St Martin's Church is an active Anglican church in

Knebworth Knebworth is a village and civil parish in the north of Hertfordshire, England, immediately south of Stevenage. The civil parish covers an area between the villages of Datchworth, Woolmer Green, Codicote, Kimpton, Whitwell, St Paul's Walden ...

, Hertfordshire, England. The building, which is designated

grade II* 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 ...

, was designed by Edwin Lutyens in an Italianate style. It is constructed in brick.

History

The church was built to serve the expanding settlement on the Great North Road near

Knebworth railway station Knebworth railway station serves the village of Knebworth in Hertfordshire, England. It is from on the East Coast Main Line. Train services are currently provided by Thameslink. History The main line of the Great Northern Railway was comple ...

, over a mile from the medieval parish church St Mary and St Thomas. Before

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

there was a plan by the local landowners, the Bulwer-Lytton family, to develop Knebworth as a type of garden village. This plan was only partly realised, but it resulted in several commissions for Lutyens including a clubhouse for the local golf course and Homewood, a

dower house A dower house is usually a moderately large house available for use by the widow of the previous owner of an English, Scottish or Welsh estate. The widow, often known as the "dowager", usually moves into the dower house from the larger family ...

for his mother-in-law,

Edith Bulwer-Lytton, Countess of Lytton Edith Bulwer-Lytton, Countess of Lytton, (née Villiers; 15 September 1841 – 17 September 1936) was a British aristocrat. As the wife of Robert Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton, she was vicereine of India. After his death, she was a court-a ...

. Construction began in 1914, but the building was not completed according to the architect's intentions. When the church was consecrated in 1915, it was in an incomplete state because of cutbacks caused by World War I. The west front was added in the 1960s and was designed 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 ...

. Richardson did not follow Lutyens' intention to give the church a portico, but his contribution has been described as "harmonious".

Interior

The plastered interior features limited use of Portland stone. The aisles are separated from the nave by small arches on

Tuscan column The Tuscan order (Latin ''Ordo Tuscanicus'' or ''Ordo Tuscanus'', with the meaning of Etruscan order) is one of the two classical orders developed by the Romans, the other being the composite order. It is influenced by the Doric order, but with ...

Conservation

On 27 May 1968, the church was designated a grade II* listed building.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Martin's Church, Knebworth

Buildings and structures in North Hertfordshire District Neoclassical architecture in Hertfordshire Works of Edwin Lutyens in England Knebworth Neoclassical church buildings in England

History

Interior

Conservation

See also

References

External links