St Michael and All Angels, Blackheath 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 ...

Blackheath, London Blackheath is an area in Southeast London, straddling the border of the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Lewisham. Historically within the county of Kent, it is located northeast of Lewisham, south of Greenwich, London, G ...

. The church is a part of the

Diocese of Southwark The Diocese of Southwark ( ) is one of the 42 dioceses of the Church of England, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. It was created on 1 May 1905 from part of the ancient ...

. This Grade II*

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 ...

was designed by the architect George Smith.

History

St Michael and All Angels is located in the Cator Estate in Blackheath. The estate was purchased by

John Cator John Cator (21 March 1728 – 26 February 1806) was an English timber merchant and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1772 and 1793. He became a landowner and property developer with estates in later life in: Blackheath, Beckenh ...

in 1783. The area purchased included the Wricklemarsh mansion along with its 250-acre estate, previously owned by Sir Gregory Page. Following Cator's death in 1806, the estate was inherited by his nephew John Barwell Cator (1791–1850). As there was no church close to the residents of the estate, Cator provided a portion of land and £4,000 towards the construction of the church. The foundations were laid on 20 December 1828 and the building was completed in February 1830. The architect was George Smith and the builder was William Moore, a local bricklayer and carpenter. The chapel was consecrated as the parish church of St Michael and All Angels in 1874. Until then, the church had been called either Trinity or St Peter’s Chapel or simply ‘Mr Cator’s chapel'. During the Second World War, when

Frank Colquhoun Frank Colquhoun (28 October 1909 – 3 April 1997) was a British Church of England priest and author. Life and career Born in 1909 into a clergy family, Frank Colquhoun was educated at Warwick School and Durham University. A member of University ...

was vicar, the church was heavily affected by air raids.

Architecture

The church was designed in a Gothic style unusual for the 1830s. The building has a distinctive, tall high spire, which is known as "the Needle of Kent". The steeple is placed unusually at the east end of the building. The location is thought to have been intended to attract attention as seen from the crossroads of the estate. The building is made of white Gault bricks with Bath stone dressings and roofed with Welsh slate.

Ian Nairn Ian Douglas Nairn (24 August 1930 – 14 August 1983) was a British architectural critic who coined the word "Subtopia" to indicate drab suburbs that look identical through unimaginative town-planning. He published two strongly personalised cr ...

describes it as "far more individual than the usual run", and "more than a studious crib from a pattern book", and notes "the highly successful Eastern Tower".Nairn's London, Penguin Books, 1966. Page 183. The stone pulpit was erected in 1920 as a

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

memorial.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Michael and All Angels, Blackheath 19th-century Church of England church buildings Gothic Revival church buildings in London Religious organizations established in 1874 Churches completed in 1830 Anglican Diocese of Southwark Grade II* listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Greenwich Grade II* listed churches in London