St Werburgh's Church, Bristol, is a former church, now a climbing centre in the

St Werburghs St. Werburgh's is an area in north-east central Bristol, England. It is surrounded by the M32 motorway, railway embankments and allotment slopes. Geology The solid geology of St Werburghs comprises Triassic Redcliffe Sandstone to the south- ...

area of central north-east

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England. It has been designated on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, a ...

as 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 ...

. The area became known as St Werburghs when the church was relocated from

Corn Street Corn Street, together with Broad Street, Wine Street and High Street, is one of the four cross streets which met at the Bristol High Cross, the heart of Bristol, England when it was a walled medieval town. From this crossroads Corn Street an ...

to Mina Road in 1879.

History

The original church of St Werburgh, of medieval origin, stood in Corn Street in Bristol. It has been suggested that the dedication to an Anglo-Saxon princess, St Werburgh, could give the church a pre-

Conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...

foundation.D Walker, Bristol in the Early Middle Ages, University of Bristol (Bristol branch of the Historical Association), 1971, p. 6 It was rebuilt by

James Bridges James Bridges (February 3, 1936June 6, 1993) was an American screenwriter, film director, producer, and actor. He is a two-time Oscar nominee: once for Best Original Screenplay for '' The China Syndrome'' and once for Best Adapted Screenplay fo ...

in 1758.

St Werburgh's Church, Bristol, BRO Picbox-2-BSt-18, 1250x1250

The parish it served was quite small and the building caused the road to narrow, and larger horse-drawn carriages were causing congestion. An act of parliament was obtained enabling the closure of the church, with the last service being held on 12 August 1877. It was then demolished and the stones numbered before being transported to the new site approximately away in Mina Road. During the removal of the church 100 coffins and 40 chests of human remains were uncovered. These were reburied at Greenbank Cemetery. The original site was bought by the West of England and South Wales Bank and became a branch of

Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank plc is a British retail and commercial bank with branches across England and Wales. It has traditionally been considered one of the " Big Four" clearing banks. Lloyds Bank is the largest retail bank in Britain, and has an exte ...

. Parts of the original building, particularly the tower, were re-used in the construction of the new church under the direction of the architect John Bevan. It was reconsecrated at the new site with the first service being held on 30 September 1879. The church held its last service on Remembrance Sunday in 1988,St Werburghs News25 years today since St Werburghs Church closed its doors
/ref> after which it was de-consecrated and converted into Bristol's first indoor climbing centre calle
Undercover Rock
The climbing centre includes top-rope climbs, bolted lead climbs, and a

bouldering Bouldering is a form of free climbing that is performed on small rock formations or artificial rock walls without the use of ropes or harnesses. While bouldering can be done without any equipment, most climbers use climbing shoes to help se ...

area, all using hardboard walls built inside the original church structure. There is also a small cafe and viewing area. In 2016 Undercover Rock was taken over by another Bristol climbing centr
The Climbing Academy

Architecture

The church is built of ashlar

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

in a Perpendicular Gothic Revival style, with an

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, par ...

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

, west porch and south-west tower. The five-stage tower has an octagonal stair turret.

References

{{Culture in Bristol Former churches in Bristol Bristol, Church of St John the Baptist Redundant churches

History

Architecture

Archives

See also

References