St Aldhelm's Church is a

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

church in the Branksome area of

Poole Poole () is a coastal town and seaport on the south coast of England in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area in Dorset, England. The town is east of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

, England. It is dedicated to Saint

Aldhelm Aldhelm (, ; 25 May 709), Abbot of Malmesbury Abbey, Bishop of Sherborne, and a writer and scholar of Latin poetry, was born before the middle of the 7th century. He is said to have been the son of Kenten, who was of the royal house of Wessex ...

, the abbot of

Malmesbury Abbey Malmesbury Abbey, at Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England, is a former Benedictine abbey dedicated to Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul. It was one of the few English religious houses with a continuous history from the 7th century throug ...

who became first

Bishop of Sherborne The Bishop of Sherborne is an episcopal title which takes its name from the market town of Sherborne in Dorset, England. The see of Sherborne was established in around 705 by St Aldhelm, the Abbot of Malmesbury. This see was the mother diocese ...

in the early 8th century.

History

Rev. Alexander Morden-Bennett, first vicar of

St Peter's Church, Bournemouth St Peter's Church is a Church of England parish church located in the Bournemouth Town Centre, centre of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. It is a Grade I listed building classed as a 'major parish church', and was completed in 1879 to a design by ...

, began to evangelise to pottery workers in the area around 1875. He established St. Aldhelm's School near the Carter pottery, which was used as a mission church on Sundays. The parish of All Saints, Branksome, took charge of the mission upon its establishment in 1877, and its third vicar, Rev. C.G. Doyne, initiated construction of the permanent church in Bourne Valley starting in 1892. St. Aldhelm's became its own parish on 30 December 1930.

Architecture

The land upon which the church stands was donated by R.J. Bates, and the

Decorated Style English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed a ...

design was provided by

George Frederick Bodley George Frederick Bodley (14 March 182721 October 1907) was an English Gothic Revival architect. He was a pupil of Sir George Gilbert Scott and worked with C. E. Kempe. He was in partnership with Thomas Garner for much of his career and was ...

and

Thomas Garner Thomas Garner (1839 – 30 April 1906) was one of the leading English Gothic Revival architects of the Victorian era. He is known for his almost 30-year partnership with the architect George Frederick Bodley. Early life Born at Wasperton H ...

. The first part of the church, from the east end to about two thirds of its present length, was dedicated by

John Wordsworth John Wordsworth (21 September 1843 – 16 August 1911) was an English Anglican bishop and classical scholar. He was Oriel Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture at the University of Oxford from 1883 to 1885, and Bishop of Salisbury ...

Bishop of Salisbury The Bishop of Salisbury is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. The Episcopal see, see is in the Salisbur ...

, on 11 July 1894, and the church was expanded to its current footprint in 1912, dedicated in 29 June by Bishop

Frederick Ridgeway Frederick Edward Ridgeway (18484 May 1921) was an Anglican bishop from 1901 until his death 20 years later. Frederick Edward Ridgeway was educated at Tonbridge School and Clare College, Cambridge; he was younger brother of Charles, sometime Bis ...

. The exterior is of

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

work in

Bath stone Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate originally obtained from the Middle Jurassic aged Great Oolite Group of the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its h ...

, also used in the pillars and windows. The stained glass windows in the east and south walls were produced by

Burlison and Grylls Burlison and Grylls is an English company who produced stained glass windows from 1868 onwards. The company of Burlison and Grylls was founded in 1868 at the instigation of the architects George Frederick Bodley and Thomas Garner. Both John Bur ...

of London, and the west wall from C.E. Kempe & Co.

Popular culture

Television producer David Croft named the church in

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard (United Kingdom), Home Guard during the World War II, Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft (TV producer), David Crof ...

after St. Aldhelm's as he was born in

and attended the church as a boy.

Gallery

File:St Aldhelm, Branksome, Dorset (geograph 6336405).jpg, Front of the church. File:St Aldhelm's Church Branksome - geograph.org.uk - 379938.jpg, As seen from St Aldhelm's Road. File:St Aldhelm, Branksome, Dorset - East end (geograph 6336409).jpg, Inside of the church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Aldhelm's Church, Poole Churches in Poole Grade II* listed churches in Dorset 19th-century Church of England church buildings Gothic Revival architecture in Dorset Gothic Revival church buildings in England Church of England church buildings in Dorset Churches completed in 1894 1875 establishments in England Religious organizations established in 1875

History

Architecture

Popular culture

Gallery

See also

References