All Saints' Church is the oldest parish church in

Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's or ...

in the

London Borough of Hounslow The London Borough of Hounslow () is a London borough in West London, England, forming part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 when three smaller borough councils (forming part of the former Middlesex County Council area) amalgamated under ...

in south-west London. Its 14th-century Kentish ragstone tower and foundations are the only pre–20th-century parts to survive. It faces the Thames before Church Street skirts away from the river to pass

Syon Park Syon Park is the garden of Syon House, the London home of the Duke of Northumberland in Isleworth in the London Borough of Hounslow The London Borough of Hounslow () is a London borough in West London, England, forming part of Outer London. ...

. The parish itself is pre-Norman. A

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

replacing its

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

is recorded in 1290 in records associated with Syon Abbey who gave his family £2 and a new robe each year and daily meat and drink at the upper table in the abbey hall, while his servant was to be fed at the grooms' table. The patron of the church became the trustees of

St George's Chapel, Windsor St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is both a Royal Peculiar (a church under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch) and the Chapel of the Order of the Gart ...

, due to the dissolution of the monasteries. By the end of the 17th century, Sir

Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren PRS FRS (; – ) was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician-physicist. He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churches ...

was approached to draw plans for a new body of a much-dilapidated building. His project was deemed too expensive until 1705, when Sir Orlando Gee (MP), of Syon Hill in the parish, left £500 towards the work in his will; he is commemorated in a marble monument by

Francis Bird Francis Bird (1667–1731) was one of the leading English sculptors of his time. He is mainly remembered for sculptures in Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral. He carved a tomb for the dramatist William Congreve in Westminster Abbey and s ...

. This sum, combined with funds raised through subscriptions, ensured that the work took place (with modifications) in 1705–1706. The music theorist

Marmaduke Overend Marmaduke Overend ( 1730 – 1790) was a Welsh music theorist and organist. He served as Organist at All Saints Church, Isleworth for thirty years. He was a pupil of William Boyce, (1711–79). Boyce had been a pupil Johann Christoph Pepusch (16 ...

served as organist from 1760 to 1790. In 1943 a large fire, started by two boys who a few days later set fire to Holy Trinity Church in

Hounslow Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in Gr ...

, led to complete internal reconstruction in lighter materials. The inner body of the present church was built in 1970 by the architect Michael Blee, who designed much of

Douai Abbey Douai Abbey is a Benedictine Abbey at Upper Woolhampton, near Thatcham, in the English county of Berkshire, situated within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth. Monks from the monastery of St. Edmund's, in Douai, France, came to Woolhampton ...

, and the glazier Keith New; the 15th-century stone tower was retained. The

Grade II* listed 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 ...

church won a Civic Trust award in 1973.

References

{{LB Hounslow Church of England church buildings in the London Borough of Hounslow Grade II* listed churches in London Isleworth Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Hounslow