Zion Chapel, Newick
Encyclopedia
Zion Chapel is a former Strict Baptist
place of worship in the village of Newick
in Lewes District
, one of six local government districts in the English county of East Sussex
. The tiny building was opened for worship in 1834 in a part of Sussex which was a hotbed of Protestant
Nonconformism
, and remained as one of three places of worship in the small Weald
en village until 2001, when it was sold for conversion to flats
. English Heritage
has listed the building at Grade II by English Heritage
for its architectural and historical importance.
next to the River Ouse
in the Sussex Weald
. Although it is not named in the Domesday survey
of 1086, it may have been considered part of a nearby settlement called Allington. It was closely associated with the nearby villages of Barcombe
and Hamsey
in medieval times. A church existed by 1147, when William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
granted it to Lewes Priory
.
From the 17th century, Protestant Nonconformity became prevalent throughout Sussex, especially in central and eastern parts of the county. Small chapels were regularly built for followers of denominations such as General Baptists, Strict Baptists
, Quakers
, Presbyterians, Congregationalists and Methodists, often in small villages. One such chapel was founded in 1834 on the main road
from Haywards Heath
to Uckfield
, west of the centre of Newick village. Neither its founder nor its architect are recorded. The founding date is considered to be 14 October 1833, when a rood of land (0.25 acre (0.1011715 ha)) was granted to "certain dissenter
s from the Church of England called Calvinistic Baptists" to build a chapel for their use. They had to pay the Lord of the Manor
£0.2s.6d
for this right. The date of construction was recorded on the entrance porch. The population at that time was 724; by 1851 this had fallen to 483, and a population of 1,000 was only reached by 1931—by which time an Evangelical
mission hall, opened in 1892, had become Newick's third place of worship.
Zion Chapel served the Strict Baptist congregation throughout the 20th century, in common with similar chapels in nearby Wivelsfield
, Lewes
, Handcross
, Burgess Hill
, Uckfield
, East Grinstead
, Bolney
and many other towns and villages in Sussex. Over time, its congregation dwindled, and in 2001 the decision was taken to sell the building. Its listed status offered some protection against demolition or significant alteration. Approval was granted by Lewes District Council for an extension of the structure and conversion into three flats under the name Chapel Grove.
Zion Chapel was listed at Grade II by English Heritage
on 27 September 1979; this defines it as a "nationally important" building of "special interest". As of February 2001, it was one of 1,162 Grade II listed buildings, and 1,250 listed buildings of all grades, in the district of Lewes. Since 1992, the chapel has been within the Lewes District Council's "Newick (The Green)" conservation area
.
d entrance porch inscribed with the year 1834. Above this is a pediment
, flush with the façade, whose tympanum
has an oculus
-style recess. A distinctive feature of the pediment is its use of alternate grey and red bricks laid in Flemish bond formation; the stretcher bricks (those with the long face showing) are red and the header bricks (whose short side is showing) are red, producing a regular pattern. The other walls are solely of red brick.
A cemetery survives behind the chapel, but it is not part of the conservation area; as of 2007, Lewes District Council were considering extending the area to include it.
Strict Baptists
Strict Baptists, also known as Particular Baptists, are Baptists who believe in a Calvinist or Reformed interpretation of Christian soteriology. The Particular Baptists arose in England in the 17th century and took their namesake from the doctrine of particular redemption.-Further reading:*History...
place of worship in the village of Newick
Newick
Newick is a village and civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. It is located on the A272 road six miles east of Haywards Heath....
in Lewes District
Lewes (district)
Lewes is a local government district in East Sussex in southern England covering an area of , with of coastline. It is named after its administrative centre, Lewes. Other towns in the district include Newhaven, Peacehaven, and Seaford. Plumpton racecourse is within the district...
, one of six local government districts in the English county of East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
. The tiny building was opened for worship in 1834 in a part of Sussex which was a hotbed of Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
Nonconformism
Nonconformism
Nonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
, and remained as one of three places of worship in the small Weald
Weald
The Weald is the name given to an area in South East England situated between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It should be regarded as three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the centre; the clay "Low Weald" periphery; and the Greensand Ridge which...
en village until 2001, when it was sold for conversion to flats
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
. English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
has listed the building at Grade II by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
for its architectural and historical importance.
History
Newick lies north of LewesLewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
next to the River Ouse
River Ouse, Sussex
The River Ouse is a river in the counties of West and East Sussex in England.-Course:The river rises near Lower Beeding and runs eastwards into East Sussex, meandering narrowly and turning slowly southward...
in the Sussex Weald
Weald
The Weald is the name given to an area in South East England situated between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It should be regarded as three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the centre; the clay "Low Weald" periphery; and the Greensand Ridge which...
. Although it is not named in the Domesday survey
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086, it may have been considered part of a nearby settlement called Allington. It was closely associated with the nearby villages of Barcombe
Barcombe
Barcombe is an East Sussex village lying some 4–5 miles north of Lewes. It is also the name of one of the civil parishes in the Lewes District of East Sussex...
and Hamsey
Hamsey
Hamsey is a civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. It is located three miles north of Lewes on the Prime Meridian...
in medieval times. A church existed by 1147, when William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey was the son of William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey and his first wife Gundred. He is more often referred to as Earl Warenne or Earl of Warenne than as Earl of Surrey....
granted it to Lewes Priory
Lewes Priory
The Priory of St Pancras was the first Cluniac house in England and had one of the largest monastic churches in the country. It was set within an extensive walled and gated precinct laid out in a commanding location fronting the tidal shore-line at the head of the Ouse valley to the south of Lewes...
