Charles Wesley's House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charles Wesley's House |
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Charles Wesley's house, No. 4 Charles Street, Bristol
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| General information | |
| Town or city | Bristol |
| Country | England, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°27′37″N 2°35′32″W / 51.4603°N 2.5923°W |
Charles Wesley's House is a special old building at 4 Charles Street in Bristol, England. From 1749 to 1778, it was the home of Charles Wesley and his wife, Sarah. Charles Wesley was famous for writing hymns and helped start a Christian movement called Methodism.
This house was Charles Wesley's main home for many years, especially between 1756 and 1771. It was also where his talented sons, Charles Wesley junior and Samuel Wesley, grew up. Both boys were amazing musical child prodigies who became well-known organists and composers. Today, the inside of the house looks much like it did in the 1700s.
Meet the Wesley Family
Charles Wesley (born 1707, died 1788) and his wife, Sarah Gwynne (born 1726, died 1822), moved into this house in September 1749. They had just gotten married earlier that year.
At first, Charles often traveled around the country. He would preach to people in different towns. Sometimes, Sarah would go with him on these trips. By 1756, all this traveling made him very tired. After that, he stopped making long journeys to far-off places. However, he still spent a lot of time in London. He helped the Methodist community there.
Charles was like the main Methodist leader in Bristol. He was known as a "preacher at the Horsefair." Charles and Sarah had several children. All of them were baptized at a nearby church called St James's. Their sons, Charles junior (born 1757, died 1834) and Samuel (born 1766, died 1837), became very famous. They also had a daughter named Sarah (born 1759, died 1828), who was often called Sally. Sadly, some of their other children passed away when they were very young. They were buried in the St James's churchyard.
Musical Child Prodigies
The Wesley sons, Charles junior and Samuel, learned most of their early music right at home. Their first music teacher was their mother, Sarah. She had a beautiful singing voice and played the harpsichord. The family loved listening to hymn tunes and music by a famous composer named Handel.
The boys also had music lessons from local church organists. When Charles junior was about six years old, he started learning from Edmund Rooke. Mr. Rooke was an organist at different churches in Bristol. Samuel, also around age six, had lessons from David Williams.
Charles junior gave public performances in Bristol. In 1769, he played a harpsichord concert. In 1774, he played an organ concert at Bristol Cathedral. Samuel was a bit upset that day because he had hoped to be the one performing!
In 1771, the family started having two homes. One was still in Bristol, and the other was in London. Charles and Charles junior moved to the London house that year. By 1778, the whole family had moved to London. The London house is no longer standing today.
About the House's Design
Charles Wesley's House and the house next door (number 5 Charles Street) are very old. They were built in the early 1700s. They are made of brick and have three floors. These houses are considered important historical buildings by English Heritage.
The style of the houses is called early Georgian. Each house has two sash windows on each floor at the front. The windows have special arched stone designs above them. Even though modern buildings surround them now, these old houses stand out.
See also
- John Wesley's New Room
- John Wesley's House
