Broadwater Church
Encyclopedia
St. Mary's Church, Broadwater
, is located in the Diocese of Chichester
, in the deanery of Worthing
and serves the parish of Broadwater in Worthing
in West Sussex
. It is one of four churches within this parish alongside Hosanna, Queen Street Fellowship and St. Stephen's Church.
: "Bradwatre ... here is a church".
Not much of the building from the Saxon
times remain, however it is said that repair work in 1939 uncovered a Saxon doorway in the south wall of the chancel, visible near the boiler house, and other Saxon door jambs and window arches are preserved within the walls of the present tower.
The Normans built a small church of which only the tower remains as evidenced in its arches, though the clay subsoil has required successive repair and reinforcement of this tower. Legend has it that a Norman tunnel leads from the church to the nearby Broadwater Manor School (previously Broadwater Manor House). The tunnel may have been used as either an escape or smuggling route. Efforts to find the concealed entrance both from the church and the School in the 1980s were in vain.
12th century, late. Transepts added. Chancel lengthened.
13th century. New aisled nave built. Chancel rebuilt. Tower heightened.
14th (15th?) century. North door into the nave (main entrance, facing the village) renewed and porch added.
15th century. Windows and pillars in aisled nave altered. Low chancel screen installed, with evidence that there was at some time another screen above it.
1599. Altar slabs were removed by order of Queen Elizabeth (I). The remains of an ancient one of Sussex marble, partially concreted over, can be seen just inside the chancel, by the screen.
1819. Gallery built at west end.
1826. Short shingled spire taken down from tower. Six chapels, three to the east of each of the transepts, were knocked down. The north transept was converted for use as a school, with a gallery. Box pews installed in the nave. Galleries were built over both aisles.
1830. The tower was embattled and a turret was added over the spiral stone staircase in its southwest corner.
1853-55. Chancel roof replaced, walls straightened ("Mr Hide's experiment") and underpinned after having begun to be pushed outwards. Chancel windows replaced, except the one in the southwest corner which still dates from C15. Churchyard closed, no further burials.
1860's. Galleries over the aisles, west end and north transept were removed. New nave pews replaced box pews. Caen stone pulpit erected, designed by Charles Hide, son of the architect in charge of this restoration
. The previous Jacobean pulpit was moved to Holy Trinity church, Worthing. Clergy vestry built east of the south transept.
1866. The tower was strengthened by filling the spiral stone staircase in its southwest corner and removing the turret above it. A new wooden staircase to the tower had been put in the north transept.
1887. West end rebuilt, reopened with porch. Door in south aisle blocked up.
1903. Clock placed in tower commemorating Reverend E K Elliot's 50 years as Rector.
1938. Six 1712 bells were recast and two tenor bells added.
1953. Cox & Barnard
of Hove
installed a stained glass
window in the south wall of the chancel. It depicts John Wycliffe
with a group of preachers.
1986. Wooden dais/platform built under the west arch of the tower.
1989. Tower battlements renewed.
2001. First of four phases of a reordering process to equip the church for the 21st century. New heating & lighting system.
2007. North transept
re-ordered with a mezzanine floor, creating two additional rooms available for children's rooms.
2009. All pews removed from the nave and some from the chancel. Nave floor replaced with stone and underfloor heating. Inner west door replaced with glazed doors.
2013? Extending the building to provide additional facilities.
was entombed in the church in 1524 and his memorial is on the north wall of the chancel. The tomb was discovered under the nave floor in 2009. His son, also Thomas, died in 1554 and has a Caen stone memorial at the east side of the south transept, moved from the east end of the south aisle in 1826.
John Mapulton (also known as John Mapilton), rector of the church between 1424 and 1431 was clerk to the Court of Chancery
and was chancellor to Queen Joanna, widow of Henry IV
. The church contains a brass dedicated to John Mapilton.
Two well-preserved brasses on a stone slab were discovered under old pews in 1826. This was set into the centre aisle of the nave and then moved, in 2007, to be positioned vertically the north transept. The main brass cross commemorates Reverend Richard Tooner who died in 1445. Below it is a memorial to John Corby, Rector 1393-1415.
The church also has a brass dedicated to the eleven brave fishermen who lost their lives in the Lalla Rookh disaster of 1850 while trying to save the lives of the crew of the Lalla Rookh, a ship caught in stormy seas off Worthing.
Writers Richard Jefferies
and William Henry Hudson
, as well as surgeon John White
are buried in the church's cemetery.
A notable curate of the church was George Baillie Duncan
.
Broadwater, West Sussex
Broadwater is a neighbourhood of the Borough of Worthing in West Sussex, England. Situated between the South Downs and the English Channel, Broadwater was once a parish in its own right and included Worthing when the latter was a small fishing hamlet. Before its incorporation into the Borough of...
, is located in the Diocese of Chichester
Diocese of Chichester
The Diocese of Chichester is a Church of England diocese based in Chichester, covering Sussex. It was created in 1075 to replace the old Diocese of Selsey, which was based at Selsey Abbey from 681. The cathedral is Chichester Cathedral and the bishop is the Bishop of Chichester...
, in the deanery of Worthing
Worthing
Worthing is a large seaside town with borough status in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, forming part of the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation. It is situated at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester...
and serves the parish of Broadwater in Worthing
Worthing
Worthing is a large seaside town with borough status in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, forming part of the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation. It is situated at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester...
in West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
. It is one of four churches within this parish alongside Hosanna, Queen Street Fellowship and St. Stephen's Church.
History
1086. The Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
: "Bradwatre ... here is a church".
Not much of the building from the Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
times remain, however it is said that repair work in 1939 uncovered a Saxon doorway in the south wall of the chancel, visible near the boiler house, and other Saxon door jambs and window arches are preserved within the walls of the present tower.
The Normans built a small church of which only the tower remains as evidenced in its arches, though the clay subsoil has required successive repair and reinforcement of this tower. Legend has it that a Norman tunnel leads from the church to the nearby Broadwater Manor School (previously Broadwater Manor House). The tunnel may have been used as either an escape or smuggling route. Efforts to find the concealed entrance both from the church and the School in the 1980s were in vain.
12th century, late. Transepts added. Chancel lengthened.
13th century. New aisled nave built. Chancel rebuilt. Tower heightened.
14th (15th?) century. North door into the nave (main entrance, facing the village) renewed and porch added.
15th century. Windows and pillars in aisled nave altered. Low chancel screen installed, with evidence that there was at some time another screen above it.
1599. Altar slabs were removed by order of Queen Elizabeth (I). The remains of an ancient one of Sussex marble, partially concreted over, can be seen just inside the chancel, by the screen.
1819. Gallery built at west end.
1826. Short shingled spire taken down from tower. Six chapels, three to the east of each of the transepts, were knocked down. The north transept was converted for use as a school, with a gallery. Box pews installed in the nave. Galleries were built over both aisles.
1830. The tower was embattled and a turret was added over the spiral stone staircase in its southwest corner.
1853-55. Chancel roof replaced, walls straightened ("Mr Hide's experiment") and underpinned after having begun to be pushed outwards. Chancel windows replaced, except the one in the southwest corner which still dates from C15. Churchyard closed, no further burials.
1860's. Galleries over the aisles, west end and north transept were removed. New nave pews replaced box pews. Caen stone pulpit erected, designed by Charles Hide, son of the architect in charge of this restoration
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
. The previous Jacobean pulpit was moved to Holy Trinity church, Worthing. Clergy vestry built east of the south transept.
1866. The tower was strengthened by filling the spiral stone staircase in its southwest corner and removing the turret above it. A new wooden staircase to the tower had been put in the north transept.
1887. West end rebuilt, reopened with porch. Door in south aisle blocked up.
1903. Clock placed in tower commemorating Reverend E K Elliot's 50 years as Rector.
1938. Six 1712 bells were recast and two tenor bells added.
1953. Cox & Barnard
Cox & Barnard
Cox & Barnard Ltd is a stained glass designer and manufacturer based in Hove, part of the English city of Brighton and Hove. The company was founded in Hove in 1919 and specialises in stained glass for churches and decorative glass products. Many commissions have come from Anglican and Roman...
of Hove
Hove
Hove is a town on the south coast of England, immediately to the west of its larger neighbour Brighton, with which it forms the unitary authority Brighton and Hove. It forms a single conurbation together with Brighton and some smaller towns and villages running along the coast...
installed a stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
window in the south wall of the chancel. It depicts John Wycliffe
John Wycliffe
John Wycliffe was an English Scholastic philosopher, theologian, lay preacher, translator, reformer and university teacher who was known as an early dissident in the Roman Catholic Church during the 14th century. His followers were known as Lollards, a somewhat rebellious movement, which preached...
with a group of preachers.
1986. Wooden dais/platform built under the west arch of the tower.
1989. Tower battlements renewed.
2001. First of four phases of a reordering process to equip the church for the 21st century. New heating & lighting system.
2007. North transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
re-ordered with a mezzanine floor, creating two additional rooms available for children's rooms.
