St James's Church, Piccadilly
Encyclopedia
St James’s Church, Piccadilly is an Anglican church on Piccadilly
in the centre of London
, UK. It was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren
.
The church is built of red brick
with Portland stone
dressings. The church’s interior has galleries on three sides supported by square pillars, and the nave has a barrel vault
supported by Corinthian columns. The carved marble
font
and limewood
reredos
are both good examples of the work of Grinling Gibbons
.
In 1662, Henry Jermyn, 1st Earl of St Albans
was granted land for residential development on what was then the outskirts of London. He set aside land for the building of a parish church and churchyard on the south side of what is now Piccadilly. Christopher Wren was appointed the architect in 1672 and the church was consecrated on 13 July 1684 by Henry Compton, the Bishop of London
.
Samuel Clarke
was rector
from 1709 to 1729 and was one of the leading intellectual figures of eighteenth-century Britain. William Blake
was baptised at the church in 1757. Leopold Stokowski
was choirmaster from 1902 until 1905 when he left for a similar position in New York.
The church was severely damaged by enemy action in 1940, during the Second World War
. The church’s website carries a detailed history.
as part of her ‘church tour’.
are running a programme of outdoor sculpture in Southwood Garden in the grounds of the church. The first exhibition is of work by Swiss sculptor Hans Josephsohn
, running from September 2009 to January 2010. Southwood Garden was created in the churchyard by Viscount Southwood
after World War II
as a garden of remembrance, "to commemorate the courage and fortitude of the people of London," and was opened by Queen Mary
in 1946.
, the Bishop allegedly said ‘I don’t mind what you do, just keep it open’. During that decade and most of the 1990s numbers and activity grew, the clergy and congregation gaining a reputation for being a progressive
, liberal and campaigning church. That has continued. The ‘congregation’ rejects that description and prefers community
. It is centred on the eucharist
- the celebration of the principal Christian sacrament
. It finds expression in a wide range of interest groups: spiritual explorers, labyrinth
walking, Julian prayer
meetings, the Vagabonds group (a lively discussion group which takes its name from a William Blake
poem and in faithfulness to that text meets in a local alehouse), a LGBT
group and many others. The community has actively supported, and supports, the ordination of women
to all the orders of the church, the just treatment of asylum seekers and those living in poverty
. It celebrates what it regards as ‘the radical welcome’ found in the heart of the Gospel
s and attested to by the Incarnation
.
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...
in the centre of London
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...
, UK. It was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren
Sir Christopher Wren FRS is one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history.He used to be accorded responsibility for rebuilding 51 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710...
.
The church is built of red brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
with Portland stone
Portland stone
Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries consist of beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles, notably in major...
dressings. The church’s interior has galleries on three sides supported by square pillars, and the nave has a barrel vault
Barrel vault
A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault or a wagon vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve along a given distance. The curves are typically circular in shape, lending a semi-cylindrical appearance to the total design...
supported by Corinthian columns. The carved marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
and limewood
Tilia
Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The greatest species diversity is found in Asia, and the genus also occurs in Europe and eastern North America, but not western North America...
reredos
Reredos
thumb|300px|right|An altar and reredos from [[St. Josaphat's Roman Catholic Church|St. Josaphat Catholic Church]] in [[Detroit]], [[Michigan]]. This would be called a [[retable]] in many other languages and countries....
are both good examples of the work of Grinling Gibbons
Grinling Gibbons
Grinling Gibbons was an English sculptor and wood carver known for his work in England, including St Paul's Cathedral, Blenheim Palace and Hampton Court Palace. He was born and educated in Holland where his father was a merchant...
.
History
Henry Jermyn, 1st Earl of St Albans
Henry Jermyn, 1st Earl of Saint Albans KG was an English politician and courtier. He sat in the in the House of Commons at various times between 1625 and 1643 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Jermyn...
was granted land for residential development on what was then the outskirts of London. He set aside land for the building of a parish church and churchyard on the south side of what is now Piccadilly. Christopher Wren was appointed the architect in 1672 and the church was consecrated on 13 July 1684 by Henry Compton, the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
.
Samuel Clarke
Samuel Clarke
thumb|right|200px|Samuel ClarkeSamuel Clarke was an English philosopher and Anglican clergyman.-Early life and studies:...
was rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
from 1709 to 1729 and was one of the leading intellectual figures of eighteenth-century Britain. William Blake
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
was baptised at the church in 1757. Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Anthony Stokowski was a British-born, naturalised American orchestral conductor, well known for his free-hand performing style that spurned the traditional baton and for obtaining a characteristically sumptuous sound from many of the great orchestras he conducted.In America, Stokowski...
was choirmaster from 1902 until 1905 when he left for a similar position in New York.
The church was severely damaged by enemy action in 1940, during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The church’s website carries a detailed history.
