Edmund Sedding (20 June 1836 – 1868) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

architect and musician.

Biography

Sedding, son of Richard and Peninnah Sedding of Summerstown, near

Okehampton Okehampton ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in West Devon in the English county of Devon. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor, and had a population of 5,922 at the 2011 census. Two electoral wards are based i ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, was born on 20 June 1836:

John Dando Sedding John Dando Sedding (13 April 1838 – 7 April 1891) was an English church architect, working on new buildings and repair work, with an interest in a "crafted Gothic" style. He was an influential figure in the Arts and Crafts movement, many of wh ...

was his younger brother. He early displayed antiquarian tastes, which led to his visiting cathedrals, abbeys, and churches in England and France. In 1853 he entered the office of

George Edmund Street George Edmund Street (20 June 1824 – 18 December 1881), also known as G. E. Street, was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex. Stylistically, Street was a leading practitioner of the Victorian Gothic Revival. Though mainly an eccle ...

, where he devoted himself to the study of

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture (or pointed architecture) is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It e ...

. For some time he resided as an architect in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, and, after again spending a period in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, removed about 1862 to

Penzance Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...

, where he obtained a large practice. In

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

he built or restored the churches of

Gwithian Gwithian ( kw, Godhyan) is a coastal village in west Cornwall, England. It is three miles (5 km) north-east of Hayle and four miles (6.5 km) east of St Ives, Cornwall across St Ives Bay. Gwithian is in the civil parish of Gwinear-Gwi ...

Wendron Wendron ( kw, Egloswendron (village), Pluw Wendron (parish); historically St. Wendron) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, to the north of Helston. The parish population at the 2011 census was 2,743. The electora ...

Altarnun Altarnun ( ; kw, Alternonn) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is located west of Launceston on the north-eastern edge of Bodmin Moor at . The parish of Altarnun includes the village of Fivelanes and the ha ...

, North Hill, Ruan Major (modified during restoration), St. Peter's,

Newlyn Newlyn ( kw, Lulyn: Lu 'fleet', Lynn/Lydn 'pool') is a seaside town and fishing port (the largest fishing port in England) in south-west Cornwall, UK.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 203 ''Land's End'' Newlyn lies on the shore of Mount ...

, and St Stephens by Launceston, while he had in progress at the time of his death a new church, St Martin's at Marple in Cheshire, together with its rectory History of St Martin's Church - Anthony Burton and two churches in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, the restoration of

Bigbury Bigbury is a village and civil parish in the South Hams district of Devon, England. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 582, compared to 260 in 1901, and decreasing to 500 in 2011. The southern side of the parish lies on ...

church, and a mansion at

Hayle Hayle ( kw, Heyl, "estuary") is a port town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River (which discharges into St Ives Bay) and is approximately seven miles (11 km) northeast of Penzance. ...

for Mr. W. J. Rawlings. Sedding was a performer on the

harmonium The pump organ is a type of free-reed organ that generates sound as air flows past a vibrating piece of thin metal in a frame. The piece of metal is called a reed. Specific types of pump organ include the reed organ, harmonium, and melodeon. T ...

and

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

, and an admirer of ancient church music. He was for a time

precentor A precentor is a person who helps facilitate worship. The details vary depending on the religion, denomination, and era in question. The Latin derivation is ''præcentor'', from cantor, meaning "the one who sings before" (or alternatively, "first ...

of the church of St. Raphael the Archangel, Bristol, and organist of St. Mary the Virgin,

Soho Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century. The area was develop ...

. He greatly exerted himself in the revival of carol singing, and his books of

Christmas carols Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

were very popular. In 1865 his health failed, and he died at Penzance on 11 June 1868, being buried at

Madron Madron ( kw, Eglos Madern) is a civil parish and village in west Cornwall, Great Britain. Madron is named after Saint Madern's Church. Its annual Trafalgar Service commemorating the death of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson was started on 27 Octo ...

on 16 June. He married, on 18 August 1862, Jessie, daughter of John Proctor, chemist of Penzance, by whom he left four children, including the architect E. H. Sedding.

Compositions

His chief musical compositions were: # ''A Collection of Nine Antient Christmas Carols for four voices'', 1860 (6th edition 1864) # ''Jerusalem the Golden: a hymn'', 1861 # ''Seven Ancient Carols for four voices'', 1863 (2nd edition 1864) # ''Five Hymns of ye Holy Eastern Church'', 1864 # ''Sun of my Soul: a hymn set to music in four parts'', 1864 # ''Litany of the Passion'', 1865 # ''The Harvest is the end of the World'', 1865 # ''Be we merry in this Feast: a carol'', 1866 * He supplied 15

quarto Quarto (abbreviated Qto, 4to or 4º) is the format of a book or pamphlet produced from full sheets printed with eight pages of text, four to a side, then folded twice to produce four leaves. The leaves are then trimmed along the folds to produc ...

pages of illustrations for F. G. Lee's ''Directorium Anglicanum'' (2nd edition 1865)

Sources

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sedding, Edmund 1868 deaths 1836 births People from Okehampton Architects from Devon 19th-century English architects English organists British male organists English hymnwriters Musicians from Devon 19th-century English musicians 19th-century British male musicians 19th-century organists