St Matthew's Church is a
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...
church in the
London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade II*
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 ...
which occupies a prominent position at the junction of
Brixton Road,
Brixton Hill
Brixton Hill is the name given to a section of road between Brixton and Streatham Hill in south London, England.
Brixton Hill and Streatham Hill form part of the traditional main London to Brighton road (A23). The road follows the line of a ...
and
Effra Road. The church was constructed following the
Church Building Act 1818 and was consecrated in 1824.
Parish
Until 1824,
Brixton was part of the large ancient parish of
Lambeth, whose church stood about away, next to
Lambeth Palace. These arrangements were inconvenient for those living in the new housing that was already starting to appear along the main roads passing through Brixton, a situation that was addressed by the construction of four new churches at Waterloo, Kennington, Norwood and St Matthew's at Brixton. The St Matthew's parish created in 1824 included Brixton, Brixton Hill, Herne Hill, Tulse Hill and (in modern terms) the Loughborough Junction and western Camberwell area.
In 1886 the population of the parish amounted to 13,924 and was served by three clergy. The total proportion attending (morning and evening services) was 12.4%.
In 1901 the population of the parish was 12,029. In the following year, there were two clergymen and the total proportion attending was 11.2%.
[
In 2002 St Matthew's parish was united with that of St Jude's in East Brixton, whose church building had been sold in 1980 and which had no incumbent since 1991. St Jude's was built in 1867–68.
Based on statistics from the ]UK census
Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 (during the Second World War), Ireland in 1921/Northern Ireland in 1931,https://www.nisra.gov. ...
, the Diocese of Southwark
The Diocese of Southwark is one of the 42 dioceses of the Church of England, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. It was created on 1 May 1905 from part of the ancient Dio ...
estimates the population of the parish was 12,100 in 2001 and 15,500 in 2011. It is not clear whether the figure for 2001 includes people who were then living in the former parish of St Jude's.
Building
The church was constructed following the Church Building Act 1818, which allowed for new churches in overpopulated parishes. Land was taken from Rush Common for the church. Initial works began late in 1821 and the foundation stone was laid by Charles Manners-Sutton
Charles Manners-Sutton (17 February 1755 – 21 July 1828; called Charles Manners before 1762) was a bishop in the Church of England who served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1805 to 1828.
Life
Manners-Sutton was the fourth son of Lord G ...
, Archbishop of Canterbury on 1 July 1822. The church was consecrated in 1824.
Since 19 October 1951 St Matthew's church has been designated a Grade II* 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 ...
.[ It was designed by Charles Ferdinand Porden (1790-1863) with the foundation stone laid in 1822 and the church consecrated two years later. The building is a rectangle, with a massive Greek Doric entrance portico at the west end, fronting onto Brixton Hill. A tower stands at the east end of the building.
During the 1970s and subsequently, major internal alterations have been carried out to provide accommodation for a variety of activities, including continued use of a part by the Anglican congregation.
The building and its churchyard occupies a highly visible triangular site at the junction of major roads, but pedestrian access is somewhat restricted because of the width of these roads and the density of the traffic.
]
Architecture
The church is built of pale yellowish brick with dressings of stone and Roman cement
Roman cement is a substance developed by James Parker in the 1780s, being patented in 1796.
The name is misleading, as it is nothing like any material used by the Romans, but was a "natural cement" made by burning septaria – nodules that are ...
. The west portico is tetrastyle in antis and has fluted Doric columns. There are three tall doors which are battered and which have enriched panels, in eared moulded architraves. By the doors are cast iron
Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...
boot-scrapers.[
The church has five-bay sides with pilasters of Roman cement and entablature. The church lies on a stone plinth and has battered windows with eared architraves. On each side there are stairs with side-walls down to an entrance to the crypt. There is a pedimented doorway enclosed by a strong, double ]wrought iron
Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" ...
gate.[
The east end of the church is stone-faced with a wide projecting central tower bay, which has a window. There are doors in recessed side bays. The tower has a square bell stage with Doric screens, below on octagonal "]Tower of the Winds
The Tower of the Winds or the Horologion of Andronikos Kyrrhestes is an octagonal Pentelic marble clocktower in the Roman Agora in Athens that functioned as a ''horologion'' or "timepiece". It is considered the world's first meteorological stat ...
" which has a low conical top with a crown and cross.[ At the base of the Tower of the Winds is a blue-faced clock with gilt numbering.
When the building was given Listed Building status in 1951, it was reported that inside the church there was a wide gallery around three sides and in the west end a Doric organ case. In front of the east window was a tall screen of two Doric columns. There were also original pews and some memorial tablets.][ The more recent internal changes to the building have provided a smaller worship area at the west end of the building with access through a lobby from the main entrance doors. The worship area has ancillary accommodation such as a vestry and kitchen. There is also a gallery (although not the one mentioned in the 1951 listing description).
]
Notable people
Former British Prime Minister John Major married Norma Major
Dame Norma Christina Elizabeth, Lady Major, (, formerly Johnson; born 12 February 1942) is an English philanthropist who is the wife of former British prime minister Sir John Major.
Early life
Norma Christina Elizabeth Wagstaff is the daught ...
in the church in 1970.
Notes
External links
Diocese of Southwark - Statistics for St Matthew with St Jude Brixton
'Brixton: Rush Common'
Survey of London: Volume 26: Lambeth: Southern area (1956), pp. 131–136.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Matthews Church, Brixton
Brixton
Brixton
Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Lambeth
Churches completed in 1824
19th-century Church of England church buildings
Brixton
Brixton