St Tarcisius Church is a Roman Catholic Parish church in

Camberley Camberley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, approximately south-west of Central London. The town is in the far west of the county, close to the borders of Hampshire and Berkshire. Once part of Windsor Forest, Cambe ...

, Surrey. It was built between 1923 and 1924 and was designed by

Frederick Walters Frederick Arthur Walters (1849–1931) was a Scottish architect working in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, notable for his Roman Catholic churches. Life Walters was born on 5 February 1849 at 6 South Terrace, Brompton, London, the son of the ar ...

. It is situated on the London Road, to the north of the town, next to The Atrium Shopping Centre. It is a Grade II listed building.

History

Foundation

In 1869, a priest, Fr Thomas Purcell would come from Aldershot, to say Mass for the local Catholic population in various people's houses. For the next four years, Catholics would travel to

St Joseph's Church, Aldershot St Joseph's Church is a Roman Catholic Parish church in Aldershot, Hampshire. Built in 1913, it is situated at the top of a ridge on Queens Road, overlooking the town centre, between the Municipal Gardens and Princes Hall. It is a Grade II liste ...

for Mass. On 25 January 1873, a site was bought for £120 for a school. In 1874, a priest, Fr McKenna, was permanently appointed to serve the Catholics in Camberley. In 1879, Lady Southwell gave a plot of land, the present site, for the construction of St Tarcisius Church. In 1884, a temporary iron church was built to accommodate the

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

. In 1888, the priest's house was built and in 1896 the school was expanded.History
from CBParish.co.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2015

Construction

In 1906, Fr Patrick Twomey came to Camberley and started to plan to build a new permanent church. On 12 September 1923, the foundation stone of the church was laid by the Bishop of Southwark, Peter Amigo. On 18 November 1924, the church was opened. The church was designed by Frederick Walters as a War Memorial for fallen British Catholic military officers in the First World War. It served as the chaplaincy for Catholics at the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...

. On 26 June 1926, the church was

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 ...

Cardinal Francis Bourne Francis Alphonsus Bourne (1861–1935) was an English prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the fourth Archbishop of Westminster from 1903 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1911. Biography Early life Francis Bo ...

. In 1935, stained-glass windows, designed by

Paul Woodroffe Paul Vincent Woodroffe (25 January 1875 – 7 May 1954) was a British book illustrator and stained-glass artist. Early life Woodroffe was born in Madras (present-day Chennai), one of nine children of Francis Henry Woodroffe, a judge in the M ...

, were installed in the church.

Architecture

Exterior

There is a tower on the north west side of the church and the church is made of

Bargate stone __NOTOC__ Bargate stone is a highly durable form of sandstone. It owes its yellow, butter or honey colouring to a high iron content. In some contexts it may be considered to be a form of ironstone. However, in the context of stone buildings local ...

. The top of the tower is crenellated and there is a porch under the tower. There is a traceried window above the entrance. The transepts are

gabled A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

and also have traceried windows. Above the chancel is a five-bay traceried window.

Interior

There are memorial plaques made of marble in the porch. The nave has a pine ceiling. The arcade in the nave and the arches inside the transepts are made of

Bath stone Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of ...

. The original pews, made of oak, that were installed when the church was built, are still present.

Parish

Since 2007, the church has been part of the parish of Camberley & Bagshot along with Christ the King Church in Bagshot and St Peter & St John Church in Old Dean, so the Mass times of the churches do not conflict. St Tarcisius Church has Sunday Mass at 9:15 am, Christ the King Church has its Sunday Mass at 11:15 am and the Sunday Mass for St Peter & St John Church is on Saturday afternoon at 5:30 pm.

References

External links

Camberley and Bagshot Parish site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Tarcisius Church, Camberley Roman Catholic churches in Surrey Grade II listed churches in Surrey Roman Catholic churches completed in 1924 Saint Tarcisius Church Grade II listed Roman Catholic churches in England Gothic Revival church buildings in England Gothic Revival architecture in Surrey 1924 establishments in England Frederick Walters buildings Roman Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom