St Helen's Church, Hangleton
Encyclopedia
St Helen's Church, an Anglican church in the Hangleton
area of Hove
, is the oldest surviving building in the English
city of Brighton and Hove. It is the ancient parish church of Hangleton—an isolated downland
village which was abandoned by the Middle Ages
and consisted of open farmland until the Interwar period
, when extensive residential development took place.
of 1086, although the church was not mentioned; its first known reference is in 1093 when William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
put it under the control of Lewes Priory
. The church stood between the manor house
and the cottages and houses of the village to the northeast, and was a rectangular building 62 feet (19 m) long and 17.5 feet (5 m), with flint
walls 3.5 feet (1 m) thick. Rebuilding began in the 12th century. The nave
dates from that century, while the square tower was added in the 13th century and the church was re-roofed at that time (having originally been thatched
). The 12th-century chancel was rebuilt in around 1300.
Hangleton village began to decline in the 14th century. The whole parish, which covered a much wider area than the village itself, had a population of 80 by around 1850. In 1864 it was formally united with the parish of Portslade
, having already been administered by Portslade's vicar for the previous 100 years. The condition of the church building worsened, but it never became an unusable ruin and never experienced a period without services—although for a time these were as infrequent as once a year. The churchyard was still used for burials, as well.
Unlike many other mediaeval churches in the Brighton and Hove area, which were heavily restored
and altered in the 19th century, St Helen's was largely overlooked because of its isolation in a bleak, distant spot high on the South Downs above Hove. In 1870, George Cokayne
, later a Clarenceux King of Arms
, funded a minor restoration
of the church. This may have saved the building from ruin, but also preserved its ancient character.
The parish was incorporated into the then Borough of Hove in 1927. The Borough started to use the expanse of open land for housing development soon afterwards. This spread northwestwards from Hove in the mid-1930s and continued until the 1950s, by which time the whole area around the church had been built up. Another partial restoration took place in 1929, followed by a more thorough rebuilding in 1949. This added a porch and a vestry
, a new roof (at a cost of £2,500) and some battlement
s and a pyramidal roof on the tower. Work continued until 1951, at which time the parish was split from Portslade. The new Parish of Hangleton's first priest took over in 1955.
Following the 1949 alterations, St Helen's was reopened for regular use, and was granted Grade II* listed status on 24 March 1950.
The church is built of flint
—a stone used for many churches in the Downs in Sussex. The doors, windows and quoin
s are faced with Caen stone
, which was used frequently in Norman buildings. The flints in the south wall are laid in a herringbone (opus spicatum
) pattern, a style favoured during the Saxon period; the church has been identified by some sources as one of the best surviving examples of herringboning from that era. The roof is now tiled in clay. The basic structural layout—chancel
, nave
of three bays
and west tower—has not changed since the 13th century, although the original chancel arch was removed in the 14th century and the porch and vestry on the northern side are 20th-century additions.
There are lancet window
s of various sizes in all four faces of the church. The west front has two, there is a large three-pointed window in the east face, and several tiny windows are placed at irregular intervals in the south and north walls. In particular, there is a low window into the chancel whose function has been much speculated on. One theory is that it was used by mediaeval lepers
who would stand outside and listen to services through the window rather than enter the church itself. It may also have served as a type of confessional
, allowing a priest to sit inside the church and the penitent to stay outside.
During the restorations of 1949, ancient wall paintings were discovered on the north wall of the church, along with some scrollwork
on one of the windows. The scrollwork was found to date from the early 13th century, while the wall paintings were 14th- and 15th-century in origin. Some restoration of this work was carried out in 1969, at which time some blocked-up windows in the nave were rediscovered.
In one corner of the chancel, there is a memorial monument which has been identified as representing the Bellingham family, who lived in the area in the 16th and 17th century. Richard and Mary Bellingham, nine children and five coffins representing children who died soon after birth are depicted. Elsewhere, an early 20th-century stone pietà
commemorates a local brewer and pottery collector, and a carved wooden screen and reredos
in the chancel was also donated as a memorial. The pulpit
, however, was taken from St Leonard's Church, Aldrington
.