2009. All pews removed from the nave and some from the chancel. Nave floor replaced with stone and underfloor heating. Inner west door replaced with glazed doors.
2013? Extending the building to provide additional facilities.
Memorials
Most notably Thomas West, 8th Baron De La WarrThomas West, 8th Baron De La Warr
Thomas West, 8th Baron De La Warr and 5th Baron West, KB, KG was the oldest son of Richard West, 7th Baron De La Warr and 4th Baron of West and Catherine Hungerford.Thomas succeeded to his titles at the age of 19...
was entombed in the church in 1524 and his memorial is on the north wall of the chancel. The tomb was discovered under the nave floor in 2009. His son, also Thomas, died in 1554 and has a Caen stone memorial at the east side of the south transept, moved from the east end of the south aisle in 1826.
John Mapulton (also known as John Mapilton), rector of the church between 1424 and 1431 was clerk to the Court of Chancery
Court of Chancery
The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid the slow pace of change and possible harshness of the common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over all matters of equity, including trusts, land law, the administration of the estates of...
and was chancellor to Queen Joanna, widow of Henry IV
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
. The church contains a brass dedicated to John Mapilton.
Two well-preserved brasses on a stone slab were discovered under old pews in 1826. This was set into the centre aisle of the nave and then moved, in 2007, to be positioned vertically the north transept. The main brass cross commemorates Reverend Richard Tooner who died in 1445. Below it is a memorial to John Corby, Rector 1393-1415.
The church also has a brass dedicated to the eleven brave fishermen who lost their lives in the Lalla Rookh disaster of 1850 while trying to save the lives of the crew of the Lalla Rookh, a ship caught in stormy seas off Worthing.
Writers Richard Jefferies
Richard Jefferies
John Richard Jefferies was an English nature writer, noted for his depiction of English rural life in essays, books of natural history, and novels. His childhood on a small Wiltshire farm had a great influence on him and provides the background to all his major works of fiction...
and William Henry Hudson
William Henry Hudson
William Henry Hudson was an author, naturalist, and ornithologist.- Life and work :Hudson was born in the Quilmes, a borough of the greater Buenos Aires, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, son of settlers of U.S. origin...
, as well as surgeon John White
John White (surgeon)
John White was an English surgeon and botanical collector.White was born in Sussex and entered the Royal Navy on 26 June 1778 as third surgeon's mate. He was promoted surgeon in 1780, and was the principal surgeon during the voyage of the First Fleet to Australia...
are buried in the church's cemetery.
Rectors of St. Mary's
- Peter Irwin-Clark (2008–Present)
- John Berry (1998–2007)
- Peter Dominy (1984–1997)
- William Filby (1979–1983)
- Peter Marrow (1953–1978)
- Basil Mowll (1927–1952)
- Edward J Elliott (1906–1926)
- Edward K Elliott (1853–1905)
- Peter Wood (1797–18xx)
- Richard Russell (17xx)
- Richard Basset (1762–17xx)
- Samuel Terrick (1745–1761)
- Jeremiah Dobson (1714–1744)
- William Wade (1670–16xx)
- John Wood (1663–1669)
- Thomas Porter (1661–1662)
- Dr Edward Burton (1646–1660)
- Dr Granado Chester (1624–1645)
- Richard Holden (15xx–15xx)
- Francis Heydon (1575–15xx)
- James Wynnybank (1559–1574)
- R Cromar (15xx–1558)
- Reginald Harrison (1541–15xx)
- Reginald Sandys (1535–1540)
- John Lewknore (1521–1534)
- Jardin Kybow (1481–14xx)
- John Lamporte (1478–1480)
- Patrick Grebe (1457–1477)
- William Treverdon (1445–1456)
- Richard Tooner (1432–1444)
- John Mapulton (1424–1431)
- Thomas Lynche (1416–1423)
- John de Corby (1393–140x)
- Reginald de Newton (1373–1392)
- Walter Gest (1349–1372)
- Peter de Conshill (1322–1348)
- John de Chyshelle (also known as John ChishullJohn ChishullJohn Chishull or John de Chishull was Lord Chancellor of England, Bishop of London, and Lord High Treasurer during the 13th century. He also served as Dean of St. Paul's.-Life:...
) (1259–12xx) - William (1248–1258)
- William (1190–1xxx)
A notable curate of the church was George Baillie Duncan
George Baillie Duncan
George Baillie Duncan was a prominent evangelical Anglican and Church of Scotland minister, and Keswick Convention speaker.George Duncan was born in India of missionary parents but brought up in Scotland. Educated at Merchiston Castle School and Edinburgh University, he studied for the ministry at...
.