.
From the 17th century, Protestant Nonconformity became prevalent throughout Sussex, especially in central and eastern parts of the county. Small chapels were regularly built for followers of denominations such as General Baptists, Strict Baptists
Strict Baptists
Strict Baptists, also known as Particular Baptists, are Baptists who believe in a Calvinist or Reformed interpretation of Christian soteriology. The Particular Baptists arose in England in the 17th century and took their namesake from the doctrine of particular redemption.-Further reading:*History...
, Quakers
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
, Presbyterians, Congregationalists and Methodists, often in small villages. One such chapel was founded in 1834 on the main road
A272 road
The A272 is a road in South-East England. It follows an approximate East-West route from near Heathfield, East Sussex to the city of Winchester, Hampshire. It has achieved somewhat unlikely fame in recent years by being the subject of a book by the Dutch author, Pieter Boogaart...
from Haywards Heath
Haywards Heath
-Climate:Haywards Heath experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Rail:Haywards Heath railway station is a major station on the Brighton Main Line...
to Uckfield
Uckfield
-Development:The local Tesco has proposed the redevelopment of the central town area as has the town council. The Hub has recently been completed, having been acquired for an unknown figure, presumed to be about half a million pounds...
, west of the centre of Newick village. Neither its founder nor its architect are recorded. The founding date is considered to be 14 October 1833, when a rood of land (0.25 acre (0.1011715 ha)) was granted to "certain dissenter
Dissenter
The term dissenter , labels one who disagrees in matters of opinion, belief, etc. In the social and religious history of England and Wales, however, it refers particularly to a member of a religious body who has, for one reason or another, separated from the Established Church.Originally, the term...
s from the Church of England called Calvinistic Baptists" to build a chapel for their use. They had to pay the Lord of the Manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
£0.2s.6d
£sd
£sd was the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies used in the Kingdom of England, later the United Kingdom, and ultimately in much of the British Empire...
for this right. The date of construction was recorded on the entrance porch. The population at that time was 724; by 1851 this had fallen to 483, and a population of 1,000 was only reached by 1931—by which time an Evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
mission hall, opened in 1892, had become Newick's third place of worship.
Zion Chapel served the Strict Baptist congregation throughout the 20th century, in common with similar chapels in nearby Wivelsfield
Wivelsfield
Wivelsfield village, and larger adjacent village of Wivelsfield Green, are part of the civil parish of Wivelsfield in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. The villages are located three miles south east of Haywards Heath...
, Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
, Handcross
Handcross
Handcross is a village in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the A23 road 4.2 miles south of Crawley.Nymans Garden, of parklands run by the National Trust, is near to Handcross, as are of woodland and water gardens at High Beeches Garden.Handcross has two public houses,...
, Burgess Hill
Burgess Hill
Burgess Hill is a civil parish and a town primarily located in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park...
, Uckfield
Uckfield
-Development:The local Tesco has proposed the redevelopment of the central town area as has the town council. The Hub has recently been completed, having been acquired for an unknown figure, presumed to be about half a million pounds...
, East Grinstead
East Grinstead
East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...
, Bolney
Bolney
Bolney is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester, near the junction of the A23 road with the A272 road. The parish has a land area of 1479.41 hectares...
and many other towns and villages in Sussex. Over time, its congregation dwindled, and in 2001 the decision was taken to sell the building. Its listed status offered some protection against demolition or significant alteration. Approval was granted by Lewes District Council for an extension of the structure and conversion into three flats under the name Chapel Grove.
Zion Chapel was listed at Grade II by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
on 27 September 1979; this defines it as a "nationally important" building of "special interest". As of February 2001, it was one of 1,162 Grade II listed buildings, and 1,250 listed buildings of all grades, in the district of Lewes. Since 1992, the chapel has been within the Lewes District Council's "Newick (The Green)" conservation area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
.
Architecture
The chapel is a small and simple but "striking red and grey brick building". The street-facing façade has two round-arched windows and a gableGable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d entrance porch inscribed with the year 1834. Above this is a pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
, flush with the façade, whose tympanum
Tympanum (architecture)
In architecture, a tympanum is the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, bounded by a lintel and arch. It often contains sculpture or other imagery or ornaments. Most architectural styles include this element....
has an oculus
Oculus
An Oculus, circular window, or rain-hole is a feature of Classical architecture since the 16th century. They are often denoted by their French name, oeil de boeuf, or "bull's-eye". Such circular or oval windows express the presence of a mezzanine on a building's façade without competing for...
-style recess. A distinctive feature of the pediment is its use of alternate grey and red bricks laid in Flemish bond formation; the stretcher bricks (those with the long face showing) are red and the header bricks (whose short side is showing) are red, producing a regular pattern. The other walls are solely of red brick.
A cemetery survives behind the chapel, but it is not part of the conservation area; as of 2007, Lewes District Council were considering extending the area to include it.