St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge Explained

Denomination:Church of England
St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge
Country:England
Coordinates:51.5015°N -0.1557°W
Location:32a Wilton Place, Knightsbridge, London SW1X 8SH
Churchmanship:Anglo-Catholic
Website:stpaulsknightsbridge.org
Dedication:Saint Paul
Heritage Designation:Grade II*
Designated Date:24-Feb-1958
Architect:Thomas Cundy the younger
Style:Victorian Gothic
Years Built:1843
Parish:St Paul, Wilton Place
Deanery:Westminster (St Margaret)
Archdeaconry:Charing Cross
Diocese:London
Province:Canterbury
Archbishop:Archbishop of Canterbury
Bishop:Bishop of London
Vicar:Alan Gyle
Honpriest:Michael Colclough
Victor Stock

St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, is an English Grade II* listed Anglican church of the Anglo-Catholic tradition located at 32a Wilton Place in Knightsbridge, London.

History and architecture

The church was founded in 1843, the first in London to champion the ideals of the Oxford Movement, during the incumbency of the Rev. W. J. E. Bennett. The architect was Thomas Cundy the younger.[1]

After the building's consecration in 1843, the chancel with its rood screen and striking reredos was added in 1892 by the noted church architect George Frederick Bodley, who also decorated St Luke's chapel, which stands in the place of a lady chapel to the south of the sanctuary, the lady chapel of St Paul's having traditionally been seen as being the church of St Mary's, Bourne Street.

The tiled panels around the walls of the nave, created in the 1870s by Daniel Bell, depict scenes from the life of Jesus. The stations of the cross that intersperse the tiled panels, painted in the early 1920s by Gerald Moira, show scenes from the crucifixion story. The font dates from 1842 and is carved with biblical scenes from both the Old and New testaments. There are statues of the Virgin and Child (1896) above the entrance to the chapel and of St Paul (1902) above the lectern.[2]

A memorial in the church commemorates 52 members of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry who died on active service during the Second World War while carrying out secret intelligence work for the Special Operations Executive in occupied countries in addition to providing transport drivers for the Auxiliary Territorial Service. Among the names on the memorial are three holders of the George Cross.[3]

St Paul's sister parish is the Church of St. Paul's, K street, in Washington, D.C., in the United States.

Notable events

Weddings

Funerals and memorial services

External links

Notes and References

  1. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, subscription-based online edition, retrieved 25 November 2011.
  2. Web site: History St Paul's Church - Knightsbridge . www.stpaulsknightsbridge.org . 26 November 2014 . 2017-09-29 . 31 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170831044149/https://www.stpaulsknightsbridge.org/who-we-are/history/ . live .
  3. Web site: Women's Transport Service | St Paul's Church Memorial, Belgravia, London . stephen-stratford.com . 30 July 2016 . 5 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170905005403/http://www.stephen-stratford.com/wts.htm . live .
  4. https://www.nytimes.com/1977/02/04/archives/british-nobility-turns-out-for-traditional-blueblooded-wedding.html New York Times website, British Nobility Turns Out for Traditional Blue‐Blooded Wedding, article by Peter T. Kilborn, dated February 4, 1977
  5. https://premierchristian.news/en/news/article/london-church-hosts-celebrity-wedding Premier Christian News website, London church hosts celebrity wedding