Little St Mary's, Cambridge
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Little St Mary's or St Mary the Less is a
Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ...
in
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, on Trumpington Street between Pembroke College's Mill Lane Project development site and
Peterhouse Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...
. The church is in the
Diocese of Ely The Diocese of Ely is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury. It is headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely. There is one suffragan bishop, suffragan (subordinate) bishop, the Bisho ...
and follows the
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 ...
or
high-church A ''high church'' is a Christian Church whose beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology emphasize "ritual, priestly authority, nd sacraments," and a standard liturgy. Although used in connection with various Christia ...
tradition of the
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...
. In addition to its main Sunday Mass, the church has a strong tradition of daily
morning Morning is either the period from sunrise to noon, or the period from midnight to noon. In the first definition it is preceded by the twilight period of dawn, and there are no exact times for when morning begins (also true of evening and nigh ...
and evening prayer, regular weekday Communion and the keeping of church festivals. The church has a particular ministry helping both men and women to explore possible vocations to the priesthood. Little St Mary's has active overseas mission links, provides support to local
mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...
projects, and participates in Hope Cambridge's Churches Homeless Project. The
vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...
is Canon Robert Mackley, who has been the incumbent since 2012.


History

There has been a place of worship on the site since around the twelfth century. The earliest known records of the church state that the first church here was called St Peter-without-Trumpington Gate, to distinguish it from St Peter by the Castle (or ''ad castrum''). It was controlled by three successive generations of the same family until 1207. After that date it was given to the Hospital of St John the Evangelist and served by chaplains from that foundation. In the early 1280s
Hugh de Balsham Hugh de Balsham (or Hugo; died 16 June 1286) was a medieval English bishop. Life Nothing is known of Balsham's background, although during the dispute over his election he was alleged to have been of servile birth, and his name suggests a conn ...
,
Bishop of Ely The Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire (with the exception of the Soke of Peterborough), together with ...
, lodged some scholars in the Hospital but to his dismay found soon that the sick and the students could not live in harmony together. The students were moved in 1284 to the site of what is now
Peterhouse Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...
; this was the origin of the first Cambridge college. By the 1340s the church was in such a bad state that the fellows of Peterhouse decided to rebuild it. In 1352, the new building had the dual purpose of College Chapel (to Peterhouse) and Parish Church. At this time, it was rededicated to the
Blessed Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...
. In 1632 Peterhouse built a separate Chapel and St Mary the Less reverted to being solely a Parish Church. Richard Crashaw, the metaphysical poet, was a priest there from 1638 to 1643, at the same time that he was a Fellow of Peterhouse. In 1643, after his departure, many of the Church's ornaments and statues were damaged or destroyed by the
Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to rid the Church of England of what they considered to be Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should b ...
iconoclast William Dowsing. The damage to the
sedilia In church architecture, sedilia (plural of Latin ''sedīle'', "seat") are seats, typically made of stone, located on the liturgical south side of the altar—often within the chancel—intended for use by the officiating priest, deacon, an ...
and the archway leading to the present-day
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 ...
has never been repaired. In 1741 the church was refitted with wooden panelling,
box pew A box pew is a type of church pew that is encased in panelling and was prevalent in England and other Protestant countries from the 16th to early 19th centuries. History in England Before the rise of Protestantism, seating was not customary in c ...
s, choir gallery, and the present
pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accesse ...
. From 1856–7
Sir George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), largely known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he ...
restored the church and removed the 18th-century panelling. Further restoration work was carried out in 1876 and 1891, but by 1880 the church was much as it is now. The south, or Lady, Chapel was added in 1931 and designed by Thomas Henry Lyon, the architect of
Sidney Sussex College Sidney Sussex College (historically known as "Sussex College" and today referred to informally as "Sidney") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1 ...
Chapel. The Parish Centre at the west end of the church was built in 1892 and enlarged in 1990 and again in 2011. The Reverend Godfrey Washington (the great-uncle of US President George Washington), who died on 28 September 1729, is buried in Little St Mary's. His memorial is on the north wall close to the main door. Little St Mary's has been a Grade II* listed building since 1950.


Stained glass

File:North-east window of Little St Mary's Church - geograph.org.uk - 1563060.jpg, North-east window, by
Charles Eamer Kempe Charles Eamer Kempe (29 June 1837 – 29 April 1907) was a British Victorian era designer and manufacturer of stained glass. His studios produced over 4,000 windows and also designs for altars and altar frontals, furniture and furnishings, lychg ...
File:Stained glass in Little St Mary's church - geograph.org.uk - 708570.jpg, Stained glass by Harry Stammers, depicting the Finding of Christ in the Temple File:SS Michael and Gabriel - geograph.org.uk - 708566.jpg, SS Michael and Gabriel by John Samuel Bucknall (1917-1989) File:SS Stephen and Martin - geograph.org.uk - 708560.jpg, SS Stephen and Martin by F. C. Eden, installed in 1936 in memory of Edwin Charles Ogle File:St Andrew and St Elisabeth - geograph.org.uk - 1608075.jpg, St Andrew and St Elisabeth by F. C. Eden File:St Teresa and St Nicholas - geograph.org.uk - 1608090.jpg, St Teresa and St Nicholas. Left-hand half of a four-light window by F. C. Eden, placed in memory of Mary Hamblin Clay (1860-1929) File:St Francis and St Monica - geograph.org.uk - 1608097.jpg, St Francis and St Monica. Right-hand half of a four-light window by F. C. Eden, placed in memory of Mary Hamblin Clay (1860-1929)


References


External links


Church website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mary The Less, Cambridge Church of England church buildings in Cambridge
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
Anglo-Catholic church buildings in Cambridgeshire Grade II* listed buildings in Cambridge