St George's, Hanover Square facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St George's |
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View from St George Street
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| 51°30′45″N 0°8′34″W / 51.51250°N 0.14278°W | |
| Location | St George Street, Mayfair, City of Westminster, London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| History | |
| Founded | 1725 |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Architect(s) | John James |
| Years built | 1721–1725 |
| Administration | |
| Parish | St. George, Hanover Square with St. Mark |
| Diocese | London |
St George's, Hanover Square, is an Anglican church located in Mayfair, central London. It was built a long time ago, in the early 1700s. This church was part of a big plan to build fifty new churches across London.
The church was designed by an architect named John James. General William Steuart gave the land for the church and helped start its construction in 1721. St George's is very close to Hanover Square and Oxford Circus. Because of its great location, it has often been a popular place for important weddings.
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What is a Church Parish?
A "parish" is like a local area that a church serves. In 1724, the area around St George's became its own parish, separate from an older one called St Martin in the Fields. Over the years, the parish borders changed a few times as new parishes were created. Today, this church parish is still active. It is part of the Diocese of London, which is a larger church area.
Church Design and Building
General Sir William Steuart generously donated the land for the church. St George's was built between 1721 and 1725. The money for its construction came from a special group called the "Commission for Building Fifty New Churches." John James, who designed the church, was one of the main surveyors for this group.
The front of the church has a large entrance called a portico. It has six tall, fancy Corinthian columns that stick out over the sidewalk. Just behind this portico, a tower rises from the roof above the front part of the church.
Inside, the church is divided into a main area called the nave and two side areas called aisles. These areas are separated by large square pillars. These pillars go up to the height of the balconies, then continue as Corinthian columns all the way to the ceiling. The main nave has a rounded ceiling, like the inside of a barrel. The side aisles have similar rounded ceilings that go across.
Historical Burial Grounds
When St George's Church first opened, it did not have its own churchyard for burials. So, its first burial ground was located next to a workhouse on Mount Street. When that area became full, a larger burial ground was opened in Bayswater in 1765.
Both of these burial grounds were closed in 1854. This happened because London's city churchyards were closed to help keep people healthy. Some famous people were buried in these grounds. These included Mrs. Ann Radcliffe, a well-known writer of "Gothic Novels," and the Revd. Laurence Sterne, who wrote Tristram Shandy.
Later, the Mount Street ground was turned into a small park. Some of the old tombstones were used for drainage and can still be seen today. During the First World War, the Bayswater ground was used for growing vegetables. In 1969, this burial ground was cleared to make space for new buildings.
Music and Handel's Connection
The famous composer Handel used to attend St George's regularly. He even played the organ there. While some people thought he wrote his famous work Messiah in the church, it was most likely written at his home nearby on Brook Street in 1741.
Today, St George's has a professional choir and a strong tradition of choral music. It is also a popular place for classical music concerts. In 2006, a special appeal was started to raise money to restore the church building. This "Restoration Fund Appeal" aimed to collect five million pounds to help fix and preserve the church.
The church is also one of the main homes for the Orpheus Sinfonia. This is an orchestra made up of talented musicians who have recently finished music college.
Famous Weddings at St George's
From its very early days, St George's Church became a very popular place for weddings, especially for people from important families. Many notable people have been married here over the centuries.
Some of the interesting weddings include:
- Sir Francis Dashwood, who later became a government official, married Sarah in 1745.
- The architect Henry Holland married Bridget Brown, whose father was the famous landscape designer Capability Brown, in 1773.
- The botanist Edward Rudge married the artist Anne Rudge here in 1791.
- John Nash, a well-known architect, married Mary Ann Bradley in 1798.
- Theodore Roosevelt, who later became the President of the United States, married Edith Carow here in 1886. He was 28 and she was 25.
- The opera singers Charles Manners and Fanny Moody were married in 1890.
- John Galsworthy, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature, married Ada Nemesis Cooper in 1905.
- Henry Hall, a famous band leader, married Margery Harker in 1924.
While St George's was once a top spot for high society weddings, the number of these weddings started to decrease in the late 1900s. This shows how social trends can change over time.
Images for kids
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View from St George Street
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Interior of St George's
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Street view of St George's in 1787
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The organ in 2009 (since rebuilt)
