St Alfege Church is an Anglican church in the centre of

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

, part of the

Royal Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

. It is of medieval origin and was rebuilt in 1712–1714 to the designs of

Nicholas Hawksmoor Nicholas Hawksmoor (probably 1661 – 25 March 1736) was an English architect. He was a leading figure of the English Baroque style of architecture in the late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth centuries. Hawksmoor worked alongside the principa ...

Early history

St Alfege Church, Greenwich, stained glass, Thomas Tallis

The church is dedicated to Alfege (also spelt "Alphege"), Archbishop of Canterbury, and reputedly marks the place where he was martyred on 19 April 1012, having been taken prisoner during the sack of Canterbury by Danish raiders the previous year. The Danes took him to their camp at Greenwich and killed him when the large ransom they demanded was not forthcoming. Accessed 5 July 2017 The church was rebuilt in around 1290, and Henry VIII was baptized there in 1491. The patronage of the church was given to the abbey at Ghent during the 13th century. Following the suppression of alien priories under

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1 ...

, it was granted to the priory at Sheen with which it remained until transferred to the Crown by exchange under Henry VIII in 1530. During a storm in 1710 the medieval church collapsed, its foundations having been weakened by burials both inside and outside.

The present church

St Alfege Church 1, Greenwich, London, UK - Diliff

Western End of Saint Alfege's Church, Greenwich (2)

Following the collapse of the medieval church, the present building was constructed, funded by a grant from the Commission for Building Fifty New Churches, to the designs of Nicholas Hawksmoor, one of the Commission's two surveyors. The first church to be built by the Commissioners, it was begun in 1712 and basic construction was completed in 1714; it was not, however, consecrated until 1718. The church was built by Edward Strong the Younger a friend of Christopher Wren the Younger. The church is rectangular in plan with a flat ceiling and a small apse serving as a chancel. The east front, towards the street, has a portico in the Tuscan order, with a central arch cutting through the entablature and pediment—a motif used in Wren's "Great Model" for St Paul's Cathedral. A

giant order In classical architecture, a giant order, also known as colossal order, is an order whose columns or pilasters span two (or more) storeys. At the same time, smaller orders may feature in arcades or window and door framings within the storeys tha ...

pilaster In classical architecture, a pilaster is an architectural element used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wal ...

s runs around the rest of the church, a feature Kerry Downes suggests may have been added by

Thomas Archer Thomas Archer (1668–1743) was an English Baroque architect, whose work is somewhat overshadowed by that of his contemporaries Sir John Vanbrugh and Nicholas Hawksmoor. His buildings are important as the only ones by an English Baroque archit ...

, who, according to the minutes of the Commission, "improved" Hawksmoor's plans. On the north and south sides of the churchwide projecting vestibules rise to the full height of the building, with steps leading up to the doors. Hawksmoor planned a west tower, in the position of the existing one, which had survived the collapse. However the Commission was reluctant to fund it, and the medieval tower was retained. In 1730 John James refaced it, and added a spire. Hawksmoor's design, published in an engraving in 1714, had an octagonal lantern at the top, a motif he was later to use at

St George in the East St George-in-the-East is an Anglican Church dedicated to Saint George and one of six Hawksmoor churches in London, England. It was built from 1714 to 1729, with funding from the 1711 Act of Parliament. Its name has been used for two forms of p ...

. The organ was installed in 2001, having been relocated from the Lower Chapel at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

, with some minor changes. It is an 1891

Lewis & Co Lewis and Company was a firm of organ builders founded by Thomas Christopher Lewis (1833–1915), one of the leading organ builders of late 19th Century Britain. Born in London in 1833, the son of Thomas Archdeacon Lewis (1780–1862), a secret ...

instrument, with modifications in 1927 by A. Hunter & Son and 1970 by

Harrison & Harrison Harrison & Harrison Ltd is a British company that makes and restores pipe organs, based in Durham and established in Rochdale in 1861. It is well known for its work on instruments such as King's College, Cambridge, Westminster Abbey, and the ...

