St Mary on Paddington Green is an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...

church in the Parish of

Little Venice Little Venice is a district in West London, England, around the junction of the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, the Regent's Canal, and the entrance to Paddington Basin. The junction forms a triangular shape basin. Many of the build ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and forms part of

Paddington Green conservation area Paddington Green is a green space and conservation area in the City of Westminster located off Edgware Road and adjacent to the Westway. It is the oldest part of Paddington and became a separate conservation area in 1988, having previously for ...

. Today it stands at the junction of

Edgware Road Edgware Road is a major road in London, England. The route originated as part of Roman Watling Street and, unusually in London, it runs for 10 miles in an almost perfectly straight line. Forming part of the modern A5 road, Edgware Road undergoes ...

and

Harrow Road The Harrow Road is an ancient route in North West London which runs from Paddington in a northwesterly direction towards Harrow. It is also the name given to the immediate surrounding area of Queens Park and Kensal Green, straddling the NW10, ...

, overlooking the East end of Westway and the approaches to Marylebone Flyover, so seen by tens of thousands of motorists daily.

History

The present building is the third church on the site, once forming a centrepiece of the ancient villages of Paddington and Lilestone.

John Donne John Donne ( ; 22 January 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a cleric in the Church of England. Under royal patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's Cathe ...

preached his first sermon in the original church and

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraver, pictorial satirist, social critic, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like ...

was married in the second.Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert, ''The London Encyclopaedia'', Papermac, 1987, p. 743 St Mary on Paddington Green with grounds

St Mary on Paddington Green with grounds

The current Georgian church was commissioned in 1788 and

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different gro ...

in 1791. Designed by

John Plaw John Plaw (1745-1820) was an architect who was born in London but later emigrated to the Colony of Prince Edward Island in North America. He is known for favouring circular designs in the classical style. There are two known surviving examples ...

with a

Greek Cross The Christian cross, with or without a figure of Christ included, is the main religious symbol of Christianity. A cross with a figure of Christ affixed to it is termed a ''crucifix'' and the figure is often referred to as the ''corpus'' (La ...

ground plan, in yellow London stock brick dressed with white stone. It is one of two confirmed surviving buildings by Plaw in the UK, along with Belle Isle on

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in length, and almost 1 mile (1.5 km) at its wides ...

. A further building in

Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romfo ...

, known as The Round House, has been attributed to him. John Plaw later worked in

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

before emigrating to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

, where he designed several public and private buildings. The church was altered in the 19th century but was restored to its mid-Georgian appearance by architect

Raymond Erith Raymond Charles Erith RA FRIBA (7 August 1904 – 30 November 1973) was a leading classical architect in England during the period dominated by the modern movement after the Second World War. His work demonstrates his continual interest in expan ...

in the early 1970s using some of the compensation for the construction of the urban motorway Westway, alongside the church. Restoration included the chancel being reinstated in its original form, the nave reseated with

box pews A box pew is a type of church pew that is encased in panelling and was prevalent in England and other Protestant countries from the 16th to early 19th centuries. History in England Before the rise of Protestantism, seating was not customary in chu ...

and the organ moved to the West end.Lucy Archer, "Raymond Erith, Architect", 1985, p.205, ISBN 0907435041 The organ case is dedicated as a memorial to Erith. The church houses monuments to some of the area's residents, including sculptor

Joseph Nollekens Joseph Nollekens R.A. (11 August 1737 – 23 April 1823) was a sculptor from London generally considered to be the finest British sculptor of the late 18th century. Life Nollekens was born on 11 August 1737 at 28 Dean Street, Soho, London, ...

and lexicographer

Peter Mark Roget Peter Mark Roget ( ; 18 January 1779 – 12 September 1869) was a British physician, natural theologian, lexicographer and founding secretary of The Portico Library. He is best known for publishing, in 1852, the '' Thesaurus of English Word ...

St Mary’s Churchyard

The adjoining churchyard was converted to a public park in the 1890s and is now known as St Mary's Gardens. It consists of grass with scattered trees. The grave of well-known 18th-century actress

Sarah Siddons Sarah Siddons (''née'' Kemble; 5 July 1755 – 8 June 1831) was a Welsh actress, the best-known tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified". She was the elder sister of Joh ...

is located towards the northern end. Some headstones from the former churchyard are stacked against the west wall of the Gardens. The southern part of the churchyard was destroyed to make way for the approaches to Marylebone Flyover in the 1960s, with exhumed burials being reinterred in an area of

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18,4 ...

cemetery and marked with a plaque. St Mary's Paddington Green Reburials

Notable burials

Remaining Churchyard

*Rev Dawson Burns (1828–1909), temperance leader *

William Chandless William Chandless (7 November 1829–5 May 1896) was an English explorer of the Amazon Basin in the 1860s. Life During his time in the Amazon he lived in Manaus (now the capital of Brazil's Amazonas state) from where he explored many of ...

(1829–1896), Amazon explorer *Rev

Alexander Geddes Alexander Geddes (14 September 1737 – 26 February 1802) was a Scottish theologian and scholar. He translated a major part of the Old Testament of the Catholic Bible into English. Translations and commentaries Geddes was born at Rathven, ...

(1737–1802), Biblical scholar * Arthur Roberts (1852–1933), comedian *Basil Owen Woodd (1760–1831), hymn writer (erected by the Crosse baronets) *

Leonard Charles Wyon Leonard Charles Wyon (23 November 1826 – 20 August 1891) was a British engraver of the Victorian era most notable for his work on the gold and silver coinage struck for the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887 and the bronze coinage of ...

(1826–1891), engraver and coin-designer *Sir

Stephen Spender Sir Stephen Harold Spender (28 February 1909 – 16 July 1995) was an English poet, novelist and essayist whose work concentrated on themes of social injustice and the class struggle. He was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry by th ...

(1909–1995), poet

St Mary's Gardens

Thomas Banks Thomas Banks (29 December 1735 – 2 February 1805) was an important 18th-century English sculptor. Life The son of William Banks, a surveyor who was land steward to the Duke of Beaufort, he was born in London. He was educated at Ross-on-Wye ...

(1735–1805), sculptor *

Thomas Blore Thomas Blore (1754–1818) was an English topographer. Life Blore was born at Ashbourne, Derbyshire, on 1 December 1764. He received his education at the grammar school there, and afterwards became a solicitor at Derby. He then moved to Hopton ...

(1754–1818), historian * William Collins RA (1788–1847), artist * Matthew Dubourg (1703–1767), violinist *

Benjamin Haydon Benjamin Robert Haydon (; 26 January 178622 June 1846) was a British painter who specialised in grand historical pictures, although he also painted a few contemporary subjects and portraits. His commercial success was damaged by his often tactles ...

, (1786–1846) painter *

(1737–1823), sculptor, and his father,

Joseph Francis Nollekens Josef Frans Nollekens'' or ''Joseph Frans Nollekens (1702–1748)Josef Frans Nollekens
at t ...

, artist * Emma Paterson (1846–1886), feminist and unionist * Thomas Richmond (1771–1837), miniaturist *

(1755–1831), actress *

Charles Stedman Charles Stedman (1753–1812) was a British Army officer who fought in the American War of Independence and afterwards wrote a detailed history on the conflict. Biography Charles Stedman, born at Philadelphia in 1753, was the second son of Alex ...

(1753–1812), army officer

References

External links

Biographical information about John Plaw from Historic Places, Prince Edward Island, CanadaGuide and map from City of WestminsterParish of Little Venice website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mary on Paddington Green Church Churches completed in 1791 18th-century Church of England church buildings Church of England church buildings in the City of Westminster Diocese of London