St.Paulinus Church is a Grade II* listed church. Located in

Crayford Crayford is a town and Wards of the United Kingdom, electoral ward in South London, South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies east of Bexleyheath and north west of Dartford. Crayford was in the Historic countie ...

Bexley Bexley is an area of south-eastern Greater London, England and part of the London Borough of Bexley. It is sometimes known as Bexley Village or Old Bexley to differentiate the area from the wider borough. It is located east-southeast of Ch ...

, London. One of the six ancient churches lying within the London Borough of Bexley.

History

The church was located on the road between London and the mainland, which accounted for the large number of visitors. The earliest part of the church dates from about the year 1100 A.D. Was presumably built by the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

. This is indicated by the found material of construction - dark gray blocks of

tufa Tufa is a variety of limestone formed when carbonate minerals precipitation (chemistry), precipitate out of water in ambient temperature, unheated rivers or lakes. hot spring, Geothermally heated hot springs sometimes produce similar (but less ...

. In about 1190, an aisle was added to the south of the nave and a south chapel was joined to the chancel. The windows were also replaced with larger ones. Some time within the first half of the 14th century, the south chapel and aisle were pulled down, and the body of the church got its present shape. In the 15th and early 16th century the vestry and the porch were added, bell tower was erected. The south, or Howbury, chapel was built and between the vestry and the north nave, of the northern chapel. In 1558, the church began keeping a church register. A disastrous fire happened in 1628, which consumed the roof and all the ancient monuments. After several years of repairs, the church was up and running again. In 1700 Sir Cloudesley Shovel,

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

and Commander in Chief of the Fleet of Great Britain paid for the repairs and also presented a new

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

. In 1862 a general restoration was again carried out and the Howbury chapel was extended for use as an

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 ...

chamber. The church was significantly damaged during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In the 1960s, vestries for the clergy and choir were built. In 1976 a new organ purchased from St.Mary's German Lutheran Church in King's Cross and erected.

Architecture

The body of the nave consists of two vessels of equal widths and heights, and the

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated video, pinball, electro-mechanical, redemption, etc., game ** Arcade video game, a coin-operated video game ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade video game's hardware ** Arcad ...

between them targets to the middle axis of the chancel. This balance is extraordinary in English medieval architecture, which has hundreds of two-vessel

hall church A hall church is a Church (building), church with a nave and aisles of approximately equal height. In England, Flanders and the Netherlands, it is covered by parallel roofs, typically, one for each vessel, whereas in Germany there is often one s ...

es (or two-vessel ''multicellular churches''), but most of them with a ranking difference of nave and aisle.

Gallery

File:Porch of St Paulinus' Church, Crayford.jpg, Porch of St Paulinus' Church File:Lychgate of St Paulinus' Church, Crayford.jpg, Lychgate of St Paulinus' Church File:Angel Sculpture on the Church of Saint Paulinus, Crayford.jpg, Angel Sculpture on the Church of Saint Paulinus File:Door on the Northern Side of Saint Paulinus' Church, Crayford.jpg, Door on the Northern Side of Saint Paulinus' Church File:East End of the Church of Saint Paulinus, Crayford.jpg, East End of the Church of Saint Paulinus File:Eighteenth-Century Grave in the Churchyard of St Paulinus, Crayford.jpg, Eighteenth-Century Grave in the Churchyard of St Paulinus

References

{{Commonscat Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Bromley Tourist attractions in the London Borough of Bromley Crayford