The Church of the Holy Angels is an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

church in

Hoar Cross Hoar Cross is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of East Staffordshire, situated approximately west of Burton upon Trent. History Hoarcross, as it was then called, was enclosed like the nearby Chartley Park from Needwood Forest. ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

, England. It is a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

History

It was built by the pious

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholicism, Catholic heritage (especially pre-English Reformation, Reformation roots) and identity of the Church of England and various churches within Anglicanism. Anglo-Ca ...

, Emily Charlotte Meynell Ingram (sister of

Charles Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax Charles Lindley Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax (7 June 1839 – 19 January 1934), was a British Anglo-Catholic ecumenist who served as president of the English Church Union from 1868 to 1919, and from 1927 to 1934. In 1886, he was a former part o ...

) in memory of Hugo Francis Meynell Ingram who died in May 1871. The architects were

George Frederick Bodley George Frederick Bodley (14 March 182721 October 1907) was an English Gothic Revival architect. He was a pupil of Sir George Gilbert Scott and worked with C. E. Kempe. He was in partnership with Thomas Garner for much of his career and was ...

and

Thomas Garner Thomas Garner (1839 – 30 April 1906) was one of the leading English Gothic Revival architects of the Victorian era. He is known for his almost 30-year partnership with the architect George Frederick Bodley. Early life Born at Wasperton H ...

. Work started in 1872 and the church dedication took place on 22 April 1876. Further extension and additions took place until the church achieved its present form in 1906.

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...

described the church as "the masterpiece of its late Victorian architect G.F. Bodley" and "great architecture; original, well massed, well sited, well detailed; very English".

Present day

From 2008, the Church received

alternative episcopal oversight A provincial episcopal visitor (PEV), popularly known as a flying bishop, is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who on grounds of theological conviction "are unable to receive the ministry of w ...

from the

Bishop of Ebbsfleet The Bishop of Ebbsfleet is a suffragan bishop who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. From its creation in 1994 to 2022, the Bishop of Ebbsfleet served traditionalist Anglo-Catholic parishes that reject t ...

, as the parish does not accept the

ordination of women The ordination of women to Minister of religion, ministerial or priestly office is an increasingly common practice among some contemporary major religious groups. It remains a controversial issue in certain religious groups in which ordination ...

to the priesthood or episcopate. This oversight was transferred in 2023 to the

Bishop of Oswestry The Bishop of Oswestry is a suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Lichfield who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. Since 2023, Paul Thomas has been the Bishop of Oswestry. Background Following the first ...

Organ

The

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

was originally built by Samuel Green in 1779 for

Bangor Cathedral Bangor Cathedral () is the cathedral church of Bangor, Gwynedd, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It is dedicated to its founder, Deiniol, Saint Deiniol. The site of the present building of Bangor Cathedral has been in use as a place of Christian worship ...

. It was installed in Hoar Cross by Bishop and Son in 1876 and enlarged by Conacher in 1935. As a result of a very generous donation, it underwent extensive repair and finished at the end of 2012. An electronic organ was used temporarily for services. The specification of the pipe organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register at.

Timeline

* 1872 Construction started * 1876 Services start in April * 1891 North side

Lady Chapel A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British English, British term for a chapel dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church (building), church. The chapels are also known as a Mary chape ...

added * 1900 South side All Souls Chapel added * 1906

Narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of Early Christian art and architecture, early Christian and Byzantine architecture, Byzantine basilicas and Church architecture, churches consisting of the entrance or Vestibule (architecture), ve ...

added * 1935 Bells rehung and organ enlarged

Gallery

File:HolyAngelsHoarCross2.JPG, The

liturgical east Liturgical east and west is a concept in the orientation of churches. It refers to the fact that the end of a church which has the altar, for symbolic religious reasons, is traditionally on the east side of the church (to the right in a diagram ...

end of the Church. The

Chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a set of Christian liturgical celebrations for the dead (made up of the Requiem Mass and the Office of the Dead), or # a chantry chapel, a b ...

Chapel and the All Souls Chapel are to the left of the picture File:Chancel in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

and

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

File:Tower crossing and rood screen in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The tower crossing and rood screen File:Rood screen in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The

rood screen The rood screen (also choir screen, chancel screen, or jubé) is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, o ...

File:HolyAngelsHoarCross7.JPG, The hymnboard File:Font in the Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross.jpg, The font

References

*''The Church of the Holy Angels, Hoar Cross. Church guidebook''. 4th edition 1996. *Pevsner, N. (1974) ''Staffordshire''

The Buildings of England ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

. Penguin Books

External links

Church website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoar Cross, Church of the Holy Angels Tourist attractions in Staffordshire Church of England church buildings in the Borough of East Staffordshire Gothic Revival church buildings in England Holy Angels, Hoar Cross Grade I listed churches in Staffordshire Anglo-Catholic church buildings in Staffordshire

George Frederick Bodley church buildings