The Church of St John the Baptist, Hoxton, usually known as St John's Hoxton, is an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

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

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...

area of the

London Borough of Hackney The London Borough of Hackney ( ) is a London boroughs, London borough in Inner London, England. The historical and administrative heart of Hackney is Mare Street, which lies north-east of Charing Cross. The borough is named after Hackney, Lond ...

. In 1826, population growth in the East End led to St John's being established as a

Chapel of Ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

, within the parish of

Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...

. In 1841 it became the church of a new independent ecclesiastical parish, though it remained part of Shoreditch for civil purposes. Nearby is

Silicon Roundabout East London Tech City (also known as Tech City and Silicon Roundabout) is a technology cluster of high-tech companies located in East London, United Kingdom. Its main area lies broadly between St Luke's and Hackney Road, with an accelerator spa ...

, and also Aske Gardens, named after the parish's major benefactor,

City A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

and

haberdasher __NOTOC__ In British English, a haberdasher is a business or person who sells small articles for sewing, dressmaking and knitting, such as buttons, ribbons, and zippers; in the United States, the term refers instead to a men's clothing st ...

Robert Aske.

Parish history

Dedicated to

St John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

, its name preserves the memory of a local

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

dissolved by King Henry VIII. Robert Aske's legacy still benefits the parish and associated primary school, while Haberdasher Street like Aske Gardens, remain in the memory of his original generosity. One of the 18th-century residents of

Hoxton Square Hoxton Square is a public garden square in the Hoxton area in the London Borough of Hackney. Laid out in 1683, it is thought to be one of the oldest in London. Since the 1990s it has been at the heart of the Hoxton national (digital and design) ...

, the

Revd The Reverend (abbreviated as The Revd, The Rev'd or The Rev) is an honorific style given to certain (primarily Western) Christian clergy and ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and chu ...

John Newton John Newton (; – 21 December 1807) was an English evangelical Anglican cleric and slavery Abolitionism, abolitionist. He had previously been a captain of slave ships and an investor in the slave trade. He served as a sailor in the Royal Nav ...

, composed the popular

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...

Amazing Grace "Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn written in 1772 and published in 1779 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is possibly the most sung and most recorded hymn in the world, and especially popular in the Unit ...

Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft ( , ; 27 April 175910 September 1797) was an English writer and philosopher best known for her advocacy of women's rights. Until the late 20th century, Wollstonecraft's life, which encompassed several unconventional ...

(1759–97), the writer and philosopher, was born in Hoxton. John Mander, an

organ builder Organ building is the profession of designing, building, restoring and maintaining pipe organs. The organ builder usually receives a commission to design an organ with a particular disposition of stops, manuals, and actions, creates a desig ...

, lived at Hoxton and one of his sons, Noel Mander, founded

Mander Organs N.P Mander Limited later Mander Organs Limited was an England, English pipe organ maker and refurbisher based in London. Although well known for many years in the organ building industry, they achieved wider notability in 2004 with the refurbi ...

New Britain Southern Harmony Amazing Grace

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

's work was recognised by social campaigners, such as the philanthropist Charles Booth, for its welfare work in a deteriorating inner-city environment. Many members of the church became

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

in Africa and Asia, among them the first Bishop of Chota Nagpur, the

Rt Revd The Right Reverend (abbreviated as The Rt Revd or The Rt Rev) is an honorific style given to certain (primarily Western) Christian ministers and members of clergy. It is a variant of the more common style "The Reverend". Usage * In the Anglica ...

Jabez Cornelius Whiteley, whose father,

Chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

to the Haberdashers' Aske's Hospital School formerly located in Pitfield Street was the Revd Edward Whiteley: to give opportunities to the "local poor", the parish's first vicar founded what became London's largest savings bank and St John's National Schools which still thrive in India. The maternal great-great-great-grandfather of

Kate Middleton Catherine, Princess of Wales (born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton; 9 January 1982), is a member of the British royal family. She is married to William, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the British throne. Born in Reading, Catherine grew u ...

