St Augustine's Tower, Hackney

St. Augustine's Tower Hackney
St. Augustine's Tower Hackney
	Northwest view of the tower, the only part of the original church remaining and Hackney's oldest building.
Location	London Borough of Hackney
Country	United Kingdom
Denomination	Church of England
History
Founded	1275 (first mentioned)
Founder(s)	Knights of St John
Architecture
Closed	1789
Demolished	1798 (church)
Administration
Diocese	London
Parish	Hackney

Last updated January 05, 2024

St Augustine's Tower stands in St John's Church Gardens, in central Hackney, in the London Borough of Hackney, just off the southern end of the Narrow Way (formerly Church Street). It is all that remains of the early 16th-century parish church of Hackney of St Augustine, which replaced the 13th-century medieval church founded by the Knights of St John. The Tower comprises four stages beneath a restored parapet with diagonal buttressing. A fine working 16th-century turret clock has remained on the third floor of the Tower since at least 1608. The Tower and contents are Grade I listed.

The Tower is seen as a symbol for Hackney, and is represented in the coat of arms of the London Borough of Hackney. During the First World War, it appeared on the cap-badge of the 10th (Hackney) Battalions of the London Regiment, together with the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney motto Justitia Turris Nostra, Latin for Justice is our tower.^[1]

St Augustine's Church

History

The parish church of Hackney became a sinecure rectory in 1275. This meant there was a vicar and a rector representing the parish, both positions being in the gift of the Bishop of London, and the parish served the entire area of the present London Borough of Hackney until the parish was eventually divided up in the 18th century. Many of the position holders were absentee pluralists (i.e. they had other jobs, and Hackney just formed a part of their income). From the 14th century to the 17th century the church was dedicated to St Augustine.

From about 1660, the church was dedicated to St John of Jerusalem, St John the Baptist, and known as St John at Hackney, representing the links of the parish with the Order of St John of Jerusalem.^[2]

The church tower was constructed as part of the early 16th-century rebuilding of the church itself, commemorated by the arms of Sir John Heron (d. 1521) carved between each arch of the nave and also placed, with those of the rector Christopher Urswick (d. 1522), in the chancel. Thereafter the church consisted of a chancel, aisled and clerestoryed nave, and south-west tower. The "so-called" Rowe Chapel, properly a mausoleum, was built on the south side of the chancel in 1614 and a vestry was added on the north side. In 1741, the church measured 105 feet (32.0 m) along its north wall and 64 feet (19.5 m) across; the tower bore a vane surmounted by a crown which reached to 118 feet (36.0 m). The walls, with fenestration of c.1500, showed a variety of materials, as they did at the time of the church's demolition, when the exterior presented 'an incomprehensible jumble of dissonant repairs, without a trace of the original building, except the windows of part of it'.^[2]

In Tudor times, many members of the court used the church, including Ralph Sadleir (Bryck Place), Thomas Sutton (The Tan House), Thomas Cromwell and the Earl of Northumberland (Brooke House). Lady Lucy Neville (d.1583), daughter-in-law of Queen Catherine Parr, was buried there. Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford (12 April 1550 – 24 June 1604) was probably buried here. Samuel Pepys visited the church in 1667, after resting at the local Mermaid Inn. He remarked on the fine organ but confessed in his diary that that which we went chiefly to see was the young ladies of the schools, whereof this is great store, very pretty^[3] – Hackney being renowned for its girls' schools at the time.^[2]

The constant increasing of Hackney's population meant that galleries were added to the church, and by 1789 it was able to hold a congregation upwards of 1,000. This was still inadequate to the needs of the parish, and on the advice of architect William Blackburn,^[4] the vestry petitioned Parliament in 1790 for the church's complete rebuilding at an adjacent site to the north.^[2] Blackburn died suddenly in November 1790; James Spiller, a friend of John Soane, was chosen from six architect candidates to replace him as designer of the new church.

The body of the old church was pulled down in 1798, with many of the monuments preserved in the new Church of St John-at-Hackney. The stone was sold as building material. The extent of the original church is marked by four cornerstones to the east of the Tower. The Tower remained to house the eight bells of Hackney; these were finally relocated in the new church in 1854, after the new church tower was underpinned to take the weight.^[2]

In modern times

The Tower was subsequently used as a public mortuary, and a tool shed for the gardens of St John. The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney became responsible for the maintenance of the Tower and gardens in 1912. In more recent times, the Tower was made safe in 1983, and has been used for occasional art exhibits. It is normally opened as part of London Open House each year. Since 1990, the Tower has been in the care of the Hackney Historic Buildings Trust.^[5] A grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund has made possible repairs and improvements and a permanent exhibition on the history of the Tower, and its church, is now open to the public on the last Sunday of every month. It is now possible to climb its narrow winding stairway to the roof.

St John's Church Gardens, around the Tower and later church, were awarded both a Green Flag Award, and Green Flag Heritage status, in 2008.

Related Research Articles

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St Leonard's, Shoreditch, is the ancient parish church of Shoreditch, often known simply as Shoreditch Church. It is located at the intersection of Shoreditch High Street with Hackney Road, within the London Borough of Hackney in East London. The current building dates from about 1740 and is Grade I listed. The church is mentioned in the line ""When I grow rich", say the bells of Shoreditch" from the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons.

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Hackney was a parish in the historic county of Middlesex. The parish church of St John-at-Hackney was built in 1789, replacing the nearby former 16th-century parish church dedicated to St Augustine. The original tower of that church was retained to hold the bells until the new church could be strengthened; the bells were finally removed to the new St John's in 1854. See details of other, more modern, churches within the original parish boundaries below.

