St Stephen's Church is a

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, ...

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 ...

Bath, Somerset Bath (Received Pronunciation, RP: , ) is a city in Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman Baths (Bath), Roman-built baths. At the 2021 census, the population was 94,092. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, Bristol, River A ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

History

Designed to serve the spiritual needs of northeast Bath by James Wilson and built between 1840 and 1845, from

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 ...

, a limestone sourced from the Limpley Stoke mine which is situated in the Limpley Stoke Valley. St Stephen's Church on Lansdown Road in Walcot cost £6,000. The constructed church, however, remained unconsecrated until 1881. For the Royal School, a northeast

aisle An aisle is a linear space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, in buildings such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parliaments, courtrooms, ...

was added in 1866, thought to be designed by the Wilson & Willcox firm. The very wide apsidal

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

with the vestry and organ chamber was built by W. J. Willcox built in 1882–1883, for £3,000. W. J. Willcox also designed the painted ceiling in 1886, which was executed by H. & F. Davis. The

Lady Chapel A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British English, British term for a chapel dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church (building), church. The chapels are also known as a Mary chape ...

's east

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

window was completed in 1983 by local artist Mark Angus to commemorate one hundred years since the formation of the parish. 'Centenary' depicts St Stephen's transformation on the bridge between life and death to the moment of martyrdom: 'With distorted ambiguity between pain and repose, the body rises amid red flames on a blue ground'. The Gothicised font and font cover are marble and dated 1843. The c.1900

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...

ceiling and

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

are by Sir T. G. Jackson. The

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

was converted into a community centre in 1993-1994 by Slade, Smith and Winrow. In 2007 the tower stonework was restored and the church bells replaced. Modern exterior floodlighting, replacing a less efficient previous system, was installed.

Present day

The parish is a member of Inclusive Church, an organisation founded in 2003 that advocates for the full inclusion of all people regardless of ethnicity,

gender Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...

and

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring personal pattern of romantic attraction or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. Patterns ar ...

References

External links

Official website
*Photos of St Stephen's

http://bathdailyphoto.wordpress.com/2007/05/10/070508walcot-congested-with-calcium-sulphate-aisle-five/]

History

Present day

References

External links

Further reading