dedicated to Alfege (also spelt "Alphege"), Archbishop of Canterbury, and reputedly marks the place where he was martyred on 19 April 1012, having been taken prisoner during the sack of Canterbury by Danish raiders the previous year. The Danes took him to their camp at Greenwich and killed him when the large ransom they demanded was not forthcoming.

Hawksmoor, who worked with Wren and Vanburgh, has been 'rediscovered' in recent years. His style is innovative and eclectic. Some have portrayed his churches as centres of gloom and mystery, full of occult and morbid energies and pagan symbols, linked to ancient lay lines and to murders in Whitechapel and on the notorious Ratcliffe Highway (which now links the City and Canary Wharf).