St James's Church, East Cowes, Isle of Wight, UK (2)

St James's Church, East Cowes is the

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 Britain ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

East Cowes East Cowes is a town and civil parish in the north of the Isle of Wight, on the east bank of the River Medina, next to its west bank neighbour Cowes. The two towns are connected by the Cowes Floating Bridge, a chain ferry operated by the Isle ...

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

History

The church was built in 1831 by the architect John Nash.The Buildings of England, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

Nikolaus Pevsner Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner (30 January 1902 – 18 August 1983) was a German-British art historian and architectural historian best known for his monumental 46-volume series of county-by-county guides, ''The Buildings of England'' (1 ...

The land was given by

Thomas Chamberlayne Thomas Chamberlayne may refer to: *Sir Thomas Chamberlayne (judge) Sir Thomas Chamberlayne, SL (died 27 September 1625) was an English judge who served as Chief Justice of Chester during the reign of James I of England. Life Chamberlayne, the ...

Esq., of

Cranbury Park Cranbury Park is a stately home and country estate situated in the parish of Hursley, Winchester, England. It was formerly the home to Sir Isaac Newton and later to the Chamberlayne family, whose descendants now own and occupy the house and surr ...

. On 6 September 1831, the twelve-year-old Princess Victoria laid the foundation stone of the new church. Construction of the church was completed by 1833 and on 12 July 1833, Princess Victoria and her mother the

Duchess of Kent Duchess of Kent is the principal courtesy title used by the wife of the Duke of Kent. There have been four titles referring to Kent since the 18th century. The current duchess is Katharine, the wife of Prince Edward. He inherited the dukedom ...

attended the consecration service by Charles Richard Sumner the

Bishop of Winchester The Bishop of Winchester is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Winchester in the Church of England. The bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire. The Bishop of Winchester has always held ''ex officio'' (except dur ...

. The total cost of the build was £3,000. Between 1864 and 1868, the church was greatly enlarged and altered by the architect Thomas Hellyer. In 1870, the chancel was added, as well as a private chapel. In June 2009, a new project started allowing the congregation of the church to meet before services to have breakfast together. Yearly, the church also holds a Jigsaw Puzzle Festival, which is during August and lasts for one week.

Burials

* John Nash (1752–1835), architect

Parish status

The church is in a United Benefice with

St. Mildred's Church, Whippingham St Mildred's Church, Whippingham is the Church of England parish church of the village of Whippingham, Isle of Wight. History The village of Whippingham, and St Mildred's Church as its parish church, are best known for their connections wi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowes, St. James Church of England church buildings on the Isle of Wight Grade II listed churches on the Isle of Wight East Cowes