St Margaret's Church, Barking
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St Margaret's Church or the Church of St Margaret of Antioch is a
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 Barking, East London. The church is a
Grade I listed building 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, Hi ...
, on a site dating back to the 13th century, within the grounds of
Barking Abbey The Abbey of St Mary and St Ethelburga, founded in the 7th-century and commonly known as Barking Abbey, is a former Roman Catholic, royal monastery located in Barking, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. It has been described as havi ...
, the ruins of a former
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
royal monastery originally established in the 7th century. The building is dedicated to
Margaret the Virgin Margaret, known as Margaret of Antioch in the West, and as Saint Marina the Great Martyr () in the East, is celebrated as a saint on 20 July in Western Christianity, on 30th of July (Julian calendar) by the Eastern Orthodox Church, and on Epip ...
, also known as Margaret of Antioch.


History


Medieval

The church originated as a chapel for local people within the grounds of
Barking Abbey The Abbey of St Mary and St Ethelburga, founded in the 7th-century and commonly known as Barking Abbey, is a former Roman Catholic, royal monastery located in Barking, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. It has been described as havi ...
, to the south of the Abbey church. Its oldest part is the chancel, built early in the 13th century during the reign of King John. The building is said to have been made into a parish church in 1300 by Anne de Vere, abbess of the Abbey. Until the 1390s Barking formed a
rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...
, held by the Abbey and divided into two vicarages known as 'Northstrete' (probably funded by income from the
Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...
area) and 'Southstrete' (serving the Abbey church). The area suffered severe flooding in the late 14th century, leading to financial difficulties and a merger of the two vicarages from 1398 onwards. A chaplain from the Abbey led worship. The present bell tower was added late in the 15th century.


Reformation

It remained a parish church when the Abbey was dissolved and the rectory and
advowson Advowson () or patronage is the right in English law of a patron (avowee) to present to the diocesan bishop (or in some cases the ordinary if not the same person) a nominee for appointment to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a ...
devolved to the Crown, who initially leased it to the widow Mary Blackenhall for 21 years in 1540. In 1557 these were bought by Robert Thomas and Andrew Salter using money from the estate of William Pownsett of nearby Loxford, and granted to
All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: The College of All Souls of the Faithful Departed, of Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full me ...
, in return for the vicar praying for the souls of Pownsett, his parents and benefactors every Sunday, giving 6
shillings The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence ...
and 8
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amongst twenty poor people annually on the anniversary of Pownsett's death, paying the College an annual sum to maintain two poor scholars and only being absent from the parish 80 or fewer days a year. The College presented when the next vacancy occurred in 1560, but at the following one the Crown contested its right, though this was overturned via a lawsuit. Sir John Petre reconfirmed the 1557 grant in 1594, but dropped the requirement to pray for the dead. The right is now shared between
All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: The College of All Souls of the Faithful Departed, of Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full me ...
, the Bishop of Chelmsford (in whose diocese it now falls) and the church's churchwardens.


17th century to 20th century

The church contains several memorials, including one to the 17th-century politician Charles Montagu. The explorer Captain
James Cook Captain (Royal Navy), Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 176 ...
married Elizabeth Batts in the church on 21 December 1762. Ten years later the nave, chancel and sanctuary all had their ceilings plastered, though this was removed from the nave ceiling in 1842. Charles Winmill and George Jack were involved in a restoration of the interior between 1929 and 1936. The building was
Grade I 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, Hi ...
in 1954. An extension was added along the south side late in the 20th century to provide an office, bookshop and refectory.


Present day

In the late 1970s the parish became part of a team parish covering Barking with Christ Church and St Patrick's. On 1 January 2017, St Patrick's and Christchurch each gained their own parishes, taken from the team Parish area, leaving St Margaret's with a smaller Parish. St Margaret's parish is unusual in having three churchwardens rather than two. In 2007, two small stones from remains of the old medieval
London Bridge The name "London Bridge" refers to several historic crossings that have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark in central London since Roman Britain, Roman times. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 197 ...
were joined together in a sculpture in front of St Margaret's church facing the
Barking Abbey The Abbey of St Mary and St Ethelburga, founded in the 7th-century and commonly known as Barking Abbey, is a former Roman Catholic, royal monastery located in Barking, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. It has been described as havi ...
ruins as part of several public artworks placed in Barking Town Centre by artist Joost Van Santen. The church is both
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 ...
and
open evangelical An open evangelical attempts to uphold Evangelicalism, evangelical doctrines, morality, and spirituality, while also being Inclusive theology, inclusive of others. It is a term which is commonly used in the United Kingdom in reference to both indivi ...
in
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 ...
.


Notable clergy

Many vicars of Barking have gone on to become bishops. Hugh Jermyn was Bishop of Colombo 1871–1875,
Bishop of Brechin The Bishop of Brechin is a title held successively, since c. 1150: (firstly) by bishops of the Catholic church until the Reformation of 1560; (secondly) by bishops of the Church of Scotland until that church declared itself presbyterian in ...
1875–1903 and Primus of Scotland 1886–1901. Robin Smith, a curate from 1962, was Bishop of Hertford 1990–2001.