(now the

Princess of Wales Princess of Wales (; ) is a title used since the 14th century by the wife of the Prince of Wales. The Princess is the apparent future queen consort, as "Prince of Wales" is a title reserved by custom for the heir apparent to the Monarchy of the ...

), John Goldsmith, was married to Esther Jones at St John's Hoxton in 1850. The present

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 ...

, the Revd Graham Hunter, serves as an

Assistant Assistant may refer to: * Assistant (by Speaktoit), a virtual assistant app for smartphones * Assistant (software), a software tool to assist in computer configuration * Google Assistant, a virtual assistant by Google * ''The Assistant'' (TV seri ...

of the

Haberdashers' Company The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, one of the Great Twelve City Livery Companies, is an ancient guild, merchant guild of City of London, London associated with the silk and velvet trades. History and functions The Haberdashers' Company ...

and helps Dame Sarah Mullally,

Bishop of London The bishop of London is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723. The diocese covers of 17 boroughs o ...

, pioneer the CofE's Health Inequalities Action Group (HIAG) bringing together faith leaders.

Architecture

Completed in 1826, St John's is a

Regency In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

in the

classical style Classical architecture typically refers to architecture consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or more specifically, from ''De architectura'' (c. 10 AD) by the Roman architect Vitruvius. Va ...

, and the only one built to the design of the celebrated architect, Francis Edwards,

Sir John Soane Sir John Soane (; né Soan; 10 September 1753 – 20 January 1837) was an English architect who specialised in the Neo-Classical style. The son of a bricklayer, he rose to the top of his profession, becoming professor of architecture at the Ro ...

's foremost pupil. A large example of a

Commissioners' church A Commissioners' church, also known as a Waterloo church and Million Act church, is an Anglicanism, Anglican church in England or Wales built with money voted by Parliament of the United Kingdom, Parliament as a result of the (58 Geo. 3. ...

, its original floor plan remains intact as well as notable galleries and

décor Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a creative flair, an interior d ...

, including a

painted ceiling A painted ceiling is a ceiling covered with an artistic mural or painting. They are usually decorated with fresco painting, mosaic tiles and other surface treatments. While hard to execute (at least in situ) a decorated ceiling has the advantage ...

executed in the early 20th century by the architect Joseph Arthur Reeve.

Pipe organ

Built and installed in 1915 by the

firm A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

of Thomas Sidwell Jones, the

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 ...

sits in the choir gallery retaining its original late-Georgian wooden case with an elaborate façade displaying the

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...

. Last restored in 1934 by Henry Speechly & Son, St John's

is known to voice the following stops:

Bells

There is a ring of ten bells, cast at the nearby

Whitechapel Bell Foundry The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was a business in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. At the time of the closure of its Whitechapel premises, it was the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The bell foundry primarily made church bells ...

.Doves Bell Tower Guide https://dove.cccbr.org.uk/detail.php?searchString=TQ350863&searchRadius=5&DoveID=HACKNEY

References

External links

St. John's Hoxton official website

www.haberdashers.co.uk

www.npor.org.uk

www.londongardensonline.org.uk

Notes

www.hackney.gov.uk/hackney-museum

Air Cadets, Squadron 444: ATC HQ, Crondall Place, Crondall St, Hoxton N1

East of London Family History Society

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John the Baptist, Hoxton Hoxton Diocese of London Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Hackney Church of England church buildings in the London Borough of Hackney Churches completed in 1826 Grade II* listed churches in London Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hackney 1826 establishments in England 19th-century Church of England church buildings Commissioners' church buildings Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Hackney Georgian architecture in London Greek Revival church buildings in the United Kingdom Neoclassical architecture in London Regency London Holy Trinity Brompton plants Regency architecture in London Neoclassical church buildings in England

Parish history

Architecture

Pipe organ

Bells

See also

References

External links

Notes

External links