St Mary on Paddington Green is an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

church in the Parish of

Little Venice Little Venice is a district in West London, England, around the junction of the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, the Regent's Canal, and the entrance to Paddington Basin. The junction forms a triangular shape basin. Many of the buildi ...

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and forms part of

Paddington Green conservation area Paddington Green is a green space and conservation area in the City of Westminster located off Edgware Road and adjacent to the Westway (London), Westway. It is the oldest part of Paddington and became a separate conservation area in 1988, having ...

. Today it stands at the junction of Edgware Road and Harrow Road, overlooking the East end of Westway and the approaches to Marylebone Flyover, so seen by tens of thousands of motorists daily.

History

The present building is the third church on the site, once forming a centrepiece of the ancient villages of Paddington and Lilestone.

John Donne John Donne ( ; 22 January 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under royal patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's ...

preached his first sermon in the original church and

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraver, pictorial satirist, social critic, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like s ...

was married in the second.Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert, ''The London Encyclopaedia'', Papermac, 1987, p. 743 St Mary on Paddington Green with grounds

St Mary on Paddington Green with grounds

The current

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

church was commissioned in 1788 and

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

in 1791. Designed by

John Plaw John Plaw (1745-1820) was an architect who was born in London but later emigrated to the Colony of Prince Edward Island in North America. He is known for favouring circular designs in the classical style. There are two known surviving examples ...

with a Greek Cross ground plan, in yellow London stock brick dressed with white stone. It is one of two confirmed surviving buildings by Plaw in the UK, along with Belle Isle on

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautology (language), tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere, Cumbria (town), Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in leng ...

. A further building in

Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romford ...

, known as The Round House, has been attributed to him. John Plaw later worked in

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

before emigrating to

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 ...

, where he designed several public and private buildings. The church was altered in the 19th century but was restored to its mid-Georgian appearance by architect

Raymond Erith Raymond Charles Erith Royal Academy of Arts, RA FRIBA (7 August 1904 – 30 November 1973) was a leading classical architect in England during the period dominated by the modern movement after the Second World War. His work demonstrates his contin ...

in the early 1970s using some of the compensation for the construction of the urban motorway Westway, alongside the church. Restoration included the chancel being reinstated in its original form, the nave reseated with

box pews A box pew is a type of church pew that is encased in panelling and was prevalent in England and other Protestant countries from the 16th to early 19th centuries. History in England Before the rise of Protestantism, seating was not customary in chu ...

and the organ moved to the West end.Lucy Archer, "Raymond Erith, Architect", 1985, p.205, ISBN 0907435041 The organ case is dedicated as a memorial to Erith. The church houses monuments to some of the area's residents, including sculptor Joseph Nollekens and lexicographer

Peter Mark Roget Peter Mark Roget ( ; 18 January 1779 – 12 September 1869) was a British physician, natural theologian, lexicographer and founding secretary of The Portico Library. He is best known for publishing, in 1852, the '' Thesaurus of English Words ...

St Mary’s Churchyard

The adjoining churchyard was converted to a public park in the 1890s and is now known as St Mary's Gardens. It consists of grass with scattered trees. The grave of well-known 18th-century actress

Sarah Siddons Sarah Siddons (''née'' Kemble; 5 July 1755 – 8 June 1831) was a Welsh actress, the best-known tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified". She was the elder sister of John ...

is located towards the northern end. Some headstones from the former churchyard are stacked against the west wall of the Gardens. The southern part of the churchyard was destroyed to make way for the approaches to Marylebone Flyover in the 1960s, with exhumed burials being reinterred in an area of

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18, ...

cemetery and marked with a plaque. St Mary's Paddington Green Reburials

Notable burials

Remaining Churchyard

*Rev Dawson Burns (1828–1909), temperance leader *

William Chandless William Chandless (7 November 1829–5 May 1896) was an English explorer of the Amazon Basin in the 1860s. Life During his time in the Amazon he lived in Manaus (now the capital of Brazil's Amazonas state) from where he explored many of ...

(1829–1896), Amazon explorer *Rev

Alexander Geddes Alexander Geddes (14 September 1737 – 26 February 1802) was a Scottish theologian and scholar. He translated a major part of the Old Testament of the Catholic Bible into English. Translations and commentaries Geddes was born at Rathven, B ...

(1737–1802), Biblical scholar * Arthur Roberts (1852–1933), comedian *Basil Owen Woodd (1760–1831), hymn writer (erected by the Crosse baronets) *

Leonard Charles Wyon Leonard Charles Wyon (23 November 1826 – 20 August 1891) was a British Engraving, engraver of the Victorian era most notable for his work on Jubilee coinage, the gold and silver coinage struck for the Golden Jubilee of Victoria of the United ...

(1826–1891), engraver and coin-designer *Sir

Stephen Spender Sir Stephen Harold Spender (28 February 1909 – 16 July 1995) was an English poet, novelist and essayist whose work concentrated on themes of social injustice and the class struggle. He was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry by the ...

(1909–1995), poet

St Mary's Gardens

Thomas Banks Thomas Banks (29 December 1735 – 2 February 1805) was an important 18th-century English sculptor. Life The son of William Banks, a Surveyor (surveying), surveyor who was land steward to the Duke of Beaufort, he was born in London. He was e ...

(1735–1805), sculptor *

Thomas Blore Thomas Blore (1754–1818) was an English topographer. Life Blore was born at Ashbourne, Derbyshire, on 1 December 1764. He received his education at the grammar school there, and afterwards became a solicitor at Derby. He then moved to Hopton ...

(1754–1818), historian * William Collins RA (1788–1847), artist * Matthew Dubourg (1703–1767), violinist *

Benjamin Haydon Benjamin Robert Haydon (; 26 January 178622 June 1846) was a British painter who specialised in grand historical pictures, although he also painted a few contemporary subjects and portraits. His commercial success was damaged by his often tactles ...

, (1786–1846) painter * Joseph Nollekens (1737–1823), sculptor, and his father,

Joseph Francis Nollekens Josef Frans Nollekens'' or ''Joseph Frans Nollekens (1702–1748)Josef Frans Nollekens
at t ...

, artist *

Emma Paterson Emma Anne Paterson (''née'' Smith; 5 April 1848 – 1 December 1886) was an English feminist and trade unionist. Life Emma Anne Smith was born in London on 5 April 1848, the daughter of Henry Smith (died 1864), headmaster of a school in St ...

(1846–1886), feminist and unionist *

Thomas Richmond Thomas Richmond (1802–1874) was a British portrait painter, known for his idealised pictures in the so-called keepsake style. He was the son of Thomas Richmond (1771–1837), the miniature painter, and the brother of George Richmond. R ...

(1771–1837), miniaturist *

(1755–1831), actress *

Charles Stedman Charles Stedman (1753–1812) was a British Army officer who fought in the American War of Independence and afterwards wrote a detailed history on the conflict. Biography Charles Stedman, born at Philadelphia in 1753, was the second son of Alex ...

(1753–1812), army officer

References

External links

Biographical information about John Plaw from Historic Places, Prince Edward Island, CanadaGuide and map from City of WestminsterParish of Little Venice website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mary on Paddington Green Church Churches completed in 1791 18th-century Church of England church buildings Church of England church buildings in the City of Westminster Diocese of London