Samuel Augustus Barnett
, founder of Toynbee Hall
in London, and his wife Henrietta, who conceived and helped to create Hampstead Garden Suburb
, are buried in the churchyard to the north of the church. Edward Vaughan Hyde Kenealy
QC
, who lived in Portslade
from the 1850s until 1874, was a barrister
who unsuccessfully defended Sir Roger Tichborne in the Tichborne Case
, a famous 19th-century trial: it was the longest in British legal history at the time, partly because of Kenealy's erratic, inappropriate behaviour. He was disbarred
soon afterwards, but became Member of Parliament
for Stoke-on-Trent
until his death in 1880. He is buried in a grave by the south door of the church, marked by an ostentatious black marble tombstone with gold mosaic work. Inside the church there are tombstones (inlaid into the floor of the aisles) dating back to 1749.
St Helen's Church was listed at Grade II* on 24 March 1950. As of February 2001, it was one of 70 Grade II*-listed buildings and structures, and 1,218 listed buildings of all grades, in the city of Brighton and Hove.
Weekly services and other occasional events are held at St Helen's Church. Its parish incorporates St Richard's Church, a modern brick building in the Vernacular style
. It serves The Knoll estate—a small residential area to the south, usually considered part of Hangleton. The parish boundaries are the railway line
between Portslade railway station
and Olive Road; the A293 Hangleton Link Road; parts of the South Downs west of the road to Devil's Dyke
; Amberley Drive; Hangleton Road and Stapley Road.
Hangleton
Hangleton is an estate in west Hove, East Sussex. The estate was developed circa the late 1930s after the Dyke railway was closed.It contains both the oldest building in the city of Brighton and Hove, St Helen's Church, and the second oldest building: that which was Hangleton Manor and is now the...
area 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...
, is the oldest surviving building in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
city of Brighton and Hove. It is the ancient parish church of Hangleton—an isolated downland
South Downs
The South Downs is a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the east. It is bounded on its northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose...
village which was abandoned by the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and consisted of open farmland until the Interwar period
Interwar period
Interwar period can refer to any period between two wars. The Interbellum is understood to be the period between the end of the Great War or First World War and the beginning of the Second World War in Europe....
, when extensive residential development took place.
History
Hangleton existed at the time of 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...
of 1086, although the church was not mentioned; its first known reference is in 1093 when William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey was the son of William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey and his first wife Gundred. He is more often referred to as Earl Warenne or Earl of Warenne than as Earl of Surrey....
put it under the control of Lewes Priory
Lewes Priory
The Priory of St Pancras was the first Cluniac house in England and had one of the largest monastic churches in the country. It was set within an extensive walled and gated precinct laid out in a commanding location fronting the tidal shore-line at the head of the Ouse valley to the south of Lewes...
. The church stood between the manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
and the cottages and houses of the village to the northeast, and was a rectangular building 62 feet (19 m) long and 17.5 feet (5 m), with 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...
walls 3.5 feet (1 m) thick. Rebuilding began in the 12th century. The 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...
dates from that century, while the square tower was added in the 13th century and the church was re-roofed at that time (having originally been thatched
Thatching
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge , rushes, or heather, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. It is a very old roofing method and has been used in both tropical and temperate climates...
). The 12th-century chancel was rebuilt in around 1300.
Hangleton village began to decline in the 14th century. The whole parish, which covered a much wider area than the village itself, had a population of 80 by around 1850. In 1864 it was formally united with the parish of Portslade
Portslade
Portslade is the name of an area of the city of Brighton and Hove, England. Portslade Village, the original settlement a mile inland to the north, was built up in the 16th century...
, having already been administered by Portslade's vicar for the previous 100 years. The condition of the church building worsened, but it never became an unusable ruin and never experienced a period without services—although for a time these were as infrequent as once a year. The churchyard was still used for burials, as well.
