Highfield Church

Last updated

Highfield Church
Christ Church, Portswood
HighfieldChurch.jpg
Highfield Church in 2007
Southampton from OpenStreetMap.png
Red pog.svg
Highfield Church
Shown within Southampton
50°55′47″N1°23′43″W / 50.9296°N 1.3952°W / 50.9296; -1.3952
Location Highfield, Southampton
CountryUnited Kingdom
Denomination Church of England
Websitewww.highfield.church
History
Status Church
Founded12 September 1846
Founder(s) Charles Sumner
Dedication Christ
Consecrated 17 September 1847
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Heritage designationGrade II listed
Designatedby 1969
Architect(s) Joshua Brandon
Specifications
Number of spires 1
Materials Purbeck Stone, Caen Stone mouldings
Administration
Diocese Winchester
Parish Highfield
Clergy
Priest in charge Mike Archer
Curate(s) Erica Roberts

Highfield Church is a parish church in the Highfield district of Southampton, England. It is an Anglican Church in the Diocese of Winchester.

Contents

History

Early history

The foundation stone for Highfield Church was laid on 12 September 1846 and it was consecrated on 17 September 1847, by the Right Reverend Charles Sumner, the Bishop of Winchester. The first Minister was the Reverend Philip Raulin Robin. The legal name of the church is Christ Church, Portswood but it became commonly known as Highfield Church in 1883.

World Wars

During the First World War (1914–1918) quite a number of the men from the parish went to the battlefields. Within the parish boundaries about 100 acres (0.40 km2) of land were being developed for housing so a western extension was built to accommodate the extra congregation. A First World War memorial was erected near the south door in 1921.

During the Second World War (1939–1945) Southampton was bombed heavily and there were direct hits on the parish and much loss of life. Throughout this period the clergy and members of the church kept watch on the church with a stirrup pump, buckets and shovels. The windows were given a coating of a rubber solution to lessen the danger of splintering glass.

The neighbouring church of St Barnabas was destroyed in 1940 and the two churches were temporarily merged until the rebuilding of the church at St Barnabas in 1957.

In 1941 there was an air raid where incendiary bombs fell near to the church. There was no serious structural damage to the church but windows in both the east and west ends of the church were shattered and the caretaker's quarters were destroyed. Despite the roof requiring 7000 new tiles, the morning matins went ahead. The church replaced those eastern windows that were destroyed in the Blitz and these were the church's memorial to those who died in the Second World War.

Later history

The church celebrated its centenary in September 1947 with services by two previous vicars.

Windows on the East side of the church building destroyed during World War Two were replaced in 1952.

The church's building had grade II listed building status by 1969. [1]

Architecture

The church originally had a nave, a small chancel with clerestory windows, a south aisle, and a tower with a broached oak shingled spire, which contained one bell. The architect was Joshua Brandon, who died before the building was completed and is buried in the churchyard.[ citation needed ] The walls of the church are of Purbeck Stone with mouldings of Caen Stone and the painted glass windows were created by Nixon and Ward.

The church has been built onto and altered many times since it was first built.

Area

Highfield Church is at the junction of Highfield Lane and Church Lane in the Highfield area of Southampton. Next to the church is the Church Centre, which is used by the church and the community for events, for example, adult education classes. Adjacent to the church is the main Highfield campus of the University of Southampton. The Highfield Church of England School building stands next to Highfield Church.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Cambridge</span> Church in Cambridge, England

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, generally known as The Round Church, is an Anglican church in the city of Cambridge, England. It is located on the corner of Round Church Street and Bridge Street. Since 1950 the church has been designated a Grade I listed building, and is currently managed by Christian Heritage. It is one of the four medieval round churches still in use in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Broadwater</span>

St. Mary's Church, Broadwater, is a Church of England parish church in the Worthing Deanery of the Diocese of Chichester. It serves the ecclesiastical parish of Broadwater, West Sussex and is named after St. Mary. St Mary's is one of several sites in this benefice along with Queen Street and St. Stephen's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Cyprian's Church, Hay Mills</span> Church

St Cyprian's Church, Hay Mills is a parish church of the Church of England in Hay Mills, Birmingham, England. It is situated on the southern side of the main Birmingham to Coventry Road A45 at the end of a lane called the Fordrough that leads to the factory of Webster & Horsfall Ltd. It has long been associated with the Horsfall family who built the church and continue to be its owners. Built in the 19th century of red brick in the Gothic Revival style it is dedicated to St Cyprian the third century martyr and Bishop of Carthage who although coming from a wealthy background gave away a portion of his wealth to the poor of Carthage, he was beheaded by the Romans in 258. The church is now Grade II listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Luke's Church, Brighton</span> Church in England

St Luke's Church is an Anglican church in the Queen's Park area of Brighton, part of the English city of Brighton and Hove. Occupying a large corner site on Queen's Park Road, it was designed in the 1880s by Sir Arthur Blomfield in the Early English style, and has been given listed building status because of its architectural importance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary the Virgin, Acocks Green</span> Church