St John at Hackney is a Grade II* listed Anglican Church in the heart of the London Borough of Hackney with a large capacity of around 2,000. It was built in 1792 to replace Hackney's medieval parish church, of which St Augustine's Tower remains, at the edge of its churchyard. The church faces north towards Clapton Square, with the nearby Sutton House and Hackney Central station also accessible from the churchyard to the east and south, respectively. As well as a thriving parish church, St John at Hackney has also become known as a notable music venue, playing host to the likes of Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Emeli Sande, Robbie Williams, Griff and Interpol.

The Church of St Mary the Virgin is in Leek Road, Bosley, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield, and the deanery of Macclesfield. Its benefice is combined with those of St Michael, North Rode, St Michael, Wincle, and St Saviour, Wildboarclough.

St Chad's Church is an Anglican church in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, England. It is an active parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn and the archdeaconry of Lancaster. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. A church on the site was built no later than the 11th century and may have existed prior to the Norman conquest of England. The tower dates from the 17th century, and much of the remainder of the building from a major renovation in the 18th century, although some of the fabric of the original structure remains. Further renovation and additions took place in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries.

St Nicholas Church is a historic church in Westgate Street in the city of Gloucester, England, under the care of The Churches Conservation Trust. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. Its truncated spire is a landmark in the city centre.

St Wilfrid's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Ribchester in Lancashire, England that is situated close to the site of a Roman fort. It is an active parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

St Bartholomew's Church is in the town of Colne in Lancashire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn. There has been a church on the site since no later than the 12th century although the present building mostly dates from the 16th century. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

The Church of St Mary the Virgin is an Anglican church in Goosnargh, a village north of Preston in Lancashire, England. The church dates from the Middle Ages; it was enlarged in the 16th century and restored twice in the 19th century.

St Helen's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Churchtown in Lancashire, England. Historically, it was the parish church of Garstang; today, as Garstang is split into more than one ecclesiastical parish, St Helen's parish is Garstang St Helen (Churchtown). It is in the Diocese of Blackburn. It has been designated a Grade I listed building by English Heritage. St Helen's is known as the "cathedral of The Fylde".

St Cuthbert's Church is an Anglican church in the English market town of Darwen, Lancashire. It is an active parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn and the archdeaconry of Blackburn. The church was built 1875–1878 by Paley and Austin. It has been designated a Grade II listed building by English Heritage.

St Andrew's Church is an Anglican church in Leyland, Lancashire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn and the archdeaconry of Blackburn. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.

St Bartholomew's Church is in the town of Great Harwood in Lancashire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.

St Wilfrid's Church is an Anglican church in Halton-on-Lune, a village in the English county of Lancashire. It is an active parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn and the archdeaconry of Lancaster. Halton may have been the site of an ancient Anglo-Saxon minster. Of the current structure, the tower dates from the 16th century and the remainder was built 1876–77 by Paley and Austin. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

St Helen's Church is in the village of Waddington, Lancashire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Whalley, the archdeaconry of Blackburn, and the Diocese of Blackburn. Its benefice is united with that of St Catherine, West Bradford. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.

St Mary, Haggerston, was an Anglican parish church built to the designs of John Nash in 1827, in what is now the London Borough of Hackney. Built in the Gothic style of its time, it had an elaborate west front with a disproportionately tall tower. The rest of the church was, in comparison, rather plain. It was altered later in the 19th century by James Brooks as the first initiative of the Haggerston Church Scheme, and destroyed by bombs during the Second World War. The site is now a children's playground west of Haggerston Park, between Thurtle Road and Queensbridge Road.

The Church of St John the Divine is in Burnley Road, Holme Chapel, a village in the civil parish of Cliviger, near Burnley, Lancashire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Blackburn, and the church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building. It was built between 1788 and 1794, replacing a small chapel, and is in simple Classical style. Above the west front is a bell turret with an octagonal cupola, and inside the church are carved oak stalls, moved from a demolished church, which include a poppyhead and misericords.

The Old Church is an arts venue in Stoke Newington, London Borough of Hackney, formerly the medieval and Tudor church of St Mary's Church or St Mary's Old Church. It is a Grade II* listed building.

References

↑ Cap badge of the Hackney battalions https://www.britishmilitarybadges.co.uk/products/10th-hackney-battalion-county-of-london-regiment-cap-badge-2.html
1 2 3 4 5 Hackney: The Parish Church, A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10: Hackney (1995), pp. 115-122 accessed: 26 July 2008
↑ Pepys' Diary for April 1667
↑ "10 Guidelines for a Christian Living". 20 June 2018.
↑ "Current Projects - St. Augustine's Tower". Hackney Historic Buildings Trust. Retrieved 18 September 2022.

External links

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[1] Cap badge of the Hackney battalions https://www.britishmilitarybadges.co.uk/products/10th-hackney-battalion-county-of-london-regiment-cap-badge-2.html

[BHOL-2] 1 2 3 4 5 Hackney: The Parish Church, A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10: Hackney (1995), pp. 115-122 accessed: 26 July 2008

[3] Pepys' Diary for April 1667

[4] "10 Guidelines for a Christian Living". 20 June 2018.

[5] "Current Projects - St. Augustine's Tower". Hackney Historic Buildings Trust. Retrieved 18 September 2022.

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v t e Churches in Hackney
ancient parish churches (pre-1800)	St Augustine, Hackney (tower remains) St Leonard, Shoreditch St John-at-Hackney St Mary, Stoke Newington (old / new)
Anglican daughter churches	All Saints, Haggerston St Andrew, Stoke Newington St Chad, Haggerston St John the Baptist, Hoxton Holy Trinity, Dalston St Mary of Eton St Mary, Haggerston St Matthias, Stoke Newington
other denominations	Abney Park Chapel Church of Good Shepherd, Upper Clapton Newington Green Unitarian Church