St. Peter's Church, Eaton Square
Encyclopedia
St. Peter's Church, Eaton Square London
SW1 is a large Church of England
church which stands at the east end of Eaton Square
, Belgravia.
The original building for St Peter's was designed in a classical style by the architect Henry Hakewill
, and featured a six-columned Ionic
portico and a clock tower. It was built between 1824 and 1827 during the first development of Eaton Square. The interior was, as was common at the time, a severe preaching box, with the organ and choir at the West end. This building burnt down and was rebuilt from Hakewill's drawings by one of his sons.
The original church was a Commissioners' church
, receiving a grant from the Church Building Commission towards its cost. The full cost of the church was £22,427 (£ as of ), towards which the Commission paid £5,556.
In 1875, the church was enlarged by Sir Arthur Blomfield
, and reordered to provide a chancel
at the east end, in the Romanesque
style, although externally the changes remained faithful to the original classical style.
However, in 1987 an anti-Catholic arsonist set fire to the east end, in the mistaken belief that the Grade II listed building was a Roman Catholic chapel. Within hours the entire church was engulfed, and the following day, by which time the embers had cooled, only the Georgian shell of the building remained: although the fire was out, the church was roofless, with most of its furnishings destroyed.
The church needed total rebuilding. The architects John and Nicki Braithwaite lived nearby at that time and had watched the blaze in horror from the street. They were eventually appointed by the church authorities to completely redesign the building with a new and simpler interior, also incorporating within the space a vicarage, offices, flats for a curate, verger and music director, a meeting hall, nursery school rooms and a large playroom for the church's youth club.
Work on the new church began at Easter 1990 and was completed in 1991. It retained the grand Georgian portico but beyond that the interior is described by visitors as clean, bright and modern. The choir and organ are again located at the west end, as in the 1827 plan, although the fittings are thoroughly modern. The church is accessible, with disabled toilets available. Behind the altar is an apse that is decorated entirely with gold mosaic. Around the side of the apse, part of the 1873 sanctuary which survived the fire can be seen, and also a side chapel now used as the vestry
office, complete with stained glass.
On 19 October 1991, The Times
newspaper wrote “St Peter’s must now rank as one of the most beautiful churches in London”. It is a Grade II* listed building.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
SW1 is a large Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church which stands at the east end of Eaton Square
Eaton Square
Eaton Square is a residential garden square in London's Belgravia district. It is one of the three garden squares built by the Grosvenor family when they developed the main part of Belgravia in the 19th century, and is named after Eaton Hall, the Grosvenor country house in Cheshire...
, Belgravia.
The original building for St Peter's was designed in a classical style by the architect Henry Hakewill
Henry Hakewill
Henry Hakewill was an English architect.He designed two distinguished Greek Revival buildings:*Coed Coch, Denbighshire, Wales , a country-house with a diagonally placed portico and stair...
, and featured a six-columned Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
portico and a clock tower. It was built between 1824 and 1827 during the first development of Eaton Square. The interior was, as was common at the time, a severe preaching box, with the organ and choir at the West end. This building burnt down and was rebuilt from Hakewill's drawings by one of his sons.
The original church was a Commissioners' church
Commissioners' church
A Commissioners' church is an Anglican church in the United Kingdom built with money voted by Parliament as a result of the Church Building Act of 1818 and 1824. They have been given a number of titles, including Commissioners' churches, Waterloo churches and Million Act churches...
, receiving a grant from the Church Building Commission towards its cost. The full cost of the church was £22,427 (£ as of ), towards which the Commission paid £5,556.
In 1875, the church was enlarged by Sir Arthur Blomfield
Arthur Blomfield
Sir Arthur William Blomfield was an English architect.-Background:The fourth son of Charles James Blomfield, an Anglican Bishop of London helpfully began a programme of new church construction in the capital. Born in Fulham Palace, Arthur Blomfield was educated at Rugby and Trinity College,...
, and reordered to provide a chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
at the east end, in the Romanesque
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
style, although externally the changes remained faithful to the original classical style.
However, in 1987 an anti-Catholic arsonist set fire to the east end, in the mistaken belief that the Grade II listed building was a Roman Catholic chapel. Within hours the entire church was engulfed, and the following day, by which time the embers had cooled, only the Georgian shell of the building remained: although the fire was out, the church was roofless, with most of its furnishings destroyed.
The church needed total rebuilding. The architects John and Nicki Braithwaite lived nearby at that time and had watched the blaze in horror from the street. They were eventually appointed by the church authorities to completely redesign the building with a new and simpler interior, also incorporating within the space a vicarage, offices, flats for a curate, verger and music director, a meeting hall, nursery school rooms and a large playroom for the church's youth club.
Work on the new church began at Easter 1990 and was completed in 1991. It retained the grand Georgian portico but beyond that the interior is described by visitors as clean, bright and modern. The choir and organ are again located at the west end, as in the 1827 plan, although the fittings are thoroughly modern. The church is accessible, with disabled toilets available. Behind the altar is an apse that is decorated entirely with gold mosaic. Around the side of the apse, part of the 1873 sanctuary which survived the fire can be seen, and also a side chapel now used as the vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
office, complete with stained glass.
On 19 October 1991, The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper wrote “St Peter’s must now rank as one of the most beautiful churches in London”. It is a Grade II* listed building.