All Saints Church is an active

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

church in the centre of the town of

Evesham Evesham () is a market town and parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon. It lies within the Vale of Evesha ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

, England. All Saints and its neighbour St Lawrence's Church were built by the

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monks of

Evesham Abbey Evesham Abbey was founded by Saint Egwin at Evesham in Worcestershire, England between 700 and 710 following an alleged vision of the Virgin Mary by a swineherd by the name of Eof. According to the monastic history, Evesham came through the No ...

in the 12th century to serve the people of Evesham. All Saints is now the town's

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

, as St Lawrence's was declared redundant in the 1970s. It has been designated as a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

by Historic England.

History

Intriguingly, the two parish churches share the same churchyard. After the Dissolution All Saints adopted a strongly Puritan method of preaching and worship (in common with many other English churches). This style lasted until, roughly, the major

Victorian restoration The Victorian restoration was the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria. It was not the same proce ...

(1872-6) by

Frederick Preedy Frederick Preedy (2 June 1820 – 28 March 1898) was an architect and glass painter in England. Life Preedy was born in Offenham near Evesham in Worcestershire and died at his son's home in Croydon. During his early life his family moved fro ...

, when All Saints moved to a

high church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...

(Anglo-Catholic) tradition of worship. Through the 1970s it became increasingly clear that the upkeep of two medieval churches, with all the attendant challenges and problems, was too great a burden for the two congregations. A series of meetings and discussions, led by the Revd Canon A. Webb, led to the decision to keep only one church: All Saints. The parish of St Lawrence, Evesham, was declared redundant on 8 December 1977. In the following year the church was vested in the Redundant Churches Fund (since 1994 called

Churches Conservation Trust The Churches Conservation Trust is a registered charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk in England. The charity cares for over 350 churches of architectural, cultural and historic significance, which have been transferred in ...

). and on 1 January 1978 the parishes of All Saints and St Lawrence were united. Following this amalgamation the worship at All Saints moved more to a ‘middle churchmanship’ style. All Saints Church, Evesham (5146)

Organ

The first-recorded church organ in All Saints was originally built for the Rotunda in

Ranelagh Gardens Ranelagh Gardens (; alternative spellings include Ranelegh and Ranleigh, the latter reflecting the English pronunciation) were public pleasure gardens located in Chelsea, then just outside London, England, in the 18th century. History The Ran ...

, Chelsea, where it may have been played by

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

. In 1805, after Rotunda had been broken up, the great reeds were taken out and the organ taken to Evesham. This organ was replaced as part of the Victorian restoration of the church. In 1875 a new organ, built by

Nicholson Nicholson may refer to: People *Nicholson (name), a surname, and a list of people with the name Places Australia * Nicholson, Victoria * Nicholson, Queensland * Nicholson County, New South Wales * Nicholson River (disambiguation) * Nicholson ...

with 3 manual positions and a pneumatic action, was installed in the new organ loft. In 1904, as a memorial of the foundation of Evesham Abbey (701) and the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901), the organ was enlarged and improved by the addition of a third manual pneumatic action and extra stops. In 1967 the organ was significantly enlarged by Nicholson. In 1991 the organ was significantly rebuilt by Nicholson, now with electronic controls and a mobile console.http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=K00135 6-JAN-2012 Reference: K00135

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evesham, All Saints Church of England church buildings in Worcestershire 12th-century church buildings in England Grade I listed churches in Worcestershire