St Elisabeth's Church, Eastbourne

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Coordinates: 50°46′59″N 0°15′18″E / 50.7831°N 0.2550°E / 50.7831; 0.2550
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St Elisabeth's Church
The original St Elisabeth's Church, seen in 2010.
Religion
AffiliationChurch of England
Location
LocationEastbourne, East Sussex, England
Geographic coordinates50°46′59″N 0°15′18″E / 50.7831°N 0.2550°E / 50.7831; 0.2550
Architecture
Architect(s)Stonham & Sons and Fenning
TypeChurch
Completed1938
The present St Elisabeth's, formerly the church hall.

St Elisabeth's Church is a Church of England church in the Old Town area of Eastbourne, East Sussex, England. The original church was built between 1935 and 1938 to the designs of local architects Stonham & Sons and Fenning. It became a Grade II listed building in 1994, but was demolished in 2020 due to structural problems. The former church hall is now the present St Elisabeth's Church. It is also a listed building, as is the vicarage, with both being designated in 1999.[1][2]

History[edit]

The former vicarage of St Elisabeth's.

St Elisabeth's was built to serve the growing area of Old Town in Eastbourne. The church, including its hall and vicarage, were paid for using £90,000 bequeathed by the late Eliza Watson. She intended for the church, which was to be "erect[ed] in or near to Eastbourne", as a memorial to her brothers, Thomas and William Clarke, and her daughter, Florence Amy Watson. Her money also provided an endowment for the future upkeep of the three buildings and the stipend of the incumbent.[3] The site was gifted by the Duke of Devonshire and the building scheme was carried out in three phases: the church hall, vicarage and church. The hall, built by Messrs Bodle Ltd, was dedicated and opened by the Bishop of Chichester, the Right Rev. George Bell, on 15 December 1932.[4] The vicarage was completed in 1935.[5]

The designs for the buildings were drawn up by Messrs Peter D. Stonham and Son and Mr A. R. G. Fenning of Eastbourne, with Messrs Tatchell & Wilson of London as the consulting architects. The builders of the church were Mark Martin & Sons of Eastbourne.[6] The foundation stone was laid by Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone on 2 October 1935 and the completed building was consecrated by the Bishop of Chichester on 19 February 1938. At the time, it was regarded as "the finest example of modern ecclesiastical architecture in Sussex".[7][3]

Flaws in the construction of the church were identified as early as 1939,[8] with the resulting water penetration causing serious damp issues and a deterioration in the building's fabric over the years. In 1993, church leaders intended to move the congregation to the nearby Roman Catholic church of St Gregory's under unusual plans for Roman Catholic and Anglican members to worship under the same roof. Planning permission was obtained for the church's demolition, but the following year saw it become a Grade II listed building.[9][10]

The church continued to be used as a place for worship until it closed on 1 July 2002. The congregation were then permanently relocated to the church hall and the church building put up for sale in 2003.[11] A scheme to convert it into 25 apartments, along with the conversion of the vicarage into three dwellings and the construction of a pair of semi-detached properties behind it, was made by H.O.P. Construction & Developments Ltd in 2010. Planning permission and listed building consent were refused in 2011, on the grounds that the "alterations to the church and proposed roof extensions would result in a form of development that would be detrimental to the character and appearance of the listed building", and a subsequent appeal was dismissed.[12][13] In 2017, the Church Commissioners announced their plans to demolish the church and this was carried out in 2020.[14]

Tristram paintings and Feibusch's murals[edit]

The church's chancel paintings by the art historian and conservator Ernest William Tristram (1882-1952) are now housed in the new domed church building next door. They depict the life of John the Baptist and his parents, the priest Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth.

St Elisabeth's crypt contained a series of large wall paintings by the artist Hans Feibusch (1898-1998).[15] Through this work he came to the attention of Charles Herbert Reilly, professor of architecture, and George Bell who provided Feinbusch with the opportunity to create a mural of his own design at St Elisabeth's in 1944. Feibusch chose the allegory of Pilgrim's Progress as a vehicle for his own story as a refugee fleeing Nazi Germany and his eventual acceptance in 1940s Britain.[16] Feibusch enlisted the help of local people to complete the mural, which is now a registered War Memorial dedicated to civilian casualties of war.[17]

Gallery[edit]

  • Christmas
    Christmas
  • Worship space
    Worship space
  • The dome
    The dome
  • Christingle
    Christingle
  • Main hall
    Main hall

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Historic England (15 September 1999). "CHURCH HALL TO CHURCH OF ST ELISABETH (1322197)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  2. ^ Historic England (15 September 1999). "VICARAGE TO THE CHURCH OF ST ELISABETH (1322201)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Church Consecration". The Eastbourne Gazette. 16 February 1938. p. 10. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. ^ "First-Fruits of the "Watson" Bequest". Eastbourne Chronicle. 17 December 1932. p. 1. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  5. ^ "Pulpit, Press and People". The Eastbourne Gazette. 29 January 1936. p. 22. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ^ "Bishop Consecrates St Elisabeth's Church". The Eastbourne Gazette. 23 February 1938. pp. 1, 10. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ^ "St. Elizabeth's Church". Eastbourne Chronicle. 5 October 1935. p. 1. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ^ "Church Diary: St. Elizabeth's Church". Eastbourne Herald. 13 May 1989. p. 40. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ^ "Row as doomed church is listed". Eastbourne Gazette. 23 February 1994. p. 1. Retrieved 3 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ^ Historic England (8 February 1994). "CHURCH OF ST ELISABETH (1252676)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  11. ^ "Draft Amending Pastoral (Church Buildings Disposal) Scheme" (PDF). Church of England. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  12. ^ "Application Summary: Planning Application 100471". lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk. 13 August 2010. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  13. ^ "Application Summary: Planning Application 100514". lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk. 20 August 2010. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  14. ^ "MacConvilles Assists in the Historic Demolition of St Elisabeth's Church". MacConvilles. 28 May 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  15. ^ Susannah (27 August 2014). "Feibusch's murals of Pilgrim's Progress hidden in Eastbourne". Twentieth Century Society.
  16. ^ Grey, Alex. "Save the Feibusch Mural". www.martyrs.gallery. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  17. ^ "St Elisabeth's Chapel WW2 Chapel of Remembrance". www.iwm.org.uk. Imperial War Museum. Retrieved 30 December 2017.

External links[edit]

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