Vicars of North Barking

* 1315-????:
Martinus Martinus is a given name or surname. It comes from the Latin name ''Martinus'', which is a late derived form of the name of the Roman god Mars (mythology), Mars, protective godhead of the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins and, therefore, god of war. Ne ...
* 1328-????: ???? De Ansi * 1335-???: ???? De Borton * 1373-????: Hugo Smith * 1385-????: Thomas Bene * 1395-????: John Sacombe


Vicars of South Barking

* 1331-????: ??? De Cishampton * 1335-????: ??? De Hochetote * 1373-????: ??? ?Deautine/?Beautine


Vicars of Barking

* 1398-????: John Makewye * 1403-????: Stephen Chamberlayne * 1438-????: John Willoghby * 1439-????: John Greening * 1462-????: Robert Walesis * 1486-????: Galf King * 1505-????: John Frothingham * 1511-????: John Long * 1524-1560: John Gregyll * 1560-????: Richard Tirwitt * 1584-????: Edward Edworth * 1587-????: Richard Wignall * 1620-????: Richard Hall * –1653: William Amys * until 1654: Jonathan Bowles * until 1660: Benjamin Way * 1660-1689: Thomas Cartwright; also
Bishop of Chester The Bishop of Chester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chester in the Province of York. The diocese extends across most of the historic county boundaries of Cheshire, including the Wirral Peninsula and has its see in the ...
from 1686. * 1689 - ??: Leopold Finch * 1697 - ??: John Chisenhale * ?-?: Thomas Macken Fiddes * ????-????: Lewis Owen * ????-????: William Stephens * before 1748: Peter Walkden * 1748 - ??: Francis Morice * 1751-??: Savage Tyndal * 1782- ???? Christopher Musgrave * ????-????: Edmund Isham * : Peter Rashleigh * 1836-????: Robert Lidell * c 1850 - ????: Henry Jeremiah Dyson * c 1860 - ????: Henry Fortescue Seymour * 1870-1871: Hugh Willoughby Jermyn * 1871-1882: Alfred Blomfield * 1882-1888: John Richardson * 1888–1895: Hensley Henson; later Bishop of Hereford and
Bishop of Durham The bishop of Durham is head of the diocese of Durham in the province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler (bishop), Paul Butler was the most recent bishop of Durham u ...
* 1895-1903: Percy Montague Wathen * 1904-?1915: John Warmington Eisdell * 1925–1930: Leslie Hunter; later Bishop of Sheffield * 1947–1959: William Chadwick; later Bishop of Barking * 1959–1965: Denis Wakeling; later Bishop of Southwell * 1965–1977: James Roxburgh; later Bishop of Barking * Patrick Allen Blair * Paul Richard Thomas * John Parsons * Gordon Tarry * 2013–2019: Trevor Mwamba; previously Bishop of Botswana * 2021 – date: Mark Adams


Christenings, weddings and burials


Marriages

* At the church on 21 December 1762, the maritime explorer, cartographer and naval officer Captain
James Cook Captain (Royal Navy), Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 176 ...
married Elizabeth Batts. Her father, Samuel Batts, was keeper of the Bell Inn in
Wapping Wapping () is an area in the borough of Tower Hamlets in London, England. It is in East London and part of the East End. Wapping is on the north bank of the River Thames between Tower Bridge to the west, and Shadwell to the east. This posit ...
and one of Cook's mentors.


Burials

* Daniel Day (1682–1767), founder of the Fairlop Fair, was buried in a coffin made from a bough which fell from the Fairlop Oak. Fairlop was, at that time, part of the ancient parish of Barking. * Henry Fanshawe (1506–1568), a Member of the English Parliament during the reign of
Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...
. He also served as Queen's Remembrancer from 1565 until his death in 1568. * Sir Charles Montagu (c.1564–1625) of Cranbrook Hall in the parish of Barking, Essex, a politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1614 to 1625. He was buried in the church where a mural monument survives, depicting a small effigy of Sir Charles fully armed, sitting in a military tent during a campaign.T. Cromwell, ''Excursions in the county of Essex'', 2 vols (Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, London 1818), II
p. 179
(Google).
Its inscription reads: :''Heere lieth the body of ye worthy knight Sr Charles Montagu who died at his house at Cranbrook in Essex in the parish of Barking the 11th of September in ye yeere of our Lorde God 1625 being of ye age of 61 yeares who gave to ye poore of Barking forty pounds''


References


External links


Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barking, Saint Margaret's Church 13th-century church buildings in England Church of England church buildings in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham James Cook English churches dedicated to St Margaret of Antioch Grade I listed buildings in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Grade I listed churches in London