St Mary's Kings Worthy

Another church called St Marys, this time in Kings Worthy, which is a small village just to the north of Winchester. The church dates back to at least 1290, but was remodelled in the 1800s

Wall painting

This is St John's church which has already featured on the blog. Last weekend there were a number of heritage open days and I took the advantage to go inside a photo some of the wall paintings that are within the church. These were covered up during the Victorian times and those which survived were uncovered in 1958. The paintings are believed to date from around 1280. This one shows to the right a bishop with his hand raised in blessing, St Christopher or St Antony on the left and the devil at the top. 

***I am away with work at the moment & have scheduled this post, thanks for stopping by***

St Thomas & St Clements

This building is not actually used as a church anymore, it is the former church of St Thomas and St Clements in Southgate Street. The church was built in 1847 and the spire added around 10 years later. The church, after over a hundred years of use, was declared redundant in 1969. It was used as the Hampshire Records Office until 1993 and now used by Hampshire County Council.

St John's Church

 

In St John's Street is St John's Church. On one wall was this fascinating statue.

I am away for the weekend so sorry if I don't respond to any comments straight away

City Church

There are many churches in Winchester, and eventually I'll try to photograph them all. This is the City Church in Jewry Street. I believe that it is a pentecostal type church, their website mentions 'speaking in tongues' as part of their beliefs, which is something that seems very alien to me, but I'm not here to judge! They also have a church rifle and pistol club, which is also quite unusual! The building the church is housed in is called Century House, it was originally a bank and was built around 1925.

Inside St Peter's

I posted some time ago a photo of St Peter's Catholic Church. As this week I have been focusing on St Peter's Street and buildings associated with the Catholic Church in Winchester I finally peaked inside St Peter's Church to take a photo, and here it is. Unfortunately it was taken very quickly as they were about to have a service so I will try to go back another time to get some more detail.

St Peter's Convent

Next door to Milner Hall and part of St Peter's Church buildings is St Peter's Convent. The numbers of sisters here are dwindling as I understand. Currently they run St Peter's Convent Nursery School. I myself went to a convent - I hope these nuns aren't as fierce as some of mine were!

Milner Hall

The former St Peter's Chapel, now known as the Milner Hall, lies tucked away between St. Peter Street and Jewry Street. For more than three hundred years it was hidden from passing view by a heavy black door. In 1989 the door was replaced by an elegant wrought iron gate through which the Hall stands framed by the arch.

The Chapel, built by Reverend John Milner in 1792, was the first Catholic Church to be consecrated since 1558. Milner was priest in Winchester between 1779 and 1803 and had a desire to see Catholic worship re-established in a proper setting after the many years of secrecy and isolation.

There is now a St Peter's Catholic Church and Milner Hall is used for concerts, talks, meetings and general hire.

St Lawrence

 

It's hard to get a photo of this tiny church because its entrance is within the passageway leading to The Square and I just can't stand back far enough to get it all in! 

This is the church of St Lawrence-in-the-Square and there has been a church on this site since before the Norman conquest (1066). The original church on this site was incorporated into William the Conqueror’s palace as the royal chapel. The royal chapel was destroyed by fire in 1143, rebuilt in 1150 and again in 1449. Another fire in 1978 led to further restoration and the church reopened in 1980.

The church is in the heart of Winchester and has a very special tradition.When a new Bishop of Winchester is on his way to his enthronement in the Cathedral, he first comes to this tiny church to pray and put on his robes. He then tolls one of the bells ringing himself into office, and then goes out to meet the Mayor, clergy and citizens and proceeds to the cathedral. There should be a new Bishop this year...

The Square

This is The Square in Winchester which is a small pedestrianised area with shops and restaurants. These hardy people were sitting outside having a drink or meal. In the background is St Lawrence in the Square Church.

Chesil Theatre

Continuing the theatre theme from yesterday here is our 2nd theatre, the Chesil Theatre . It is just opposite the Chesil Rectory, in - you've guessed it - Chesil Street. The theatre occupies St Peter’s Church which once stood outside the City gates in a row of houses serving a bustling community of tradesmen and craftsmen in Chesil Street.

The earliest mention of the church was in 1148. After the Second World War the church fell out of use and by 1960 was structurally unsafe. The Winchester Preservation Trust was formed at that time and its first objective was to save the building. Winchester Dramatic Society accepted an offer of the building rent free but with the responsibility of maintaining it. Ever since then this has been the home of the Chesil Theatre Company which is the premier amateur company in the Winchester area. With over 200 members the company produces 6 plays each year. Their current play is Wait Until Dark.

St John the Baptist Church

This is another one of the many places of worship in Winchester and is on St John's Street on the way up to St Giles Hill. It's believed to be the oldest parish church in Winchester. The church building was certainly in existence in 1142, though its exact age remains elusive. Parts of the building may have been significantly older, since the church stands in the middle of an important fourth century Roman-British cemetery. This area became a quite prosperous, partly due to the growth of the St Giles Fair on the hill above the church.

The first scholars at Winchester College attended St John's Church when lodging in the area and whilst the college was being built. The church is also on Pilgrims Way and was one of the last churches that pilgrims would attend before setting out for Canterbury.

Middlebrook

They say church attendance is on the decline in the UK, but there are so many places of worship in Winchester that I can't believe it applies here, or maybe having a cathedral in your midst just encourages more church going? Who knows! Anyway, this is the Winchester Family Church which took over and refurbished the Middle Brook Centre. The building is a former Art Deco cinema and bingo hall. Meanwhile the cinema has taken over an old church!

St Peter's Catholic Church

There are so many churches and places of worship in Winchester. Here is St Peter's Catholic Church in Jewry Street (taken back in December during the snow)

St Swithuns upon Kingsgate

Just through St Swithun's Gate we find a tiny church St Swithuns upon Kingsgate. Kingsgate is one of the ancient gates in the walls of the city of Winchester and this church is built upon it. Churches built over city gates were common in medieval times, but only a few survive today. The first mention of this church is in 1264 when citizens burned it down in a dispute with the Prior of the Abbey. It has been rebuilt and restored over the centuries. There is a staircase which takes one from street level to the Church itself.

St Bartholomew's Church

In Hyde Winchester is St Bartholomew's Church. The Church was built 900
years ago and in the churchyard at the East end of the Church the remains of
King Alfred (Anglo-Saxon king), his wife and his son are believed to be
buried.
St Bartholomew Hyde