. The previous organ had a long history. Of 16th century origin, it was restored in 1706 by

Thomas Swarbrick Thomas Swarbrick (c. 1675 – c. 1753) (sometime Schwarbrook) was an organ builder active in England in the eighteenth century. History He learned his trade as an apprentice to the famous builder Renatus Harris. He appears to be working on ...

, with further restorations and modifications by Dallam (1765), George England (1770) and J. W. Walker & Sons Ltd (1840, 1853 and 1863). In was further restored and rebuilt in 1875 by Joseph Robson and

Benjamin Flight Benjamin Flight (1767–1847), was an English organ builder and part of the firm Flight & Robson. Flight was the son of Benjamin Flight ( 1772–1805), who belonged to the organ building firm Flight & Kelly. With his son J. Flight and Joseph Rob ...

, modified by Lewis & Co in 1910 and rebuilt by R. Spurden Rutt & Co in 1934. By this point it had grown to 47 stops. It survived the bomb damage of 1941 and was rebuilt, again by R Spurden Rutt, in 1953, with 55 stops. The

National Pipe Organ Register The British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS) is a British organisation and registered charity which aims to promote study and appreciation of all aspects of the pipe organ. Further, it acts as a lobbying body to raise awareness of organ issue ...

does not record its present whereabouts. Additionally, there is a small, six-stop moveable organ located in the north aisle, by W & A Boggis of Diss from c 1960, with a later restoration by Mander Organs. The church had two churchyards, which were closed to burials in 1853. In 1889 they were transferred to the Greenwich District Board of Works. The later of the two churchyards was laid out as a garden and recreation ground by the landscape gardener

Fanny Wilkinson Fanny Wilkinson (1855–1951) was a British landscape designer. She was the first professional female landscape designer in Britain, and responsible for the design and the layout of more than 75 public gardens across London in the late 19th centu ...

, and opened in 1889. It was renamed St Alfege Park. Wilkinson planted 500 trees. The crypt served as an air-raid shelter during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. During the

Blitz Blitz, German for "lightning", may refer to: Military uses *Blitzkrieg, blitz campaign, or blitz, a type of military campaign *The Blitz, the German aerial campaign against Britain in the Second World War *, an Imperial German Navy light cruiser b ...

on 19 March 1941,

incendiary bomb Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, t ...

s landed on the roof causing it to collapse, burning into the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

. The walls and the tower remained standing but much of the interior was gutted. The church was restored by Sir

Albert Richardson Sir Albert Edward Richardson (London, 19 May 1880 – 3 February 1964) was a leading English architect, teacher and writer about architecture during the first half of the 20th century. He was Professor of Architecture at University College Lon ...

in 1953. As part of the post-war restorations, stencils of Mary the Mother of Jesus and St John the Evangelist were installed either side of the Cross (forming a traditional

rood A rood or rood cross, sometimes known as a triumphal cross, is a cross or crucifix, especially the large crucifix set above the entrance to the chancel of a medieval church. Alternatively, it is a large sculpture or painting of the crucifixion ...

) in the side chapel of St Alfege with St Peter by the

tempera Tempera (), also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder medium, usually glutinous material such as egg yolk. Tempera also refers to the paintings done ...

artist

Augustus Lunn Henry Augustus Lunn (always known as Augustus Lunn) (16 August 1905 – 1986) was a British artist and art teacher, best known for works with tempera and large mural paintings. Early life Lunn was born in Liverpool in 1905, the son of George Hen ...

. In 2015 a fund-raising cream tea garden party for

Christian Aid Christian Aid is the relief and development agency of 41 Christian (Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox) churches in the UK and Ireland, and works to support sustainable development, eradicate poverty, support civil society and provide disaster ...

, held in the churchyard after the Sunday

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. ...

, was stormed by armed police. An attendee said that the vicar's wife was “almost knocked over by a policeman with a huge

machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) ar ...