Baptisms
- William BlakeWilliam BlakeWilliam Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
, baptised 1757. - Lord ChesterfieldPhilip Stanhope, 4th Earl of ChesterfieldPhilip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield PC KG was a British statesman and man of letters.A Whig, Lord Stanhope, as he was known until his father's death in 1726, was born in London. After being educated at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, he went on the Grand Tour of the continent...
- Lord Chatham
Marriages
- in 1762, a double wedding; founding partners of the furniture-makers Ince and MayhewInce and MayhewInce and Mayhew were a partnership of furniture designers, upholsterers and cabinetmakers, founded and run by William Ince and John Mayhew in London, England, from 1759 to 1803; Mayhew continued alone in business until 1809. Their premises were listed in London directories in Broad Street, Soho,...
married sisters. - architectArchitectAn architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, Philip HardwickPhilip HardwickPhilip Hardwick was an eminent English architect, particularly associated with railway stations and warehouses in London and elsewhere...
, married Julia Shaw in 1819. - Prince Friedrich Wilhelm von Hanau, eldest son of Frederik William, Elector of Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel), married in 1856 the actress Auguste Birnbaum
- Also in 1856, the Belgian Consul to Charleston S.Carolina USA, George Augustus Hopley married French born Felicite Claudine Rancine. Married 26 July. George later died in Paris 28 May 1859, age 52
- Author and poet, Robert GravesRobert GravesRobert von Ranke Graves 24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985 was an English poet, translator and novelist. During his long life he produced more than 140 works...
, married Nancy NicholsonNancy NicholsonNancy Nicholson was a British painter and fabric designer.Born Annie Mary Pryde Nicholson, she was the only daughter of the artists Sir William Nicholson and Mabel Pryde. She had three brothers, sculptor Ben Nicholson, architect Christopher Nicholson and Anthony, who was killed in action in 1918...
in the church in 1918. Best man was George MalloryGeorge MalloryGeorge Herbert Leigh Mallory was an English mountaineer who took part in the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest in the early 1920s.... - General Sir Robert Arbuthnot, KCBRobert ArbuthnotGeneral Sir Robert Arbuthnot, KCB, was born at Rockfleet Castle, County Mayo, Ireland, on 19 November 1773 fourth son of John Arbuthnot Senior of Rockfleet, Co Mayo. He was a General in the army, a colonel in the 76th Regiment. He was a Brigadier General in the Portuguese Service and was appointed...
married 1826 - James ArbuthnotJames ArbuthnotJames Norwich Arbuthnot, MP is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for North East Hampshire.-Early life:...
MPMember of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, married Emma Broadbent, daughter of Michael BroadbentMichael BroadbentJohn Michael Broadbent MW is a British wine critic, writer and auctioneer in a capacity as a Master of Wine...
, in 1984.
Burials
- Dr John ArbuthnotJohn ArbuthnotJohn Arbuthnot, often known simply as Dr. Arbuthnot, , was a physician, satirist and polymath in London...
, buried 1735. - Sir Charles Asgill, 2nd BaronetSir Charles Asgill, 2nd BaronetSir Charles Asgill 2nd Baronet GCH was a career soldier in the British Army. Asgill enjoyed a long military career, eventually rising to the rank of General...
(equerry to Frederick, Duke of York) - Mary BealeMary BealeMary Beale was an English portrait painter. She became one of the most important portrait painters of 17th century England, and has been described as the first professional female English painter.-Life and work:...
one of the first professional women artists, buried 1699. - Dr. Sir Richard Croft, obstetrician
- William Elliot of WellsWilliam Elliot of WellsWilliam Elliot of Wells was an army officer, courtier, and Member of Parliament during the reign of George II.The son of William Elliot of Wells , the younger William was christened 17 January 1696 at St Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster...
(equerry to George IIGeorge II of Great BritainGeorge II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
), buried 1764 - James GillrayJames GillrayJames Gillray , was a British caricaturist and printmaker famous for his etched political and social satires, mainly published between 1792 and 1810.- Early life :He was born in Chelsea...
, the influential and ground-breaking caricaturist. - “Old Q.,” William Douglas, 4th Duke of QueensberryWilliam Douglas, 4th Duke of QueensberryWilliam Douglas, 4th Duke of Queensberry KT was a Scottish nobleman.Born in Peebles, Queensberry was the only son of William Douglas, 2nd Earl of March, and his wife, Lady Anne Hamilton....
. - Pedro Vicente MaldonadoPedro Vicente MaldonadoPedro Vicente Maldonado y Flores, was a South-American scientist who collaborated with the members of the French Geodesic Mission...
(Ecuadorian scientist) - The Earl of GranthamEarl of GranthamEarl of Grantham was a title in the Peerage of England created on 24 December 1698, along with the titles Viscount Boston and Baron Alford, for Henry de Nassau d'Auverquerque, with a special remainder, failing heirs male of his body, to his three brothers Cornelius, Maurice and Francis, in like...
