St Alban the Martyr, Birmingham is a

Grade II* listed 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, H ...

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, ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

in the

Anglican Diocese of Birmingham The Diocese of Birmingham is a diocese founded in 1905 in the Church of England's Province of Canterbury, covering the north-west of the traditional county of Warwickshire, the south-east of the traditional county of Staffordshire and the north ...

. It is dedicated to

Saint Alban Saint Alban (; ) is venerated as the first-recorded British Christian martyr, for which reason he is considered to be the British protomartyr. Along with fellow Saints Julius and Aaron, Alban is one of three named martyrs recorded at an ea ...

, the first British Christian martyr.Thurston, Herbert. "St. Alban." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 19 February 2013
/ref>

History

A temporary church was established as a mission of

Holy Trinity Church, Bordesley Holy Trinity Church, Bordesley is a Grade II listed former Church of England parish church at Camp Hill, Bordesley, Birmingham, England. History An example of a Commissioners' church the church was built between 1820 and 1822 by the architec ...

in 1865 and opened on 13 September 1866. The permanent church was designed by

John Loughborough Pearson John Loughborough Pearson (5 July 1817 – 11 December 1897) was a British Gothic Revival architect renowned for his work on churches and cathedrals. Pearson revived and practised largely the art of vaulting, and acquired in it a proficie ...

and built by the contractor Shillitoe of Doncaster. The foundation stone was laid on 31 January 1880 by

Frederick Lygon, 6th Earl Beauchamp Frederick Lygon, 6th Earl Beauchamp (10 November 1830 – 19 February 1891), styled The Honourable Frederick Lygon between 1853 and 1866, was a British Conservative politician. Background and education Beauchamp was the third son of Henry Ly ...

and the church opened for worship on Tuesday 3 May 1881 The formal consecration took place on 4 December 1899. The construction cost was in the region of £20,000 (equivalent to £ in ). The tower and spire were added in 1938 by

Edwin Francis Reynolds Edwin Francis Reynolds LRIBA (30 November 1875 - 19 January 1949) was an English architect based in Birmingham. Life He was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham, and then articled to Cossins & Peacock from 1893 to 1896. From 1897 to ...

. St Alban's Church took over the parish of

St Patrick's Church, Bordesley St Patrick's Church, Bordesley (also known as St Patrick's Church, Highgate) was a parish church in the Church of England in Birmingham. History The foundation stone was laid by William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp on Saturday 23 November 1895. It ...

when St Patrick's was demolished in the early 1970s. In 2016 a grant from the Heritage Lottery permitted the renewal of the roofs of the South Transept, St Patrick's Chapel, the Organ Loft and the Ambulatory. However, despite this, by 2018 the church was on

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

Heritage at Risk Register An annual ''Heritage at Risk Register'' is published by Historic England. The survey is used by national and local government, a wide range of individuals and heritage groups to establish the extent of risk and to help assess priorities for acti ...

due to its poor condition, particularly the remainder of the roof. However, a programme of restoration took place in 2020-21, the remainder of the church roof was repaired and high-level repairs to the windows and walls were carried out. As a result Historic England removed the church from the list of "Buildings at Risk".

Present day

The patron is

Keble College, Oxford Keble College () is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, University Museum a ...

. St Alban's Church stands in 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 ...

tradition A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common e ...

of the Church of England. The parish had passed Resolutions A and B of the

Priests (Ordination of Women) Measure 1993 The Priests (Ordination of Women) Measure 1993 is a Church of England measure passed by the General Synod of the Church of England enabling the ordination of women in the Church of England. Both Queen's Consent and Prince's Consent were requir ...

, meaning they rejected 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 ...

, but these expired in 2016. They also voted on

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 ...

, but this was rejected. In 2017, they voted on the replacement of Resolutions A and B, the Resolution under the House of Bishops' Declaration: "This was not carried, with equal votes for and against." This means that the parish would now accept a woman priest.

