St John the Baptist Church is a Grade I

listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

Church of England parish church in the city of

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

, now

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Location

The present St John the Baptist Church is situated in Cathedral Square and is only a few minutes walk away from

Peterborough Cathedral Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Pau ...

. This seemingly strange state of affairs is due to the fact that the cathedral was for the monks and the church for the townspeople. It is officially designated as Peterborough's parish church and, as such, its vicar bears the title of the Vicar of Peterborough. There are several other Anglican churches throughout the city.

History

The original parish church, dating from the 11th century, was some distance to the east of the current location, on the site now occupied by Bishop Creighton Academy. When the centre of Peterborough moved west, the church was relocated stone by stone. Construction of the current church began in 1402 and it was dedicated to St John the Baptist on 26 June 1407. Two royal funerals took place at the nearby Cathedral during the 16th century,

Katherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was Queen of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until their annulment on 23 May 1533. She was previously P ...

(1536) and

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

(1587). They were both buried by the same sexton of St John's, Robert Scarlett and the bells of St John's Church rang for both funerals. Following the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

, in 1651 permission was granted by

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

to demolish the church and use it as building materials, though the plan did not go ahead. Restoration in 1819 'brutally swept away' old features and added clerestory and galleries. In 1882-3

John Loughborough Pearson John Loughborough Pearson (5 July 1817 – 11 December 1897) was a British Gothic Revival architect renowned for his work on churches and cathedrals. Pearson revived and practised largely the art of vaulting, and acquired in it a proficiency ...

provided new roofs, new clerestory, aisle parapets, and tracery. The galleries were removed, the east window unblocked and raised, floors lowered and a new pulpit added. This restoration work was for Revd Henry Syers and designed in 1880. The builder was John Thompson and the cost was £11,000. The church was refurnished in High Anglican manner in 1938 and incorporated a new rood and elaborately painted and gilded timber reredos with carved figures under heavily traceried canopies. The figures were carved by

Mahomet Thomas Phillips Mahomet Thomas Phillips (1 June 1876 – 7 June 1943) was an English-Congolese sculptor and stone carver. His work features in cathedrals and churches in England and beyond, including in a memorial to Edith Cavell in Peterborough Cathedral, and a ...

while working at Bowman & Sons of Stamford. In 1968 a new stained-glass window, designed by Brian Thomas, was installed. It depicts notable people connected to Peterborough: Symon Gunton, vicar of the parish during the plague, between 1665 and 1667 (d.1676), Nurse

Edith Cavell Edith Louisa Cavell ( ; 4 December 1865 – 12 October 1915) was a British nurse. She is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers from both sides without discrimination and for helping some 200 Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Be ...

(d. 1915), Captain Thomas Mellows (d. 1944, fighting in the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

), and

William Law William Law (16869 April 1761) was a Church of England priest who lost his position at Emmanuel College, Cambridge when his conscience would not allow him to take the required oath of allegiance to the first Hanoverian monarch, King George I. P ...

(d. 1761). The window is dedicated to James Ruddle (1830-1898) and to his wife Edith. James Ruddle was a prominent local architect who worked extensively in the Peterborough area and was the son of local carpenter

Francis Ruddle Francis Ruddle (23 November 17989 February 1882) was a 19th-century master builder and carpenter, born and based in Peterborough. His carpentry work includes the choir stalls in place at Westminster Abbey in London. Ruddle carried out much of ...

. St John the Baptist received a Grade I heritage listing in 1952 as a prominent and "architecturally ambitious parish church... exemplifying Perpendicular town church design." Its "very fine" south porch, 15th century font, 20th century screens, interesting monuments and tombs were also noted.

References

External links

St John the Baptist Church website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John the Baptist Church, Peterborough Anglican Diocese of Peterborough Peterborough, Saint John Grade I listed buildings in Peterborough Peterborough, Saint John Peterborough, Saint John Churches in Peterborough