St Stephen's Church in St Stephen's Avenue, is 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 ...

for the city of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

, England. It has been designated by

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

as 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 ...

History

It was built, on the site of an 11th-century church, in the 14th century and rebuilt around 1470. The tower and east window were paid for by John Shipward, four times Mayor of Bristol, who died in 1473, the tower being built by the mason Benedict (or Benet) Crosse. The site was on the banks of the River Frome, which was diverted in the 1240s to create

Bristol Harbour Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It is the former natural tidal river River Avon, Bristol, Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was preven ...

. The

clerestory A clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French ''cler estor'') is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, a ''clerestory' ...

was repaired after a storm in 1703. The

aisle An aisle is a linear space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, in buildings such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parliaments, courtrooms, ...

and east windows were

restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004, by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard Aus ...

in 1873. The tower measures approximately 18 ft by 20 ft at its base, and rises to a total height of 152 ft. It originally contained six bells but these have been replaced over the years and the number increased to twelve. The tower is typical of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

churches, but with the addition of a "

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

crown" of arcaded

battlements A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals t ...

pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

s and open-work arcading. The 15th-century

brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

eagle lectern An eagle lectern is a lectern in the shape of an eagle on whose outstretched wings the Bible or other texts rest. They are common in Christian churches and may be in stone, wood or metal, usually brass. History Eagle lecterns in stone were a ...

and the

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

sword rest by William Edney of about 1710 were moved to St Stephen's from

St Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...

church, which was damaged in the

Bristol Blitz The Bristol Blitz was the heavy bombing of Bristol, England by the Nazi German ''Luftwaffe'' during the Second World War. Due to the presence of Bristol Harbour and the Bristol Aeroplane Company, the city was a target for bombing and was ea ...

. In 1885, a young man named

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...

took up a position as an assistant to Mordaunt Crofton, a Bristol clergyman who was attempting to establish a Boys' and Young Men's Guild at St Stephen's Church. It was in Bristol that Ramsay MacDonald joined his first Radical organisation, before moving to London in early 1886. Later, MacDonald became the first Labour Party

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister Advice (constitutional law), advises the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign on the exercise of much of the Royal prerogative ...

. The St Stephen's Ringers have been a continuously active group of bellringers since 1574, and have met annually at The Red Lodge since 1920 for their ceremonial dinner.The History of the Antient Society of St Stephen's Ringers, Bristol, St Stephen's Press, 1928, p. 133

Tombs, burials and monuments

Edmund Blanket, a 14th-century clothier and

wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...

merchant, has a

tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...

on the north side of the church. Arnaq and

Kalicho Kalicho was the name assigned to an Inuit, Inuk man from the Frobisher Bay area of Baffin Island (now in Nunavut Canada). He was brought back to England as a captive by Sir Martin Frobisher in 1577. He was taken along with an unrelated Inuit wom ...

, who were amongst the first North Americans to visit Britain (having been seized by

Martin Frobisher Sir Martin Frobisher (; – 22 November 1594) was an English sailor and privateer who made three voyages to the New World looking for the North-west Passage. He probably sighted Resolution Island near Labrador in north-eastern Canada, before ...

), were buried at this church as "heathens" in 1577, within months of arriving in England. A significant tomb is that of

Martin Pring Martin Pring (1580–1626) was an English explorer from Bristol, England who in 1603 at the age of 23 was captain of an expedition to North America to assess commercial potential; he explored areas of present-day Maine, New Hampshire, and Cape Co ...

, who died at the age of 46 in 1627. He was a navigator, explorer and merchant and discovered what is now called

Cape Cod Bay Cape Cod Bay is a large bay of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent to the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Measuring below a line drawn from Brant Rock in Marshfield to Race Point in Provincetown, Massachusetts, it is enclosed by Cape Cod to the south ...

. The monument is draped with painted

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are ...

s and

mermen Mermen may refer to: * The Mermen, a music group *Merman A merman (: mermen; also merlad or merboy in youth), the male counterpart of the mythical female mermaid, is a legendary creature which is human from the waist up and fish-like from the w ...

and verses to his exploits. Sir Walter Tyddesley, who died in 1385, and Sir George Snigge also have ornate tombs in the church. Also commemorated, but this time in a wall-mounted plaque, is

Robert Kitchin Sir Robert Kitchen (alt. Kytchen) was Alderman of Bristol. He died on 19 June 1594. He gifted one of the four bronze 'nails' (merchants' counting tables) to The Exchange, Bristol, The Exchange in Bristol. Abel Kitchin, later Mayor of Bristol ...

, who died in 1594, a donor of one of the famous bronze "nails" (merchants' counting tables) found outside The Exchange in Bristol.

References

External links

St Stephen's Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Stephen's Church, Bristol Church of England church buildings in Bristol Diocese of Bristol St Stephen's Church 14th-century church buildings in England

History

Tombs, burials and monuments

Archives

See also

References

External links