Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady and St Therese, Painswick, Gloucestershire

Summary

A Roman Catholic church, formerly four cottages of the C16, later a slaughterhouse, converted to a place of worship in 1934, remodelled in classical style by Ellery Anderson Roiser and Falconer, 1954-6.

Description

MATERIALS
Local limestone, with some brick patching; slate roof; timber cupola.

PLAN
A simple rectangle with a small outshut for the sacristy.

EXTERIOR
The church forms part of a row of buildings on Friday Street. The building is a high single storey, constructed from large squared and dressed blocks of limestone, with stone-mullioned windows with plate glazing, under a shallow-pitched, hipped roof. The main elevation is of three bays; those to the left and centre each have a single, large three-light window. The right-hand bay is classical in style, with slightly projecting quoins, and a central entrance door under a chamfered stone lintel. Over the entrance is an oculus window, above which is a swept parapet with half-columns on carved brackets framing a niche, and above this an octagonal cupola for the belfry, on a scrolling base, surmounted by a gilt orb and cross. To the rear, the left-hand bay has been rebuilt in brick, with a brick outshut. The remainder is in roughly squared and coursed limestone. There are two tiers of stone-mullioned windows, those to the first floor with hood moulds. The window in the outshut is a later, C20 timber casement.

INTERIOR
The interior has whitewashed walls, and is simply furnished. The entrance gives access to the narthex beneath the gallery, which is supported on Roman Doric columns brought from Stancombe Park. Between the columns is a pair of wrought-iron gates, with scrolls and stylised flowers, and matching grilles to either side. A high, arched recess behind the sanctuary originally housed the high altar, and now has the tabernacle placed on a columnar plinth to one side. The altar, simply built from large blocks of roughly-squared limestone, is now set slightly forward of the recess. The roughly-hewn stone font stands to the right. The gallery is reached via a flight of closed-string stairs with plain stick balusters and ramped handrails. The half-landing has a moulded stone window seat to the oculus. The front of the gallery has a deep moulding, below a balustrade of short stick balusters. Set above the gallery is a C17 or C18 chestnut cartouche with angel heads and Maria monogram, acquired by Sir Henry Howard in The Hague. The king-post roof structure is partly exposed.

History

In 1921, Alice Howard of Painswick, a relative of the Howard family of Norfolk, converted the attic of a cottage in the town to an oratory, where Mass was occasionally said. Later, in 1931, Miss Howard purchased the site of the present Church of Our Lady and St Therèse, which was then a dilapidated building in Friday Street which had started life as four Tudor cottages, later becoming a slaughterhouse. Behind it, accessed through a passage partly under the building, were a slaughter yard and two derelict cottages. Commander Henry Mowbray Howard and Jobie Swan gutted the building and cleared the dirt and rubble themselves; no architect was involved. The church was blessed by Bishop Lee on the Feast of the Assumption, 15 August 1934. Alice Howard wanted to demonstrate that a Catholic church could be very simple, sincere, and in keeping with the Cotswold traditions of stone, wood, wrought iron and good craftsmanship, in accordance with the principles of the Arts and Crafts movement which continued to flourish in the area up to the Second World War. A painting of the period preserved in the church shows bare stone walls, stone flag floors, rush seating, leaded windows and an open timber roof, which accords with Miss Howard’s aim.

The completed church was transferred to the Diocese of Clifton in 1937. On the night of 13-14 June 1941, a stray stick of bombs fell on Painswick, with the church taking a direct hit. The right-hand side of the building was blown out to front and rear, and although temporary repairs were carried out and Mass resumed in 1942, a full repair and remodelling did not take place until 1954-6. The work was largely funded by a donation of £4000 from Alice’s sister, Jessie Howard, Alice having died in 1942; the War Damage Commission contributed a further £1000. The building was remodelled in classical style by Eric Hill of Ellery Anderson Roiser & Falconer, with a new entrance with raised cupola in place of the bomb damaged portion. The present sanctuary apse was created out of the passage to the slaughter yard. The narthex was made out of the old stables and the gallery above from the hay loft. The columns on which the gallery stands were brought from Stancombe Park, at nearby Stinchcombe. The belfry was created and a new doorway opened in the south wall. The classical style caused some controversy, among the town and as far as Bishop Ruddenham, as it was initially felt to be out of keeping with the vernacular character of the town. However, the Bishop was reconciled to the design, and he reopened the church on 19 February 1956.

Reasons for Listing

The Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady and St Therèse, converted in 1934 from a domestic Tudor building, remodelled in 1954 by Ellery Anderson Roiser and Falconer, is listed at Grade II, for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: the church is a striking building which combines a formal, classical entrance bay with traditional, vernacular building, and has a tranquil interior which combines the same styles;
* Historic interest: the church is formed from a domestic building originally of the C16 or C17, whose evolution is reflected in the fabric; its present form is the result of post-war remodelling following damage by a stray bomb, unusual for such a rural location;
* Group value: with the surrounding buildings of similar age, including The Gables (Grade II*) and Thorne (Grade II).

External Links

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.