”, but “people just carried on drinking their tea” in a display of typical British fortitude even though “all these armed police bursting in was like the film ''

Hot Fuzz ''Hot Fuzz'' is a 2007 action comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Starring Pegg, Nick Frost, Timothy Dalton, and Jim Broadbent, the film centres on two police officers investigating a series of mysteriou ...

''”. The police proceeded to the adjacent St Alfege Park, where a man was arrested and a firearm found. The church is currently used to celebrate "Founder's Day" of Addey and Stanhope School and

The John Roan School The John Roan School is a co-educational secondary school and sixth form located in Greenwich, south-east London, England. History Grammar schools The current school was originally two grammar schools. The boys' school was founded in 1677 and t ...

Notables buried here

Notable people buried in and around the church include the Renaissance choirmaster and composer William Newark (died 1509, no surviving memorial), Richard Bower (died 1561),

Master of the Children of the Chapel Royal The Master of the Children of the Chapel Royal was the choirmaster of the Chapel Royal of England. They were responsible for the musical direction of the choir, which consisted of the Gentlemen of the Chapel and Children of the Chapel. In some per ...

1545-1561, the composer

Thomas Tallis Thomas Tallis (23 November 1585; also Tallys or Talles) was an English composer of High Renaissance music. His compositions are primarily vocal, and he occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral music. Tallis is considered one ...

(died 1585), the courtier Elizabeth Roper (died 1658),Daniel Lysons, The Environs of London: Counties of Herts, Essex & Kent, vol. 4 (London, 1796), p. 475. the merchant Sir John Lethieullier (died 1719) on the outer south-west corner of the church, the English-born explorer of Canada

Henry Kelsey Henry Kelsey ( – 1 November 1724) was an English fur trader, explorer, and sailor who played an important role in establishing the Hudson's Bay Company in Canada. He is the first recorded European to have visited the present-day provin ...

(died 1724), General

James Wolfe James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Quebec. ...

, the victor over the French in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

but who died in the process at the

Battle of the Plains of Abraham The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe ...

in 1759, the actress Lavinia Fenton (died 1760), and the MP Sir James Creed (died 1762) against the outer north wall.'Greenwich: The parish church', ''Old and New London'': Volume 6 (1878), pp. 190–205
Accessed 26 May 2007. Sarah Barrett Moulton, the Jamaican-born schoolgirl (1783–1795) who was the subject of the celebrated painting ''Pinkie'' (shown above right), was buried in the church after dying aged twelve, just a year after her portrait had been painted. The merchant,

Lloyd's Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...

underwriter Underwriting (UW) services are provided by some large financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies and investment houses, whereby they guarantee payment in case of damage or financial loss and accept the financial risk for liabilit ...

and art collector

John Julius Angerstein John Julius Angerstein (1735 – 22 January 1823) was a London businessman and Lloyd's underwriter, a patron of the fine arts and a collector. It was the prospect that his collection of paintings was about to be sold by his estate in 182 ...

(died 1823), who was a

churchwarden A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish or congregation of the Anglican Communion or Catholic Church, usually working as a part-time volunteer. In the Anglican tradition, holders of these positions are ''ex officio'' members of the parish b ...

in the early 19th century, is also buried here.

Literary connection

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

's novel '' Our Mutual Friend'', Bella Wilfer marries John Rokesmith in St Alfege Church. In

Tom McCarthy Thomas McCarthy (also Tom and Tommy) may refer to: Academia *Thomas A. McCarthy (born 1940), American professor of philosophy *Thomas J. McCarthy (born 1956), American professor of polymer chemistry at the University of Massachusetts *J. Thomas Mc ...

's novel '' C'', after a Marinettiesque car crash, Serge Carrefax laughs from his position within the upturned chassis. This laughter is "a pleasant noise; reminds him of liturgical chants and whispers echoing around St. Alfege's interior."

References

External links

*
Mystery Worshipper Report
at the Ship of Fools website {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Alfege Church, Greenwich Churches completed in 1702 18th-century Church of England church buildings

Grade I listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Greenwich

Rebuilt churches in the United Kingdom Nicholas Hawksmoor buildings English Baroque church buildings