St Mary the Virgin, Acocks Green is a Grade II listed Church of England parish church in Acocks Green, Birmingham, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Michael and All Angels Church, Southwick</span> Church in West Sussex , England

St Michael and All Angels Church is an Anglican church in the town of Southwick in the district of Adur, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. Some Saxon-era structural work is still visible despite rebuilding work in the 12th and 13th centuries and in more recent times; and a church may have existed on the site as early as the 10th century—before the ancient settlement of Southwick even took that name. The church has been damaged by fire and bombing, but is still in active use as the area's parish church. English Heritage has listed it at Grade II* for its architectural and historical importance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Southampton</span> Church in Hampshire, England

The Parish Church of St Mary with Holy Trinity, more commonly known as St Mary's Church, is the civic church for the city of Southampton, Hampshire, England. Originally founded in circa 634, St Mary's has been the mother church of Southampton since its inception. The present building, now the sixth incarnation of a church on this site, dates mostly to a rebuilding from 1954 to 1956, following its destruction in the Southampton Blitz, except for the notable Grade II listed tower and spire, which date from 1912 to 1914.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Michael's Church, Southampton</span> Church in Hampshire, England

St. Michael the Archangel Church is the oldest building still in use in the city of Southampton, England, having been founded in 1070, and is the only church still active of the five originally in the medieval walled town. The church is a Grade I Listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holyrood Church</span> Church in Hampshire, England

Holyrood Church was one of the original five churches serving the old walled town of Southampton, England. Built in 1320, the church was destroyed by enemy bombing during the blitz in November 1940. In 1957 the shell of the church was dedicated as a memorial to the sailors of the Merchant Navy. It is a Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Nicolas Church, North Stoneham</span> Church in Hampshire, England

St. Nicolas Church is an Anglican parish church at North Stoneham, Hampshire which originated before the 15th century and is known for its "One Hand Clock" which dates from the early 17th century, and also for various memorials to the famous.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Shrewsbury</span> Church in Shropshire, England

St Mary's Church is a redundant Anglican church in St Mary's Place, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust, the Trust designated St Mary's as its first Conservation Church in 2015. It is the largest church in Shrewsbury. Clifton-Taylor includes the church in his list of 'best' English parish churches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St James with Holy Trinity Church, Scarborough</span> Church in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England

St James with Holy Trinity Church is in Seamer Road, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Scarborough, the archdeaconry of East Riding, and the diocese of York. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Stephen's Church, Shepherd's Bush</span> Church in London, England

The Church of St Stephen and St Thomas is a Church of England parish church in Shepherd's Bush, London. It was built circa 1849–50, designed by architect Anthony Salvin in the Gothic Revival style and is now Grade II listed. The church is located on the South side of Uxbridge Road on the corner of Coverdale Road, to the west of Shepherd's Bush tube station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St George's Church, Poynton</span> Church in Cheshire, England

St George's Church stands in the centre of the town of Poynton, Cheshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Cheadle, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield, and the diocese of Chester. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building. It is the tallest building in Poynton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Portsea</span> Church in Hampshire, England

St Mary's Church is the main Church of England parish church for the areas of Portsea and Fratton, both located in the city of Portsmouth, Hampshire. Standing on the oldest church site on Portsea Island, the present building, amongst the largest parish churches in the country, has been described as the "finest Victorian building in Hampshire". It is at least the third church on the site and has been designated a Grade II* listed building by Historic England. Former regular worshippers here have included Charles Dickens, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and Cosmo Lang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel de Montmorency</span> English painter

Rachel de Montmorency, née Rachel Marion Tancock, was an English painter and artist working in stained glass. She learned about stained glass when she worked for artist Christopher Whall in the 1910s and 1920s. During World War I she worked as a voluntary nurse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Cleobury Mortimer</span> Church in Shropshire, England

St Mary's Church is on Church Street, Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Ludlow, the archdeaconry of Ludlow, and the diocese of Hereford. Its benefice is united with those of six local parishes to form the Cleobury Benefice. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. It is notable for its shingled twisted spire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mark's Church, Bromley</span> Church in United Kingdom

St Mark's Church, Bromley is a Church of England parish church in Bromley. It is located on Westmoreland Road, to the south of the town centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Paul and St Stephen's Church, Gloucester</span> Church in Gloucestershire, United Kingdom

St Paul and St Stephen's Church is a Church of England church located in Stroud Road, Gloucester, Gloucestershire. St Paul's church was built between 1882 and 1883. St Stephen's church was built between 1898 and 1900. St Stephen's church was closed in 2010 and the church was merged with St Paul's which became St Paul and St Stephen's church. Closely associated with the church is St Paul's Church of England Primary school located in New Street, Gloucester which opened in 1870.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Trinity Church, Aldershot</span> Church in Aldershot in Hampshire

The Church of the Holy Trinity is one of four Anglican churches in Aldershot in Hampshire and is the parish church for the centre of the town being located on Victoria Road. A Grade II listed building since 1980, it comes under the Diocese of Guildford.

References