St. Mary's Church is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

located in

Brighstone Brighstone is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Wight, 6 miles southwest of Newport on the B3399 road. Brighstone was previously known as "Brixton". The name derives from the Saxon name " Ecgbert's Tun". Brighstone is the largest vil ...

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

. The churchyard contains a memorial stone to George Albert Cairns VC.

History

The church is medieval dating from the twelfth century. The short tower contains a ring of 8 bells all cast by

Whitechapel Bell Foundry The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was a business in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. At the time of the closure of its Whitechapel premises, it was the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The bell foundry primarily made church bells ...

: six in 1961 with two more added in 2017. The largest weighs 7cwt. The spire was added in the 17th century.

Today

The church holds an annual Christmas tree festival (the

Brighstone Christmas Tree Festival Brighstone Christmas Tree Festival is a local event occurring in various venues around Brighstone and Mottistone on the Isle of Wight in England for the winter tourist season. This charitable event raises money for local and national charities. ...

) in conjunction with the one at

Mottistone Mottistone is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Brighstone, on the Isle of Wight, England. It is located in the popular tourist area the Back of the Wight. It is located 8 miles southwest of Newport in the southwest of ...

that has become a popular tourist attraction.islandpulse.co.uk/b2/brighstone-christmas-tree-festival-2009 This event occurs in four locations: *St Mary's Church, Brighstone * Brighstone Methodist Church * St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, Mottistone * Wilberforce Hall, Brighstone. Several hundred entries are created by individuals, groups and businesses, making it one of the biggest festivals of its type.

Parish status

The church is grouped with: *St. Mary's Church, Brighstone * St. Mary's Church, Brook * St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, Mottistone

List of incumbents

Three former Rectors have become Bishops: *

Thomas Ken Thomas Ken (July 1637 – 19 March 1711) was an English cleric who was considered the most eminent of the English non-juring bishops, and one of the developers of modern English hymnody. Early life Thomas Ken was born in 1637 at Little Be ...

hymn writer *

Samuel Wilberforce Samuel Wilberforce, Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (7 September 1805 – 19 July 1873) was an English bishop in the Church of England, and the third son of William Wilberforce. Known as "Soapy Sam", Wilberforce was one of the greatest public sp ...

- the youngest son of

William Wilberforce William Wilberforce (24 August 1759 – 29 July 1833) was a British politician, philanthropist, and a leader of the movement to abolish the Atlantic slave trade. A native of Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780 ...

George Moberly George Moberly (10 October 1803 – 6 July 1885) was an English cleric who was headmaster of Winchester College, and then served as Bishop of Salisbury from 1869 until his death. Life He was born in St Petersburg, Russian Empire in 1803, the s ...

- became

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 ...

Organ

The church does not have a pipe organ but instead has an electric one at the west end of the nave. A specification of the former pipe organ can be found on th
National Pipe Organ Register

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brighstone, St. Mary's Church of England church buildings on the Isle of Wight Grade I listed churches on the Isle of Wight

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...