St Peter's Church, Wallingford
Encyclopedia
St Peter's Church, Wallingford, is a redundant
Anglican
church in Wallingford, Oxfordshire
, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
. The church stands at the east side of the town, overlooking the River Thames
.
. Building of the present church started in 1763, the contractors being William Toovey and Joseph Tuckwell. In 1767 the interior of the church was paved, pews were added, and the exterior was stucco
ed under the supervision of Sir Robert Taylor
. A spire designed by Taylor was added in 1776–77. A local resident, Sir William Blackstone
, a lawyer and author of the Commentaries on the Laws of England
, took an interest in the building of the spire and paid for the clock face visible from his house. The chancel
was built in 1904, designed by Sydney Stephenson. The church was declared redundant on 1 May 1971, and was vested
in the Churches Conservation Trust on 26 July 1972. For visitor access, a key can be obtained from the nearby Tourist Information Office. A series of chamber music
concerts is held during the summer months.
nave
, a chancel with an apse
, and a west tower with a spire. The nave and chancel are constructed in ashlar
stone, the nave standing on a flint
plinth
. The tower is built in knapped flint, with stone quoins
and bands. The nave is roofed in Welsh slate
and the chancel is tiled. At the top of the tower is a clock face on each side, except the north. Above this is an octagonal belfry
surmounted by an openwork stone spire. The nave and tower are in Neoclassical
style, and the chancel is Gothic Revival
. The church is entered by a double door in a round-headed doorway on the west side of the tower. Above the doorway is a three-light window containing Y-tracery
. The nave has a shaped cornice
and a plain parapet
, and contains four round-headed windows on each side. In the chancel are windows dating from the 20th century, the one on the north side being a rose window
.
ed ceiling. The pews and font
date from the 18th century. In the east window is stained glass dating from 1918 by Morris & Co.
On the south wall is a monument to Sir William Blackstone and his family. It consists of an inscribed panel above three shields, surrounded by an arch.
Redundant church
A redundant church is a church building that is no longer required for regular public worship. The phrase is particularly used to refer to former Anglican buildings in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world...
Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
church in Wallingford, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
Churches Conservation Trust
The Churches Conservation Trust, which was initially known as the Redundant Churches Fund, is a charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk, those that have been made redundant by the Church of England. The Trust was established by the Pastoral Measure of 1968...
. The church stands at the east side of the town, overlooking the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
.
History
An earlier church on the site was destroyed in 1646 during the siege of Wallingford in the Civil WarEnglish Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. Building of the present church started in 1763, the contractors being William Toovey and Joseph Tuckwell. In 1767 the interior of the church was paved, pews were added, and the exterior was stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
ed under the supervision of Sir Robert Taylor
Robert Taylor (architect)
Sir Robert Taylor was a notable English architect of the mid-late 18th century.Born at Woodford, Essex, Taylor followed in his father's footsteps and started working as a stonemason and sculptor, spending time as a pupil of Sir Henry Cheere...
. A spire designed by Taylor was added in 1776–77. A local resident, Sir William Blackstone
William Blackstone
Sir William Blackstone KC SL was an English jurist, judge and Tory politician of the eighteenth century. He is most noted for writing the Commentaries on the Laws of England. Born into a middle class family in London, Blackstone was educated at Charterhouse School before matriculating at Pembroke...
, a lawyer and author of the Commentaries on the Laws of England
Commentaries on the Laws of England
The Commentaries on the Laws of England are an influential 18th-century treatise on the common law of England by Sir William Blackstone, originally published by the Clarendon Press at Oxford, 1765–1769...
, took an interest in the building of the spire and paid for the clock face visible from his house. The chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
was built in 1904, designed by Sydney Stephenson. The church was declared redundant on 1 May 1971, and was vested
Vesting
In law, vesting is to give an immediately secured right of present or future enjoyment. One has a vested right to an asset that cannot be taken away by any third party, even though one may not yet possess the asset. When the right, interest or title to the present or future possession of a legal...
in the Churches Conservation Trust on 26 July 1972. For visitor access, a key can be obtained from the nearby Tourist Information Office. A series of chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
concerts is held during the summer months.
Exterior
The plan of the church consists of a four-bayBay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
, a chancel with an apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
, and a west tower with a spire. The nave and chancel are constructed in ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
stone, the nave standing on a flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
plinth
Plinth
In architecture, a plinth is the base or platform upon which a column, pedestal, statue, monument or structure rests. Gottfried Semper's The Four Elements of Architecture posited that the plinth, the hearth, the roof, and the wall make up all of architectural theory. The plinth usually rests...
. The tower is built in knapped flint, with stone quoins
Quoin (architecture)
Quoins are the cornerstones of brick or stone walls. Quoins may be either structural or decorative. Architects and builders use quoins to give the impression of strength and firmness to the outline of a building...
and bands. The nave is roofed in Welsh slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
and the chancel is tiled. At the top of the tower is a clock face on each side, except the north. Above this is an octagonal belfry
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
surmounted by an openwork stone spire. The nave and tower are in Neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
style, and the chancel is Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
. The church is entered by a double door in a round-headed doorway on the west side of the tower. Above the doorway is a three-light window containing Y-tracery
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
. The nave has a shaped cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
and a plain parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
, and contains four round-headed windows on each side. In the chancel are windows dating from the 20th century, the one on the north side being a rose window
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...
.
Interior
The nave has a shallow-arched cofferCoffer
A coffer in architecture, is a sunken panel in the shape of a square, rectangle, or octagon in a ceiling, soffit or vault...
ed ceiling. The pews and font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
date from the 18th century. In the east window is stained glass dating from 1918 by Morris & Co.
Morris & Co.
Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. and its successor Morris & Co. were furnishings and decorative arts manufacturers and retailers founded by the Pre-Raphaelite artist and designer William Morris...
On the south wall is a monument to Sir William Blackstone and his family. It consists of an inscribed panel above three shields, surrounded by an arch.
See also
- List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in South East England