The Church of the Holy Angels is an Anglican church in

Hoar Cross Hoar Cross is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of East Staffordshire, situated approximately west of Burton upon Trent. History Hoarcross, as it was then called, was enclosed like the nearby Chartley Park from Needwood Forest. ...

, Staffordshire, England. It is 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 ...

History

It was built by the pious

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglica ...

, Emily Charlotte Meynell Ingram (sister of

Charles Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax Charles Lindley Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax, (7 June 1839 – 19 January 1934), was a British Anglo-Catholic ecumenist who served as president of the English Church Union from 1868 to 1919, and from 1927 to 1934. In 1886, he was a former part ...

) in memory of

Hugo Francis Meynell Ingram Hugo Francis Meynell-Ingram (1822 – 26 May 1871) was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for West Staffordshire from 1868 to 1871. Meynell-Ingram was the son of Hugo Meynell and his wife G ...

who died in May 1871. The architects were

George Frederick Bodley George Frederick Bodley (14 March 182721 October 1907) was an English Gothic Revival architect. He was a pupil of Sir George Gilbert Scott, and worked in partnership with Thomas Garner for much of his career. He was one of the founders of Watt ...

and

Thomas Garner Thomas Garner (1839–1906) was one of the leading English Gothic revival architects of the Victorian era. He is known for his almost 30-year partnership with architect George Frederick Bodley. Early life Born at Wasperton Hill Farm in Warw ...

. Work started in 1872 and the church dedication took place on 22 April 1876. Further extension and additions took place until the church achieved its present form in 1906. John Betjeman described the church as "the masterpiece of its late Victorian architect G.F. Bodley" and "great architecture; original, well massed, well sited, well detailed; very English".

Present day

From 2008, the Church received

alternative episcopal oversight A provincial episcopal visitor (PEV), popularly known as a flying bishop, is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who on grounds of theological conviction, "are unable to receive the ministry of ...

from the Bishop of Ebbsfleet, as the parish does not accept the ordination of women to the priesthood or episcopate. This oversight was transferred in 2023 to the

Bishop of Oswestry __NOTOC__ The Bishop of Oswestry is a suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Lichfield who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. Background Following the first ordinations of women in 1993 to the priesthood in ...

Organ

The organ was originally built by Samuel Green in 1779 for Bangor Cathedral. It was installed in Hoar Cross by Bishop and Son in 1876 and enlarged by Conacher in 1935. As a result of a very generous donation, it underwent extensive repair and finished at the end of 2012. An electronic organ was used temporarily for services. The specification of the pipe organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register at.

Timeline

* 1872 Construction started * 1876 Services start in April * 1891 North side

Lady Chapel A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British English, British term for a chapel dedicated to "Our Lady", Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church (building), church. The chapels are also known as ...

added * 1900 South side All Souls Chapel added * 1906

Narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex ...

added * 1935 Bells rehung and organ enlarged

Gallery

File:HolyAngelsHoarCross2.JPG, The

liturgical east Liturgical east and west is a concept in the orientation of churches. It refers to the fact that the end of a church which has the altar, for symbolic religious reasons, is traditionally on the east side of the church (to the right in a diagram) ...

end of the Church. The

Chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or # a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area i ...

Chapel and the All Souls Chapel are to the left of the picture File:Chancel in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

and

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganis ...

File:Tower crossing and rood screen in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The tower crossing and rood screen File:Rood screen in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The rood screen File:HolyAngelsHoarCross7.JPG, The hymnboard File:Font in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The font

References

*''The Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross. Church guidebook''. 4th edition 1996. *Pevsner, N. (1974) ''Staffordshire''

The Buildings of England ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

. Penguin Books

External links

Church website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoar Cross, Church of the Holy Angels Tourist attractions in Staffordshire Church of England church buildings in the Borough of East Staffordshire Gothic Revival church buildings in England Holy Angels, Hoar Cross Grade I listed churches in Staffordshire Anglo-Catholic church buildings in Staffordshire

George Frederick Bodley church buildings