(Lord Chamberlain to Queen Caroline of AnsbachCaroline of AnsbachCaroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach was the queen consort of King George II of Great Britain.Her father, John Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach, was the ruler of a small German state...
) - William HunterWilliam Hunter (anatomist)William Hunter FRS was a Scottish anatomist and physician. He was a leading teacher of anatomy, and the outstanding obstetrician of his day...
(anatomist) - Benjamin StillingfleetBenjamin StillingfleetBenjamin Stillingfleet was a botanist, translator and author. He is said to be the first Blue Stocking, a phrase from which is derived the term bluestocking now used to describe a learned woman.-Life:...
, botanist, the first bluestocking - Willem van de Velde, the elder (marine painter).
- Willem van de Velde, the younger (marine painter)
Concerts
Concerts are regularly held in the church. Concerts have included performances by popular contemporary musicians such as REM and folk musician Laura MarlingLaura Marling
Laura Beatrice Marling is an English folk musician from Eversley, Hampshire.Initially prominent within the London folk scene, she has also toured with a number of well-known indie artists in the UK. Her debut album Alas, I Cannot Swim and her second album I Speak Because I Can were nominated for...
as part of her ‘church tour’.
Outdoor art space
Contemporary art gallery Hauser & WirthHauser & Wirth
Hauser & Wirth is one of the world's leading contemporary art galleries. In addition to representing over 40 established and emerging artists, the gallery represents the estates of Eva Hesse, Allan Kaprow, Lee Lozano, Jason Rhoades, Dieter Roth and André Thomkins, as well as the Henry Moore Family...
are running a programme of outdoor sculpture in Southwood Garden in the grounds of the church. The first exhibition is of work by Swiss sculptor Hans Josephsohn
Hans Josephsohn
Hans Josephsohn is a Swiss sculptor. He lives and works in Zurich.Josephsohn was born in Königsberg , East Prussia. Here he attended elementary school and completed high school in 1937. That same year, he left his homeland and moved to Florence with a small scholarship, in order to study art...
, running from September 2009 to January 2010. Southwood Garden was created in the churchyard by Viscount Southwood
Viscount Southwood
Viscount Southwood, of Fernhurst in the County of Sussex, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 19 February 1946 for Julius Elias, 1st Baron Southwood. He had already been created Baron Southwood, of Fernhurst in the County of Sussex, on 11 June 1937, also in the...
after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as a garden of remembrance, "to commemorate the courage and fortitude of the people of London," and was opened by Queen Mary
Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
in 1946.
Present
Like many central London churches surrounded by commercial buildings and ever fewer local people, St James’s lost numbers and momentum in the 1960s and 70s. When in 1980 Donald Reeves was offered the post of rectorRector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
, the Bishop allegedly said ‘I don’t mind what you do, just keep it open’. During that decade and most of the 1990s numbers and activity grew, the clergy and congregation gaining a reputation for being a progressive
Liberal Christianity
Liberal Christianity, sometimes called liberal theology, is an umbrella term covering diverse, philosophically and biblically informed religious movements and ideas within Christianity from the late 18th century and onward...
, liberal and campaigning church. That has continued. The ‘congregation’ rejects that description and prefers community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
. It is centred on the eucharist
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
- the celebration of the principal Christian sacrament
Sacrament
A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...
. It finds expression in a wide range of interest groups: spiritual explorers, labyrinth
Labyrinth
In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth was an elaborate structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos...
walking, Julian prayer
Julian of Norwich
Julian of Norwich is regarded as one of the most important English mystics. She is venerated in the Anglican and Lutheran churches, but has never been canonized, or officially beatified, by the Catholic Church, probably because so little is known of her life aside from her writings, including the...
meetings, the Vagabonds group (a lively discussion group which takes its name from a William Blake
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
poem and in faithfulness to that text meets in a local alehouse), a LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
group and many others. The community has actively supported, and supports, the ordination of women
Ordination of women
Ordination in general religious usage is the process by which a person is consecrated . The ordination of women is a regular practice among some major religious groups, as it was of several religions of antiquity...
to all the orders of the church, the just treatment of asylum seekers and those living in poverty
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
. It celebrates what it regards as ‘the radical welcome’ found in the heart of the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
s and attested to by the Incarnation
Incarnation
Incarnation literally means embodied in flesh or taking on flesh. It refers to the conception and birth of a sentient creature who is the material manifestation of an entity, god or force whose original nature is immaterial....
.
Sources
- Book London Architecture, written by Marianne Butler, published in 2004 by Metro Publications, ISBN 1-902910-18-4.
- Web page http://www.st-james-piccadilly.org/, retrieved on the 6th April 2004 at 15:00 BST.
See also
- List of Christopher Wren churches in London
- List of churches rebuilt after the Great Fire but since demolished