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...
and altered in the 19th century, St Helen's was largely overlooked because of its isolation in a bleak, distant spot high on the South Downs above Hove. In 1870, George Cokayne
George Cokayne
George Edward Cokayne FSA was an English genealogist and long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London.-Life:...
, later a Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial kings of arms and his jurisdiction is that part of England south of the River Trent. The office almost certainly existed in 1420, and there is a fair degree of...
, funded a minor 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...
of the church. This may have saved the building from ruin, but also preserved its ancient character.
The parish was incorporated into the then Borough of Hove in 1927. The Borough started to use the expanse of open land for housing development soon afterwards. This spread northwestwards from Hove in the mid-1930s and continued until the 1950s, by which time the whole area around the church had been built up. Another partial restoration took place in 1929, followed by a more thorough rebuilding in 1949. This added a porch and a vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
, a new roof (at a cost of £2,500) and some battlement
Battlement
A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles. These cut-out portions form crenels...
s and a pyramidal roof on the tower. Work continued until 1951, at which time the parish was split from Portslade. The new Parish of Hangleton's first priest took over in 1955.
Following the 1949 alterations, St Helen's was reopened for regular use, and was granted Grade II* listed status on 24 March 1950.
Architecture
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...
—a stone used for many churches in the Downs in Sussex. The doors, windows and quoin
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...
s are faced with Caen stone
Caen stone
Caen stone or Pierre de Caen, is a light creamy-yellow Jurassic limestone quarried in northwestern France near the city of Caen.The limestone is a fine grained oolitic limestone formed in shallow water lagoons in the Bathonian Age about 167 million years ago...
, which was used frequently in Norman buildings. The flints in the south wall are laid in a herringbone (opus spicatum
Opus spicatum
Opus spicatum, literally "spiked work," is a type of masonry construction used in Roman and medieval times. It consists of bricks, tiles or cut stone laid in a herringbone pattern.-Uses:...
) pattern, a style favoured during the Saxon period; the church has been identified by some sources as one of the best surviving examples of herringboning from that era. The roof is now tiled in clay. The basic structural layout—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...
, 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...
of three bays
Bay (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:...
and west tower—has not changed since the 13th century, although the original chancel arch was removed in the 14th century and the porch and vestry on the northern side are 20th-century additions.
There are lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s of various sizes in all four faces of the church. The west front has two, there is a large three-pointed window in the east face, and several tiny windows are placed at irregular intervals in the south and north walls. In particular, there is a low window into the chancel whose function has been much speculated on. One theory is that it was used by mediaeval lepers
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
who would stand outside and listen to services through the window rather than enter the church itself. It may also have served as a type of confessional
Confessional
A confessional is a small, enclosed booth used for the Sacrament of Penance, often called confession, or Reconciliation. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church, but similar structures are also used in Anglican churches of an Anglo-Catholic orientation, and also in the...
, allowing a priest to sit inside the church and the penitent to stay outside.
During the restorations of 1949, ancient wall paintings were discovered on the north wall of the church, along with some scrollwork
Scrollwork
Scrollwork is an element of ornamentation and graphic design using a spiral. The name comes from by the supposed resemblance to the edge-on view of a rolled parchment scroll. "Scrollwork" is today mostly used in popular language for two-dimensional decorative flourishes and arabesques of all...
on one of the windows. The scrollwork was found to date from the early 13th century, while the wall paintings were 14th- and 15th-century in origin. Some restoration of this work was carried out in 1969, at which time some blocked-up windows in the nave were rediscovered.
In one corner of the chancel, there is a memorial monument which has been identified as representing the Bellingham family, who lived in the area in the 16th and 17th century. Richard and Mary Bellingham, nine children and five coffins representing children who died soon after birth are depicted. Elsewhere, an early 20th-century stone pietà
Pietà
The Pietà is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus, most often found in sculpture. As such, it is a particular form of the Lamentation of Christ, a scene from the Passion of Christ found in cycles of the Life of Christ...
commemorates a local brewer and pottery collector, and a carved wooden screen and reredos
Reredos
thumb|300px|right|An altar and reredos from [[St. Josaphat's Roman Catholic Church|St. Josaphat Catholic Church]] in [[Detroit]], [[Michigan]]. This would be called a [[retable]] in many other languages and countries....
in the chancel was also donated as a memorial. The pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
, however, was taken from St Leonard's Church, Aldrington
St Leonard's Church, Aldrington
St Leonard's Church is an Anglican church in Hove, in the English city of Brighton and Hove. It is on New Church Road in the Aldrington area of Hove, which was previously a separate village, and it serves as Aldrington's parish church...
