St Matthew's Church, Westminster, 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 ...

church in

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

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. Located in the heart of the capital, close to the

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

and

Church House Church House may refer to: Buildings Diocesan and national ecclesiastical offices * Church House (Presbyterian Church in Ireland), Belfast, Northern Ireland, headquarters of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland * Church House, Brisbane, Queenslan ...

, St Matthew's has been closely associated with the recovery of the Catholic heritage of the Church of England from its early days. One of the foremost leaders of that movement, Frank Weston, Bishop of Zanzibar, served at St Matthew's from 1896–1898.

History

St Matthew's was built between 1849 and 1851 to the design of Sir

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), largely known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he ...

, assisted by his brother-in-law,

George Frederick Bodley George Frederick Bodley (14 March 182721 October 1907) was an English Gothic Revival architect. He was a pupil of Sir George Gilbert Scott and worked with C. E. Kempe. He was in partnership with Thomas Garner for much of his career and was ...

. Scott's son

John Oldrid Scott John Oldrid Scott (17 July 1841 – 30 May 1913) was a British architect. Biography He was the son of George Gilbert Scott and his wife Caroline (). His brother George Gilbert Scott Junior and nephew Sir Giles Gilbert Scott were also prominent ...

designed the clergy house. Subsequently, Sir

Ninian Comper Sir John Ninian Comper (10 June 1864 – 22 December 1960) was a Scottish architect, one of the last of the great Gothic Revival architecture, Gothic Revival architects. His work almost entirely focused on the design, restoration and embellishm ...

added the

Lady chapel A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British English, British term for a chapel dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church (building), church. The chapels are also known as a Mary chape ...

(approached by the staircase in the

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 ...

). The interior was greatly enriched by the work of Bodley,

Charles Kempe Charles Eamer Kempe (29 June 1837 – 29 April 1907) was a British Victorian era designer and manufacturer of stained glass. His studios produced over 4,000 windows and also designs for altars and altar frontals, furniture and furnishings, lychg ...

Walter Ernest Tower Walter may refer to: People and fictional characters * Walter (name), including a list of people and fictional and mythical characters with the given name or surname * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–19 ...

and

Martin Travers Howard Martin Otho Travers (19 February 1886 – 25 July 1948) was a leading English church artist and designer. Travers was born in Margate, Kent, educated at Tonbridge School, entered the Royal College of Art in 1904, and was awarded its Dipl ...

. Kempe and Comper studied under Bodley; Tower was Kempe's partner and Martin Travers was the pupil of Comper. At the time it was built the area was one of the poorer districts of the borough of

. The church was founded to alleviate the overcrowded St John the Evangelist Church (better known as St John's, Smith Square, which has since been converted into a concert hall, although it remains a consecrated church) in nearby

Smith Square Smith Square is a square in Westminster, London, 250 metres south-southwest of the Palace of Westminster. Most of its garden square, garden interior is filled by St John's, Smith Square, a English Baroque, Baroque surplus church, the inside of w ...

. At that time, the new parish was situated in the middle of the notorious Devil's Acre slum and the site was purchased piecemeal at a total cost of about £6,000. This resulted in the "very irregular and unfavourable form" of the L-shaped church building. The church, except for the Lady Chapel, was almost totally destroyed by fire in May 1977. The new church was dedicated in November 1984 and, while much smaller than the previous church, retains much of its atmosphere as well as some of the original stone-work and many of the contents rescued from the destruction. It is twinned with the

Little Church Around the Corner The Church of the Transfiguration, also known as the Little Church Around the Corner, is an Episcopal parish church located at 1 East 29th Street, between Madison and Fifth Avenues in the NoMad neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, where

P.G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...

was married and set many weddings in his writing.

Architecture and interior

Entering the church, via the narthex, visitors will see a stained glass window of St Michael by

W. E. Tower W. may refer to: * SoHo (Australian TV channel) (previously W.), an Australian pay television channel * ''W.'' (film), a 2008 American biographical drama film based on the life of George W. Bush * "W.", the fifth track from Codeine's 1992 EP ''Bar ...

. All the stained glass was badly damaged but some of the figures were saved and placed in new settings (most notably the east window and the

Annunciation The Annunciation (; ; also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord; ) is, according to the Gospel of Luke, the announcement made by the archangel Gabriel to Ma ...

scene in the N.E. window). Here also is Tower's panel of the crucifixion. The 14

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

line the walls and were sculpted by

Joseph Cribb (Herbert) Joseph Cribb (1892–1967) was a British sculptor, carver and letter-cutter. Born in Hammersmith, London, Cribb's career as an artist began when he was fourteen. He was recruited by Eric Gill as his assistant in 1906 and was taught let ...

, a pupil of

Eric Gill Arthur Eric Rowton Gill (22 February 1882 – 17 November 1940) was an English sculptor, letter cutter, typeface designer, and printmaker. Although the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' describes Gill as "the greatest artist-craftsma ...

. They trace the final journey which Jesus made on the way to his crucifixion and are used as an aid to prayer and meditation. The Lady Chapel is the earliest example of Comper's work in England, and the 'English altar' with its riddel posts is, he maintained, the first of its type since the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. The Chapel has been completely renovated, and is used every day for Morning and Evening Prayer as well as for weekday masses. There is a statue of

Our Lady of Walsingham Our Lady of Walsingham is a title given to Mary, the mother of Jesus, venerated by Catholics and high-church Anglicans. According to tradition, the title is linked to a Marian vision experienced in 1061 by Lady Richeldis de Faverches, an Angl ...

. Next to the Lady Chapel is the Reconciliation Room, which is used for the hearing of confessions and private discussions. St Michael's Chapel houses a stone altar by Bodley, and is open every day for private prayer and reflection. Through the iron-work grille, also by Bodley, can be seen the magnificent

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

by W. E. Tower, depicting an amazing variety of saints and angels surrounding the scene of the Nativity. On the High Altar is the tabernacle where the

Blessed Sacrament The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

is reserved so that

Holy Communion The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

is available at any time for those in need. It also acts as a focus for prayer. The altar contains a relic of St Matthew. Entering the main church one passes a fine Spanish lectern from the 15th century. The modern statue of Our Lady, Queen of Peace, is by Mother Concordia OSB. The other statues are the work of Tower and depict St Edward the Confessor, St George (with dragon), St Michael and St Matthew. The High Altar and reredos were originally under the east window, surrounded by wooden panelling. This panelling was removed after the fire and beneath it was discovered the mosaic mural and painted arcading you see today. The recent addition of a modern carving of the Madonna and Child maintains the creative link between the church and the arts. It was sculpted by Guy Reid, a former Artist in Residence at St Matthew's.

Parish school

The parish school was opened in 1854 and is next to the church in Old Pye Street. The vicar serves as the chair of governors and the church's pastoral assistants take an active role in the spiritual life of the school.

Notable clergy

Eric Lionel Mascall Eric Lionel Mascall (1905–1993) was a leading theologian and priest in the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the Church of England. He was a philosophical exponent of the Thomist tradition and was Professor of Historical Theology at King's College ...

, curate *Ernest Perkins St John, vicar 1935–?Mascall, E. L. (1992) ''Saraband: the memoirs of E. L. Mascall''. Leominster: Gracewing; chapter 5 * Frank Weston, curate * Gerard Irvine, vicar *

Jonathan Aitken Jonathan William Patrick Aitken (born 30 August 1942) is a British author, Church of England priest and former Conservative Party politician. Beginning his career in journalism, he was elected to Parliament in 1974 (serving until 1997), and wa ...

, curate

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Matthew's, Westminster