St George's Church, Lisbon Explained

St George's Church, Lisbon
Architect:John Medland and
Charles Edward Powell
Style:Romanesque Revival
Years Built:1889
Denomination:Church of England
Country:Portugal
Chaplain:Rev. Elizabeth Bendry
Rev. Iain Bendry (Assistant Chaplain)
Rev. Frances le Blanc
Rev. Paula Rennie
Location:Rua São Jorge 6, Lisbon
Website:Anglican Church of St George and St Paul, Lisbon
Parish:Anglican Church of St George and St Paul, Lisbon
Archdeaconry:Gibraltar
Diocese:Europe
Province:Canterbury
Dedication:Saint George
Consecrated Date:17 March 1889

St George's Church is the only English speaking Anglican congregation in Lisbon, Portugal. It is located at Rua São Jorge 6, north of the Estrela Garden.

History

In 1654 a treaty between Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell of England and King John IV of Portugal (signed on his behalf by João Rodrigues de Sá e Menezes, Count of Penaguião) allowed English residents in Portugal to "profess their own Religion in private houses... and that finally a Place be allowed for them to bury their dead". A chaplaincy was established, with services held in the home of the British Envoy.[1]

Cemetery

See main article: British Cemetery, Lisbon. Although a burial ground had been promised by the 1654 treaty, implementation was thwarted by the Portuguese Inquisition. Land was finally leased in 1717;[2] the first burial was that of Francis La Roche, a Huguenot refugee, who died in 1724.[3]

Notable burials in the cemetery include the tombs of the writer Henry Fielding, of hymn-writer Philip Doddridge, of merchant David de Pury, astronomer Carl Ludwig Christian Rümker, Field Marshal of the Portuguese land army Christian August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont[4] and diplomat Thomas Barclay.

The cemetery includes 31 Commonwealth War Graves: five from the First World War and 26 from the Second.[5] 29 are in individual plots; two are in private family vaults. They include members of the British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Merchant Navy and British Overseas Airways Corporation.

Count Miklós Horthy, a Calvinist former Vice Admiral in the Austro-Hungarian Navy and Regent of Hungary, died in exile in Portugal and was buried in the cemetery, along with his wife and son. In 1993 they were exhumed, and re-interred in the Horthy family mausoleum in Kenderes.[6]

Church building

Anglicans in Portugal petitioned for permission to build a church, but until the early 19th century the Portuguese Inquisition prevailed on the monarch not to grant it. A church of St George the Martyr was built in the cemetery in 1822. That church was consecrated in 1843[7] but was damaged by earthquake in 1859.[8] It was rebuilt, but burnt down in 1886. The present church was designed by the London-based architects John Medland and Charles Edward Powell and consecrated in 1889.[1] It is a Romanesque Revival building with a narthex, blind arcades and rose window on its west front. The windows are by Lavers & Westlake.[9]

Anglican Church of St George and St Paul, Lisbon

In 1984, St George's Church, Lisbon was amalgamated with St Paul's Church, Estoril to form the Greater Lisbon Chaplaincy,[1] and is part of the Diocese in Europe of the Church of England. It is now named the Anglican Church of St George and St Paul, Lisbon.

Chaplains

Chaplains of St George's

In the early years there were many long periods of interregnum.[10] The last of these was from 1800 to 1812, due to the Peninsular War.

Chaplains of the Greater Lisbon Chaplaincy

Fincham pipe organ

When the existing church was designed, traditional choir stalls were included in front of the Sanctuary and Henry Fincham of London built and installed a two-manual pipe organ for £526.[23] It has 25 ranks with 61-note compass of the manuals and 30-note compass of the pedals. There were two minor changes to the Great organ which, in its original state, did not include mutation stops. The organ was restored in 1971.[24]

This is the current disposition of the organ after 125 years of use:

Great – I

Pedal

Swell – II

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The History of St George's Church . Greater Lisbon Chaplaincy . 13 August 2014.
  2. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 21.
  3. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 23.
  4. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 32.
  5. Web site: Lisbon (St George) British Churchyard . Cemetery details . Commonwealth War Graves Commission . 13 August 2014.
  6. Web site: Braham, Randolph L, "The Reinterment and Political Rehabilitation of Miklós Horthy", Slavic Almanach, Vol 2, 1993, pp 137-140 via Hungarian Spectrum, 15 September 2013. 15 September 2013 . 14 December 2020.
  7. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 43.
  8. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 44.
  9. Web site: Lisbon Anglicans: St George's – The Windows. 14 December 2020.
  10. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, pp 67-69.
  11. Web site: Clergy of the Church of England Database: Michael Geddes 124533. 14 December 2020.
  12. Web site: Clergy of the Church of England Database: Joseph Simms 3332. 14 December 2020.
  13. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 51.
  14. Crockford's Clerical Directory, 2006-07, 99th edition, p 23.
  15. Crockford's Clerical Directory, 2006-07, 99th edition, p 691.
  16. Crockford's Clerical Directory, 2006-07, 99th edition, p 112.
  17. Web site: Church Times, 14 September 2012. 14 December 2020.
  18. Web site: Church Times, 22 February 2013. 14 December 2020.
  19. Web site: Church Times, 8 August 2014. 14 December 2020.
  20. Web site: Church Times, 16 September 2016. 14 December 2020.
  21. Web site: Church Times, 1 June 2019. 14 December 2020.
  22. Web site: Church Times, 9 October 2020.
  23. Web site: Finchams: Henry Fincham. 14 December 2020.
  24. Hampton, John D and Staines, EN, History of the Lisbon Chaplaincy, 1989, 2nd edition, St George's Church Council, p 64.

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