St Margaret's Church, Lowestoft facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St. Margaret's Church
St Margaret's Church, Lowestoft (July 2008)
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Location	Lowestoft, Suffolk
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade I listed building
Designated	13 December 1949
Administration
Parish	Lowestoft St Margaret
Deanery	Lothingland
Archdeaconry	Norfolk
Diocese	Norwich
Province	Canterbury

Saint Margaret's Church is a very old and important church in Lowestoft, a town in Suffolk, England. It is named after Saint Margaret of Antioch. This church is easy to spot because it has a tall, bright blue spire that lights up and can be seen from far away! People even used it as a landmark to help them find their way.

The church is part of the Anglican faith. It belongs to the Lothingland area and the Norfolk region within the Diocese of Norwich. This diocese covers parts of Suffolk too.

History of St. Margaret's Church

This church is very old, dating back to the Middle Ages. Its tower was built in the early 1300s. St. Margaret's Church is so important that it is a Grade I listed building. This means it is considered a building of special historical interest and is protected.

How the Church Started

The church was first set up by a group of monks from the Priory of St. Bartholomew in London. They were given the land in Lowestoft in 1230 by King Henry I. The church even has a wooden board that lists all the priests who have served there since 1308.

Building and Changes Over Time

The church is built mostly from flint, a type of stone. It was made much bigger in the 1400s, with new parts like the aisles and the main area (nave) added then.

In the Victorian era, the church was updated and repaired. The tall, pointed roof part, called the spire, was rebuilt in 1954. The original wooden spire had been there since 1483!

Inside, you can see special glass artwork made by an artist named Robert Allen in 1819. This is the only known glasswork he ever created. The large window at the east end of the church has glass from 1891. Some other glass pieces in the church came from St. Peter's church, which was a smaller church linked to St. Margaret's but was taken down in 1975.

Inside the Church

When you go inside St. Margaret's Church, you will find many interesting features.

Important Features

• The font, which is used for baptisms, has eight sides and was made in the 1400s.
• There is a special brass stand called a lectern, used for reading lessons during services. This lectern is very rare because it was made around 1500, before a big change in the church called the Reformation.
• The church also has something very unique called a banner stave locker. This is a special storage place for the poles used to carry church banners. It is believed to be found only in this part of Suffolk.

Memorials and Remembrance

The church has several memorials to remember people.

• On the north wall, there is a memorial for fishermen from Lowestoft who sadly lost their lives at sea between 1896 and 1923. After that time, the memorial was moved to another place in town.
• There is also a special chapel called the war memorial chapel. It has a wooden wall with the names of 711 men from Lowestoft who died during the First World War. It is a very important place to remember their sacrifice.

Churchyard

The area around the church, called the churchyard, is also a place of remembrance. It contains war graves for two service members from World War I and seventeen from World War II. These graves honor those who died serving their country.