St John the Evangelist is an Anglican church on

Friern Barnet Friern Barnet () is a suburban area within the London Borough of Barnet, north of Charing Cross. Its centre is formed by the busy intersection of Colney Hatch Lane (running north and south), Woodhouse Road (taking westbound traffic towards No ...

Road,

Borough of Barnet The London Borough of Barnet () is a suburban London borough in north London, England. Forming part of Outer London, the borough was formed in 1965 from parts of the ceremonial counties of Middlesex and Hertfordshire. It is the second largest Lo ...

, north London. It is a late example of the

Gothic Revival Style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

by Victorian architect

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 ...

, begun in 1890-91 and completed after his death by his son

Frank Loughborough Pearson Frank, FRANK, or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a Germanic people in late Roman times * Franks, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusa ...

.''The Buildings of England - London 4: North'', Bridget Cherry & Nicolaus Pevsner, 1998; p. 131

History

Originating in 1883 as a chapel-of-ease to Friern Barnet parish church it was initially a temporary iron structure on the north side of Friern Barnet Road and known as the school-church of St John, on account of classes being kept there by the

Friern Barnet Grammar School The Friern Barnet Grammar School was a small private day school for boys located on Friern Barnet Road, North London. It was later absorbed into the co-educational Woodside Park School foundation which was later renamed The North London Inte ...

."Friern Barnet: Churches", in: ''A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 6: Friern Barnet, Finchley, Hornsey with Highgate'', 1980; pp. 29-32, Available from www.british-history.ac.uk In 1890 it was replaced by an iron nave on the opposite side of the road on land granted to the Anglican Church Board by G. K. Smith, who, with his son Charles William Smith, contributed substantially towards building costs. Although the chancel was consecrated in October 1892 by the Bishop of London

Frederick Temple Frederick Temple (30 November 1821 – 23 December 1902) was an English academic, teacher and Clergy, churchman, who served as Bishop of Exeter (1869–1885), Bishop of London (1885–1896) and Archbishop of Canterbury (1896–1902). Early ...

DD,''Novum Repertorium Ecclesiasticum Parochiale Londinense'', Rev George Hennessy urate of St Peter’s Muswell Hill (Chapel of Ease to Friern Barnet) 1898; p. 159 building was delayed by a lack of funds, the nave being built in two stages and finally consecrated in 1911. Building of the eastern section was executed by Edward Abley of Salisbury.

Architecture

The church is crafted entirely of stone to an elaborate plan and modelled on a

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

chapel. The east end was inspired by the German Cistercian church of Heisterbach on the request of the vicar, the Reverend Frederick Hall, who had formerly been curate at St. Augustine's, Kilburn, another of Pearson's celebrated works. The church comprises an

apsidal In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In Byzant ...

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

with

ambulatory The ambulatory ( 'walking place') is the covered passage around a cloister or the processional way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar. The first ambulatory was in France in the 11th century but by the 13t ...

and south chapel, two north

vestries A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government of a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies. At their height, the vestries were the only form of local government in many places and spent nearly one-fi ...

, an aisled and clerestoreyed

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, and a western

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 ...

baptistery In Church architecture, Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek language, Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned ...

of one bay. In an early Gothic style, it is vaulted throughout and originally seated 500. The nave was completed over 1899–1901. The west end being finished to only a modified design in 1911. The projected north-east tower and spire were not built. The pulpit dates to c. 1920. The stained-glass panels are by specialist firm

Clayton and Bell Clayton and Bell was one of the most prolific and proficient British workshops of stained-glass windows during the latter half of the 19th century and early 20th century. The partners were John Richard Clayton (1827–1913) and Alfred Bell (1832� ...

- the east windows depicting the adoration of the lamb, the south picturing angels, bishops and St Paul preaching, and the north Protestant worthies. The chancel windows are also a memorial to the Reverend Prebendary Frederick Hall, rector of Friern Barnet, by whom the building was commissioned. A depiction of the architect, Pearson, with a scroll of the plans, is included. The church has since been afforded Grade II* architectural status by the English Heritage foundation, by which it is deemed a building of particular (national) importance and one of more than special interest.

Current status

The church now serves as the parish church of Friern Barnet, the former parish church of St James the Great in Friern Barnet Lane now being leased to the local

Greek Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...

community. The church has long been linked to local education; there has been a St John's school in Friern Barnet since 1886, now (as of 2015) St John's CofE Primary School

Curates

List of curates: *1884-87 Robert Bettison Barber AKC *1887-89 Bernard Day Douglas Shaw AKC *1889-92 Frederick Voight After which time the rector of Friern Barnet resumed charge. The Rev Frederick Hall was rector from 1892 to 1902, and his son the Rev Edward Gage Hall from 1902 to 1940."Friern Barnet: Churches"
''A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 6: Friern Barnet, Finchley, Hornsey with Highgate'', 1980 Available from www.british-history.ac.uk The Rev'd

John Trillo Albert John Trillo (4 July 1915 – 2 August 1992) was a British Anglican bishop. He was involved in parish ministry, worked with the Student Christian Movement, and was a lecturer in theology. He was twice a suffragan bishop in the Church of Eng ...

was rector during the 1950s.

References and sources

;References ;Sources *National Archives: Saint James the Great, Friern Barnet DRO/012/I/G8

External links

Friern Barnet & District Local History Society

Friern Barnet Parish
{{DEFAULTSORT:Friern Barnet, Saint John Grade II* listed churches in London Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Barnet 19th-century Church of England church buildings Church of England church buildings in the London Borough of Barnet Diocese of London Friern Barnet