St Martin's Church is a church in the town of

Ruislip Ruislip ( ) is an area in the London Borough of Hillingdon in West London, and in the historic county of Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and some of the ear ...

, within the

London Borough of Hillingdon The London Borough of Hillingdon () is the largest and westernmost borough in West London, England. It was formed from the districts of Hayes and Harlington, Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the ceremonial county ...

. It has been designated since January 1950 by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

as a Grade I

listed building 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 ...

. The present

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...

and

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 ...

date back to the 13th century. The church stands at the northern end of Ruislip High Street, near the Manor Farm site.

History

A church for Ruislip appears in the 1086 ''

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

'' but is believed to have been replaced by the present church in 1245, when an increase in the parish population called for a larger building. Stones with markings from the Norman period have been found in the grounds, believed to be from the original building. While Ruislip was under the ownership of the

Bec Abbey Bec Abbey, formally the Abbey of Our Lady of Bec (french: Abbaye Notre-Dame du Bec), is a Benedictine monastic foundation in the Eure ''département'', in the Bec valley midway between the cities of Rouen and Bernay. It is located in Le Bec Hello ...

, the monks bestowed the name St. Martin upon the church, dedicating it to

Saint Martin of Tours Martin of Tours ( la, Sanctus Martinus Turonensis; 316/336 – 8 November 397), also known as Martin the Merciful, was the third bishop of Tours. He has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints in France, heralded as the ...

from

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

.Bowlt 2007, p. 10 The Proctor-General of the Bec Abbey, William de Guineville, is believed to have insisted upon the rebuilding of the church. He had held the position since 1242 and lived in the priory at Manor Farm. The first recorded vicar of the church was William de Berminton in 1327. Between 1404 and 1414, the Bec Abbey lost its lands following heavy taxation during the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...

. By 1422, the condition of the building had deteriorated, at which point it was given to the Dean and Canons of Windsor. They had the chancel built later in the 15th century, while the parishioners themselves rebuilt the south aisle in 1440. The church tower was also built in the 15th century with a set of bells. Thomas Bettz left £26 13 4d in his will in 1463 to pay for the repair of the bells. An extension to the south aisle was added in 1500.Bowlt 2007, p. 11 In 1870, the church building was substantially restored by the architect

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he started ...

.Newbery et al 1996 In 1958, the

rood beam The rood screen (also choir screen, chancel screen, or jubé) is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, o ...

was added as a memorial to the local Gower family. The Ruislip war memorial dedicated to those killed in the

First World War 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 ...

was moved from its original position in the church graveyard in 1976, to be near the entrance to Manor Farm. On 29 June 2021, the PCC of St Martin’s passed a resolution under the House of Bishops' Declaration. The resolution was re-affirmed by a vote of the PCC on 23 November 2021 but rescinded on 27 April 2022.

Notable memorials

* Lady Mary Bankes (or Banckes), defender of

Corfe Castle Corfe Castle is a fortification standing above the village of the same name on the Isle of Purbeck peninsula in the English county of Dorset. Built by William the Conqueror, the castle dates to the 11th century and commands a gap in the P ...

against the Parliamentarians in 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 ...

, who was born in RuislipGreen 1987, p. 55 *

Sir John Anderson John Anderson, 1st Viscount Waverley, (8 July 1882 – 4 January 1958) was a Scottish civil servant and politician who is best known for his service in the War Cabinet during the Second World War, for which he was nicknamed the "Home Front Pr ...

(1852–1924), Scottish merchant *

Elisabeth Schumann Elisabeth Schumann (13 June 1888 – 23 April 1952) was a German soprano who sang in opera, operetta, oratorio, and lieder. She left a substantial legacy of recordings. Career Born in Merseburg, Schumann trained for a singing career in B ...

(1888-1952), German opera and lieder singer * Jessie Matthews OBE (1907-1981), British film and stage entertainer

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * Bowlt, Eileen. M. (2007) ''Around Ruislip, Eastcote, Northwood, Ickenham & Harefield''. Stroud: Sutton Publishing * Green, Oliver (editor). (1987 edition) ''Metro-Land''. Oldcastle Books * Newbery, Maria; Cotton, Carolynne; Packham, Julie Ann; Jones, Gwyn. (1996) ''Around Ruislip''. Stroud: The Chalfont Publishing Company

External links

St Martin's Church, Ruislip

St Martin's Church circa 1950 - Francis Frith
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruislip, Saint Martin Churches completed in 1245 13th-century church buildings in England Church of England church buildings in the London Borough of Hillingdon Diocese of London English churches with Norman architecture History of the London Borough of Hillingdon Anglo-Catholic church buildings in the London Borough of Hillingdon Grade I listed churches in London