St George's Church, Brighton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St George's Church, Brighton |
|
|---|---|
_(April_2013)_(3).jpg)
The church from the southwest
|
|
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Broad Church |
| Website | www.stgeorgesbrighton.org |
| History | |
| Dedication | St George the Martyr |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 1,300 |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Brighton, St George with St Anne and St Mark |
| Deanery | Rural Deanery of Brighton |
| Archdeaconry | Chichester |
| Diocese | Chichester |
| Province | Canterbury |
St George's Church is an Anglican church. It is located in the Kemptown area of Brighton, England. This church was built because Thomas Read Kemp wanted it. He had created and paid for the Kemp Town estate nearby. St George's Church is now seen as the main church for the wider Kemptown area. It is also a Grade II listed building, which means it's an important historical building.
Contents
The Church's Story
How Kemp Town and the Church Began
Thomas Read Kemp was born in 1782. He was a wealthy man who loved town planning. In 1823, he returned to the Church of England. He then decided to build a new neighborhood in Brighton. This area would have large, fancy houses for rich people.
Two architects, Charles Busby and Amon Wilds, designed the estate. Thomas Cubitt built the houses. This new area became known as Kemp Town. Even though Kemp had to leave the country because of money problems, his vision came true.
Building St George's Church
In 1824, Thomas Kemp asked Charles Busby to design a church for his new estate. Kemp got a special law passed on June 3, 1824. This law allowed him to hire a priest and earn money from renting out church seats (called pews). This was a common way to fund churches back then.
Building work on the church continued through 1824 and 1825. St George's Church officially opened on January 1, 1826. The Bishop of Chichester had blessed it two days before. The total cost to build the church was £11,000.
Changes in Ownership
By 1831, Thomas Kemp sold his share of the church. It was bought by Laurence Peel. He was the son of a famous politician, Sir Robert Peel, 1st Baronet. Laurence Peel lived in Sussex Square, Brighton in Kemp Town.
When Laurence Peel died in 1888, his son, Charles Lennox Peel, took over. The next year, Charles sold the church to the people who attended it. After that, the church was put into a special trust. This meant it was owned by a group of people for the community.
Joining Parishes
St George's Church became its own official parish in 1879. A parish is like a local church district. In 1962, church leaders thought about closing St George's. But the church members fought against it, and the church stayed open.
Later, St George's parish grew bigger. It took in the parish of St Anne's Church, which had fewer members. St Anne's Church closed and was taken down in 1986. In the same year, St Mark's Church also closed. Its parish joined St George's too. Today, the old St Mark's building is a chapel for a school.
Church Design and Look
Outside the Church
Charles Busby designed St George's Church in a Neoclassical style. This means it has simple, clean lines and a balanced, symmetrical look. The outside walls are made of yellow brick. Some parts have stucco (a type of plaster). The windows are round-headed and placed evenly.
At the western end of the church is the main entrance. It has Ionic columns and pilasters (flat columns) on each side of the door. Above the entrance is a square tower. This tower has a small dome, called a cupola, with a cross on top. Clock faces were added to each side of the tower in 1840.
Inside the Church
Inside, St George's has balconies, called galleries. These are on the northern, southern, and western sides. You can reach them by curved staircases. There used to be a tall pulpit (where the sermon is given) at the eastern end. The organ was first located in the western gallery. It was made by the J.C. Bishop & Son company.
Royal Visits and Changes
In 1828, Reverend James Anderson became the church's priest. He was good friends with Queen Adelaide. She was the wife of King William IV. Queen Adelaide was very popular and often visited Brighton. When she was in town, she would attend St George's Church.
Because of Queen Adelaide's visits, the church became very popular. By 1831, it was so full that they needed more seats. A new gallery was added at the western end. Thomas Cubitt's building company finished this work in just one week! The organ had to be moved from the original western gallery to make space. It was moved to an unusual spot behind the altar at the eastern end.
Major Renovations
After the church was bought by the congregation, they spent £11,050 on big changes. A chancel (a special area near the altar) was added at the eastern end. A new window was put in the eastern wall. The reredos (a screen behind the altar) was replaced with a larger one.
The organ was moved again, this time to a more common spot in the south gallery. Both the north and south galleries were rebuilt to match the new chancel. All the old seats were replaced, and the church could now hold 1,300 people.
St George's Church Today
St George's was a "chapel of ease" until 1879. This means it was a smaller church that helped a main parish. In 1879, it got its own parish. Today, its parish is very large. It includes all of Kemptown, parts of Whitehawk, Brighton Marina, and Roedean School.
The church also has a community center. Many different groups meet there regularly. There is also a café in the crypt (the area below the church). The café works with a local special school. These crypt facilities were built with help from the European Union.
St George's is also one of Brighton's biggest places for alternative and folk music concerts.
See also
- Grade II listed buildings in Brighton and Hove: S
- List of places of worship in Brighton and Hove