Architecture

The cruciform building is in red brick, with dressings in

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

. The interior features a

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

east window by Henry Payne and, in the south chapel, a copper

Arts and Crafts The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...

triptych with painted panels, by local artists

Kate Kate may refer to: People and fictional characters * Kate (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Gyula Káté (born 1982), Hungarian amateur boxer * Lauren Kate (born 1981), American author o ...

and Myra Bunce and donated by them in 1919 in memory of their sisters and parents. A

Birmingham Civic Society Birmingham Civic Society is a voluntary body in Birmingham, England, and is registered with the Civic Trust. History The society was founded at an inaugural meeting on 10 June 1918 in the Birmingham Council House. The first president of th ...

blue plaque honouring the Bunce sisters was unveiled at St Alban's in September 2015, by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham.

Vicars

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 2017–present: Dr Gerald Sykes

Organ

The organ dates was installed second-hand in 1870 and was by Bryceson Son & Ellis. It was overhauled in 1940 by Rushworth and Dreaper of Liverpool who extended the compass to C and added electro-pneumatic action. The Pedal Trombone, Great Tuba and Swell 5-rank mixture were added at this date. A new oak organ case was created by Birmingham Sculptors Ltd and Craftinwood Ltd. A specification of the organ can be found on the

National Pipe Organ Register The British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS) is a British organisation and registered charity which aims to promote study and appreciation of all aspects of the pipe organ. Further, it acts as a lobbying body to raise awareness of organ issue ...

Organists

*Mr. Price. c. 1868 *Hugh Brooksbank 1881 (afterwards organist of

Llandaff Cathedral Llandaff Cathedral () is a Church in Wales cathedral and parish church in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is dedicated to Saint Peter and Saint Paul, and ...

) *Douglas Redman 1882-1885 (afterwards organist of

St Matthew's Church, Brixton St Matthew's Church is a Church of England church in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade II* listed building which occupies a prominent position at the junction of Brixton Road, Brixton Hill and Effra Road. The church was constructed f ...

) *T.J. Woodall 1885-???? *J. Granville Smith 1889-1899 (formerly organist of St Ambrose's Church, Edgbaston, from 1890 also organist at Christ Church, Wolverhampton) *W. E. Abraham 1899–1901 *William Terrence Jenkins 1901–1910 *Alban W. Cooper 1910-1911 *Thomas J. Richards 1911 – 1919 (formerly and afterwards organist of St Agnes' Church, Moseley) *George Henry Manton 1919-1923 *Ernest Edward Madeley 1923–1953 * Roy Massey 1953–1960 (afterwards organist of

St Augustine's Church, Edgbaston The Church of St Augustine of Hippo in Lyttelton Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, England, is a parish church in the Church of England. Background St Augustine's Church stands at the centre of a conservation area which bears its name. It is one ...

) *David Britton 1960-1961 *Raymond Isaacson 1961–1967 (formerly organist of St Nicolas Church, Kings Norton, afterwards organist of High Wycombe parish church) *Alistair Pow 1968 *John Bates 1969-1970 *Paul Hale 1970-1971 *Roy Hayton 1971-1976 * John Butt 1977-1979 * David Briggs 1979–1981Church of St Alban the Martyr, Birmingham, Concert by David Briggs, 25 May 2022. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
/ref> *Iain Simcock 1981-1983 *Ian Ledsham 1983-1991 *Colin Kinton 1992-1997 *Darren Hogg 1998-2004 *Chris Harker 2004-2018 *David Lane 2006-2011 *Thomas Keogh 2011-2012 *Graeme Martin 2013-2019 *Aled Liddington 2022-2024 *Angela Sones 2024-present

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Alban the Martyr, Birmingham Grade II* listed buildings in Birmingham

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

Anglo-Catholic church buildings in the West Midlands (county) Churches completed in 1881 19th-century Church of England church buildings Gothic Revival church buildings in England Grade II* listed churches in the West Midlands (county) 1865 establishments in England