St. Gabriel's Church, Weoley Castle is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the 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 community activitie ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

located in

Weoley Castle Weoley Castle is a residential suburban district in south-west Birmingham, England. The area is part of the Weoley local authority electoral ward, and also comes under the Northfield local council constituency. The suburb of Weoley Castle is ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

History

Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician of the Conservative Party who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. He is best known for his foreign policy of appeasem ...

, at the time Chancellor of the Exchequer, laid the foundation stone for the new church on 10 December 1933. It was consecrated by the

Bishop of Birmingham A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

E. W. Barnes on 30 June 1934. The church is by the architect Edwin Francis Reynolds. The original plans included a chancel, transepts and tower, which have not yet been completed. The parish was assigned out of

St. Laurence's Church, Northfield St. Laurence's Church, Northfield is a parish church in the Church of England in Northfield, Birmingham. The church is in a conservation area near nail maker's cottages, the Great Stone Inn, the old school and the Village Pound. History The G ...

and

St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak is a Church of England parish church in Selly Oak, Birmingham, England. History The parish of St. Mary was from part of the parish of St. Laurence, Northfield in 1862. The church is set back from the main Bristol ...

in 1933. The land was given by James Goddington Ledsam. Originally it was to be called St. Michael and All Angels, Northfield, but it was consecrated on 30 June 1934 as St. Gabriel, Weoley Castle, perhaps to avoid the risk of confusion with St. Michael and All Angels' Church, Bartley Green. The

calvary Calvary ( la, Calvariae or ) or Golgotha ( grc-gre, Γολγοθᾶ, ''Golgothâ'') was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where Jesus was said to have been crucified according to the canonical Gospels. Since at least the early me ...

was sent in 1948 by Ernest William Barnes,

from

St John's Church, Deritend St John's Church, Deritend was a parish church in the Church of England in Birmingham, which stood from 1735 until it was demolished in 1947. History A church was established in 1380 when the villagers in Deritend were given the right to build ...

and was that parish's memorial of the First World War. Part of the parish was later transferred to

St. David's Church, Shenley Green St David's Church, Shenley Green is a parish church of the Church of England located in Shenley Green, Birmingham. History Until 1970 services were held in the church hall which was opened in 1962. In February 1969, twelve Birmingham Scouts haule ...

Organ

The church has an historic organ dating from 1777 by

John Snetzler John Snetzler (or Schnetzler) was an organ builder of Swiss origin, who worked mostly in England. Born in Schaffhausen in 1710, he trained with the firm of Egedacher in Passau and came to London about 1741. When he retired in 1781, his busines ...

which was originally located in St. James' Church, Wednesbury and then St. Andrew's Church, West Bromwich. It was moved here in 1940. A specification of the organ can be found on th
National Pipe Organ Register

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weoley Castle, St. Gabriel's Church of England church buildings in Birmingham, West Midlands Churches completed in 1934 20th-century Church of England church buildings Anglo-Catholic church buildings in the West Midlands (county) 1934 establishments in England