.
Burials
Clergyman and social reformerReform movement
A reform movement is a kind of social movement that aims to make gradual change, or change in certain aspects of society, rather than rapid or fundamental changes...
Samuel Augustus Barnett
Samuel Augustus Barnett
Samuel Augustus Barnett was an Anglican clergyman and social reformer particularly associated with the establishment of the first university settlement, Toynbee Hall in east London in 1884....
, founder of Toynbee Hall
Toynbee Hall
Toynbee Hall is a building in Tower Hamlets, East London which is the home of a charity working to bridge the gap between people of all social and financial backgrounds, with a focus on eradicating poverty and promoting social inclusion....
in London, and his wife Henrietta, who conceived and helped to create Hampstead Garden Suburb
Hampstead Garden Suburb
-Notable Residents :*Theo Adams*Martin Bell*Sir Victor Blank*Katie Boyle*Constantine, the last King of Greece*Greg Davies*Richard & Judy Finnigan*David Matthews*Michael Ridpath*Claudia Roden*Jonathan Ross*Sir Donald Sinden*Marc Sinden...
, are buried in the churchyard to the north of the church. Edward Vaughan Hyde Kenealy
Edward Vaughan Hyde Kenealy
Edward Vaughan Hyde Kenealy QC , was an Irish barrister and writer. He is best remembered as counsel for the Tichborne claimant and the eccentric and disturbed conduct of the trial that led to his ruin.-Early life:...
QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
, who lived in Portslade
Portslade
Portslade is the name of an area of the city of Brighton and Hove, England. Portslade Village, the original settlement a mile inland to the north, was built up in the 16th century...
from the 1850s until 1874, was a barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
who unsuccessfully defended Sir Roger Tichborne in the Tichborne Case
Tichborne Case
The affair of the Tichborne claimant was the celebrated 19th-century legal case in the United Kingdom of Arthur Orton , an imposter who claimed to be Sir Roger Tichborne , the missing heir to the Tichborne Baronetcy....
, a famous 19th-century trial: it was the longest in British legal history at the time, partly because of Kenealy's erratic, inappropriate behaviour. He was disbarred
Disbarment
Disbarment is the removal of a lawyer from a bar association or the practice of law, thus revoking his or her law license or admission to practice law...
soon afterwards, but became Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
until his death in 1880. He is buried in a grave by the south door of the church, marked by an ostentatious black marble tombstone with gold mosaic work. Inside the church there are tombstones (inlaid into the floor of the aisles) dating back to 1749.
The church today
Weekly services and other occasional events are held at St Helen's Church. Its parish incorporates St Richard's Church, a modern brick building in the Vernacular style
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
. It serves The Knoll estate—a small residential area to the south, usually considered part of Hangleton. The parish boundaries are the railway line
West Coastway Line
The West Coastway Line is a railway line in England, along the south coast of West Sussex and Hampshire, between Brighton and Southampton, plus the short branches to Littlehampton and Bognor Regis....
between Portslade railway station
Portslade railway station
Portslade railway station is a railway station serving the town of Portslade-by-Sea in East Sussex, but located on the western fringes of the village of Aldrington ....
and Olive Road; the A293 Hangleton Link Road; parts of the South Downs west of the road to Devil's Dyke
Devil's Dyke, Sussex
Devil's Dyke is a V-shaped valley on the South Downs Way in southern England, near Brighton and Hove. It is part of the Southern England Chalk Formation.Devil's Dyke is on the way to Brighton and is a big hill at the side of the road.-Geological history:...
; Amberley Drive; Hangleton Road and Stapley Road.