Little St Mary's or St Mary the Less is a

Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ca ...

in Cambridge, England, on Trumpington Street between Pembroke College's Mill Lane Project development site and Peterhouse. The church Is in the

Diocese of Ely The Diocese of Ely is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury. It is headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in Ely. There is one suffragan (subordinate) bishop, the Bishop of Huntingdon. The diocese now co ...

and follows the ' Anglo-Catholic' or ' high-church' tradition of the Church of England. In addition to its main Sunday Mass, the church has a strong tradition of daily morning and

evening prayer Evening Prayer refers to: : Evening Prayer (Anglican), an Anglican liturgical service which takes place after midday, generally late afternoon or evening. When significant components of the liturgy are sung, the service is referred to as "Evensong ...

, regular weekday Communion and the keeping of church festivals. The church has a particular ministry helping men and women to explore possible vocations to the priesthood. Little St Mary's has active overseas mission links, provides support to local mental health projects, and participates in Hope Cambridge's Churches Homeless Project. At present, the vicar is The Rev. Dr Robert Mackley.

History

There has been a place of worship on the current site since around the twelfth century. The earliest known records of the church state that the first church here was called St Peter-without-Trumpington Gate, to distinguish it from St Peter by the Castle (or ''ad castrum''). It was controlled by three successive generations of the same family until 1207. After that date it was given to the Hospital of St John the Evangelist and served by chaplains from that foundation. In the early 1280s, Hugh de Balsham,

Bishop of Ely The Bishop of Ely is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire (with the exception of the Soke of Peterborough), together with a section of nort ...

, lodged some scholars in the Hospital but to his dismay found soon that the sick and the students could not live in harmony together. The students were moved in 1284 to the site of what is now Peterhouse; this was the origin of the first Cambridge college. By the 1340s the church was in such a bad state that the fellows of Peterhouse decided to rebuild it. In 1352, the new building had the dual purpose of College Chapel (to Peterhouse) and Parish Church. At this time, it was rededicated to the

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

. In 1632 Peterhouse built a separate Chapel and St Mary the Less reverted to being solely a Parish Church. Richard Crashaw, the metaphysical poet, was a priest there from 1638 to 1643, at the same time that he was a Fellow of Peterhouse. In 1643, after his departure, many of the Church's ornaments and statues were damaged or destroyed by the Puritan iconoclast William Dowsing. The damage to the sedilia and the archway leading to the present-day Lady Chapel has never been repaired. In 1741 the church was refitted with wooden panelling, box pews, choir gallery, and the present

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

. From 1856–7 Sir George Gilbert Scott restored the church and removed the 18th-century panelling. Further restoration work was carried out in 1876 and 1891, but by 1880 the church was much as it is now. The south, or Lady, Chapel was added in 1931 and designed by T. H. Lyon, the architect of Sidney Sussex College Chapel. The Parish Centre at the west end of the church was built in 1892 and enlarged in 1990 and again in 2011. The Reverend Godfrey Washington (the great uncle of US President George Washington), who died on 28 September 1729, is buried in Little St Mary's. His memorial is on the north wall close to the main door. The

coat of arms of the Washington family The coat of arms of the Washington family is first documented in the 14th century, borne by the Washington family of Washington Old Hall in County Durham, England before making its way to the Colony of Virginia in the 17th century with G ...

, a black eagle atop a shield of red stars and stripes, adorns the tablet. It is from this coat of arms that the 'Stars and Stripes' of the U.S. National Flag, and the U.S. black eagle emblem, may derive. Little St Mary's has been a Grade II* listed building since 1950.

Stained glass

File:North-east window of Little St Mary's Church - geograph.org.uk - 1563060.jpg, North-east window, by Charles Eamer Kempe File:Stained glass in Little St Mary's church - geograph.org.uk - 708570.jpg, Stained glass by Harry Stammers, depicting the Finding of Christ in the Temple File:SS Michael and Gabriel - geograph.org.uk - 708566.jpg, SS Michael and Gabriel by John Samuel Bucknall (1917-1989) File:SS Stephen and Martin - geograph.org.uk - 708560.jpg, SS Stephen and Martin by

F. C. Eden Frederick Charles Eden (8 March 1864 – 15 July 1944) was an English church architect and designer. Frederick Eden was born in Brighton, Sussex, England. He was the son of Frederick Morton Eden and Louisa Ann Parker. Eden was a pupil and later ...

, installed in 1936 in memory of Edwin Charles Ogle File:St Andrew and St Elisabeth - geograph.org.uk - 1608075.jpg, St Andrew and St Elisabeth by F. C. Eden File:St Teresa and St Nicholas - geograph.org.uk - 1608090.jpg, St Teresa and St Nicholas. Left-hand half of a four-light window by F. C. Eden, placed in memory of Mary Hamblin Clay (1860-1929) File:St Francis and St Monica - geograph.org.uk - 1608097.jpg, St Francis and St Monica. Right-hand half of a four-light window by F. C. Eden, placed in memory of Mary Hamblin Clay (1860-1929)

References

External links

Church website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mary The Less, Cambridge Church of England church buildings in Cambridge Cambridge Anglo-Catholic church buildings in Cambridgeshire Grade II* listed buildings in Cambridge