redundant church
A redundant church, now referred to as a "closed church", is a church building that is no longer used for Christian worship. The term most frequently refers to former Anglican churches in the United Kingdom, but may also be used for disused churc ...
. The church is one of twelve medieval churches in
Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...
, six of which had been declared redundant by the 1970s. In the twenty-first century it was taken over by Ipswich Historic Churches Trust.
The oldest parts of the church are fourteenth century, with additions from the fifteenth century, with substantial additions in the
Tudor period
The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in History of England, England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in Englan ...
to the tower and to the chancel in 1860 under the guidance of Frederick Barnes.
For 500 years its congregation consisted primarily of the families of
shipwrights
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...
,
sailors
A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship.
The profession of the s ...
,
stevedores
A stevedore (), also called a longshoreman, a docker or a dockworker, is a waterfront manual laborer who is involved in loading and unloading ships, trucks, trains or airplanes.
After the shipping container revolution of the 1960s, the number o ...
and
merchants
A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as industry ...
. Indeed, wool merchants funded the sixteenth century building of the tower.
Thomas Cobbold (1708–1767)
Thomas Cobbold (1708 – 21 April 1767) was an English brewer in Harwich and Ipswich; he succeeded to the family brewing business founded by his father, also Thomas Cobbold.
Family
Thomas married Sarah Cobboll in 1738. Several of their children ...
, an English brewer
*
Thomas Slade
Sir Thomas Slade (1703/4–1771) was an English naval architect, most famous for designing HMS ''Victory'', Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.
Early life
He was the son of Arthur Slade (1682–1746) and his wife Hannah ...
, an English naval architect buried in the churchyard, 1771