St Luke's Church, Brighton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Luke's Church |
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The church in 2013
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| 50°49′39.6″N 0°07′27.0″W / 50.827667°N 0.124167°W | |
| Location | Queen's Park, Brighton |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | High church/Anglo-Catholic |
| History | |
| Consecrated | 16 April 1885 |
| Architecture | |
| Years built | 1882-1885 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 900 |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Brighton, St Luke |
| Deanery | Brighton |
| Archdeaconry | Chichester |
| Diocese | Chichester |
| Province | Canterbury |
St Luke's Church is an Anglican church in the Queen's Park area of Brighton, England. It stands on a large corner site on Queen's Park Road. The church was designed in the 1880s by Sir Arthur Blomfield. It was built in the Early English style, which is a type of Gothic architecture. St Luke's Church is considered important for its design, so it has been given listed building status.
Church History
Queen's Park was created as a beautiful park in 1824. Houses started being built around the park in the 1810s. More homes were added throughout the 1800s.
The first Anglican church building in this area was built in 1875. It served as a smaller church linked to St Mary's Church in Kemptown. This first building was made of red brick and was on the west side of Queen's Park Road.
In 1880, St Luke's became its own separate church area, called a parish. Work on the new church building began in 1881. The land for the new church was bought for £900. The foundation stone was laid in 1882 by the Bishop of Chichester. Sir Arthur Blomfield finished building the main church in 1885. A tall spire was planned but never built because there wasn't enough money. The new St Luke's Church was officially opened on April 16, 1885.
The old 1875 building then became the church hall. Sadly, it was destroyed by fire in the 1970s and later pulled down. Flats were built where it once stood.
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The first vicar (church leader) of St Luke's was Revd Walter Firth. He followed a style of worship called "High church". He worked hard to help people in the area. He started educational and charity activities to improve their lives. This style of worship continued for many years.
A memorial for the vicar Arthur Young's son, who died in World War I, was put up in 1918. Two years later, a memorial for all church members who died in the war was added. The church often struggled with money. Electricity was not installed until 1947. Even so, the church was almost torn down in 1950. But people signed petitions and raised money to save it.
St Luke's parish was separate until 1974. Then it joined with another church area to form the Parish of the Resurrection. Before that, in 1968, St Luke's parish became much larger. This happened when St Matthew's Church nearby closed, and its members joined St Luke's. On February 1, 2009, St Luke's became a separate parish again. The Reverend Julie Newson has been the church's leader since 2010.
Church Design
The church is mostly built from flint stones. It has stone decorations around the windows and other parts. Inside, the church is very large and can hold up to 900 people. The south and west sides of the church face the street.
At the east end of the church is the chancel, which is where the altar is. Next to it are the Lady chapel and the vestry. The chancel connects to the main part of the church, called the nave. At the southwest corner of the nave is an eight-sided tower. This tower was meant to be much taller, with a spire reaching 160 feet (49 meters) high. But the extra height and spire were never built. The main entrance is in a porch along the west side.
The church has many tall, narrow windows called Lancet windows. These are common in the Early English Gothic style. The east side has five lancet windows grouped together. The Lady chapel has three similar windows on its east side. These windows have stained glass by Charles Eamer Kempe. The west side, above the entrance, has three pairs of lancet windows with small, round quatrefoil windows above them.
The chancel and Lady chapel have curved wooden ceilings. The chancel and nave are connected by an arch and are on different levels. The nave roof is also made of wood. Behind the altar is a beautifully carved screen called a reredos.
One interesting design feature is how the windows and roof sections are arranged in the north and south aisles (side passages). Each section in the aisles alternates between two designs. One design has a cross-gable roof with a tall single window. The other has a lower roof with two smaller windows. What's "curious" is that a tall-window section on one side is opposite a low-window section on the other side.
An organ was put in the church in 1885. In the 1960s, a part of the west end was changed into a room for general use. Inside the church, you can also see an eight-sided font, a fenced pulpit, and choir stalls in the chancel.
St Luke's Today
St Luke's Church was officially recognized as a Grade II listed building on August 26, 1999. This means it's an important historic building. Today, the church holds services every Sunday at 10 am. There is also a Eucharist service on Wednesdays. The worship style is relaxed and includes a lot of music.
See also
- Grade II listed buildings in Brighton and Hove: S
- List of places of worship in Brighton and Hove
