St Mary le Port is a ruined
parish church in the centre of
Bristol, England, situated in
Castle Park on what remains of
Mary le Port Street.
History
St Mary le Port is said to have been founded in
Saxon
The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic
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peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
times after Anglo-Saxon foundations were found during archaeological excavations
[M Q Smith, The Medieval Churches of Bristol, University of Bristol (Bristol branch of the Historical Association), 1970, p. 4.] and Saxon pottery was found nearby.
[Bristol in the Early Middle Ages, University of Bristol (Bristol branch of the Historical Association), 1971, p6.] The church was rebuilt and enlarged between the 11th and 16th centuries.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries the church was a very popular centre of
evangelical,
Protestant, and
Calvinist teaching within Anglicanism.
The church was bombed in the
Second World War on 24 November 1940 during the
Bristol Blitz.
John Piper painted an evocative picture of the bombed St Mary le Port. This image appears on the 1/6d British
commemorative stamp, part of a set of four paintings by British artists issued in 1968. All that remains of the church is the 15th-century tower, a Grade II
listed building, and a
Scheduled Ancient Monument which during the latter years of the 20th century was surrounded by the incongruous modernist buildings of
Norwich Union and the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...
, which by the 2020s were both empty and had become semi-derelict eyesores, with further redevelopment proposed.
After the bombing in 1940 the congregation and their rector, William Dodgson-Sykes, moved to
St John on the Wall Church, where the congregation remained, in gradually declining numbers, till this church building was closed for worship by the
Church Commissioners
The Church Commissioners is a body which administers the property assets of the Church of England. It was established in 1948 and combined the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Eccle ...
in 1984 (after a protracted struggle by the congregation). The remaining congregation then moved to the
Chapel of Foster's Almshouses, and joined the
Church of England (Continuing) in 1995.
The C of E (Continuing) no longer lists a congregation in Bristol; some of the congregation joined with the new
Free Presbyterian Church (Ulster) congregation in
Horfield, Bristol.
Archives
Although many of the parish records of St Mary le Port church were destroyed when the church was bombed, some archive material is held at
Bristol Archives (Refs. P. StMP)
online catalogue and P.St JB/MLP
online catalogue including copies of baptism, marriage and burial registers. The archive also includes records of the
incumbent, churchwardens,
parochial church council, charities and schools, plus deeds.
Clergy of St Mary-le-Port church
The church's clergy have included:
* William Waite, rector, born 1764, died 1842, dates at St Mary le Port unknown
* William Tandey, curate 1784–1799 (lived 1750–1832)
*
James Marshall, rector 1842 – (born 23 February 1796, died 29 August 1855)
* Mr Thomas, rector, resigned 1857
* Samuel Abraham Walker, rector 1857–1879 (born Dublin, 1809, died 30 November 1879) (source,
The Gospel Magazine
The ''Gospel Magazine'' is a Calvinist, evangelical Christian magazine from the United Kingdom, and is one of the longest running of such periodicals, having been founded in 1766. Most of the editors have been Anglicans. It is currently published ...
, January, 1880)
* James Ormiston, rector 1880 (and as at the
1901 census) (previously at Old Hill, West Midlands; editor of
The Gospel Magazine
The ''Gospel Magazine'' is a Calvinist, evangelical Christian magazine from the United Kingdom, and is one of the longest running of such periodicals, having been founded in 1766. Most of the editors have been Anglicans. It is currently published ...
from 1895 to 1916)
* William Dodgson Sykes, rector (as at 1940) (editor of
The Gospel Magazine
The ''Gospel Magazine'' is a Calvinist, evangelical Christian magazine from the United Kingdom, and is one of the longest running of such periodicals, having been founded in 1766. Most of the editors have been Anglicans. It is currently published ...
from 1964 to 1975)
:: – son of
William Sykes (first President of the Sovereign Grace Union)
:: – Principal of the Bible Churchmen's Missionary and Theological College, later part of
Trinity College, Bristol
:: (
Bible Churchmen's Missionary Society
Crosslinks is an evangelical Anglican missionary society, drawing its support mainly from parishes in the Church of England and Church of Ireland. It was known as the Bible Churchmen's Missionary Society (BCMS) until 1992. The BCMS was created as ...
, now
Crosslinks
:: – Head of the
Irish Church Missions
See also
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Grade II listed buildings in Bristol
*
Churches in Bristol
References
External links
Details of clergy"About Bristol" page Tower of Church of St Mary-le-Port grade II listed from Images of EnglandBBC article on proposed 2005 development
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bristol, Saint Mary le Port
15th-century church buildings in England
Saint Mary le Port
Saint Mary le Port
Former Church of England church buildings
Grade II listed churches in Bristol
Saint Mary le Port
Ruins of churches destroyed during World War II
Saint Mary le Port
World War II sites in England
Grade II listed ruins