Church Of St Clement

The Church of St Clement is a late medieval parish church dating from around 1500, substantially restored between 1837 and 1840. The chancel was extended eastwards by C F Hayward in 1872, a south aisle added by E Geldart in 1897, and further alterations made by Sir Charles Nicholson in 1913 and 1919.

Materials and Construction

The church is built of ragstone and flint rubble, with the exception of the south porch which is brick. The medieval rubblework is uncoursed, while the 19th- and 20th-century work is coursed. Dressings are of ragstone and limestone, and the roofs are tiled.

Plan

The church consists of a nave with north and south aisles (the south aisle being shorter), a south porch, and a west tower. The chancel has north and south chapels, with north vestries projecting eastwards.

Exterior

The church stands high on a hill and dominates the town from the harbour below. It once formed an important landmark in the Thames Estuary. From the east, the church presents complex and varied massing, as the south chapel, chancel, and north vestries all have gabled roofs of different heights and lengths.

The chancel has a three-light 19th-century Decorated style east window, with a two-light Decorated style window in the chancel side wall, apparently copying earlier windows. The early 20th-century north vestry has a three-light late Perpendicular style east window. The south chapel, which is shorter than the chancel, has a three-light Perpendicular style east window and two south windows.

The north aisle and north chapel are continuous externally. The four-light late Perpendicular east window of the aisle, with vertical tracery, is partially visible above the vestry roofs. The north wall has four three-light windows with pointed segmental heads and foiled lights, and there is a four-light window with vertical tracery in the west wall of the aisle. In the middle of the north wall, the shallow rood stair turret survives.

The south aisle has a shallow lean-to roof over the southeast door and two south windows of three lights, plus a two-light west window, also in Perpendicular style. The south aisle does not extend the full length of the nave, and the south porch is set to the west of the aisle. The south porch is of diapered brickwork and has a moulded four-centred brick outer opening under a hood mould with foiled spandrels. The 19th-century south door incorporates some 15th-century voussoirs.

The west tower is of three stages and has a prominent embattled southeast stair turret rising above the embattled parapet. The west door has moulded jambs and a pointed arch in a square frame with a hood mould and shields in the spandrels. The three-light west window has late Perpendicular tracery. The bell stage has large three-light openings on each side.

Interior

The four-centred chancel arch almost fills the nave east wall, and has chamfered orders on polygonal responds with moulded capitals and bases. Largely restored in plaster in the 19th century, it retains some older parts on the north side.

The late 15th- or early 16th-century north chancel arcade, also restored in plaster, has two bays of unequal length, with the eastern bay much lower and narrower, suggesting adaptation of older openings. The pier is octagonal and has a moulded capital and base. The 19th-century chancel south arcade is of two bays with continuous mouldings on the central pier. The arch between the south chapel and south aisle has continuous hollow chamfers.

The four-bay north arcade is similar to the chancel north arcade, and there is no structural division between the aisle and the chapel, although the blocked door for the former rood stair is visible at this point. The late 15th- or early 16th-century north aisle is plastered behind the rafters and has curved and moulded principals springing from carved corbels. The wall plates are moulded and embattled. The 19th-century nave south arcade is three bays and also has chamfered arches on polygonal piers with moulded capitals and bases, but the detailing is slightly different to the north arcade and the arches are lower. The nave roof is a fully plastered barrel vault. The tower arch has three hollow chamfered orders on attached shafts with moulded capitals and bases. The door to the tower stair turret is late 15th or 16th century and has studded battens.

Principal Fixtures

The 15th-century font came from St Swithin, Norwich, replacing a 19th-century font. It is octagonal with carved lions and angels on the bowl and stem. The cover dates from around 1983 and is by H and K Mabbitt. The mahogany chancel reredos is by Ernest Geldart of 1893 and has finely carved figures made in Belgium. The Lady Chapel screen, also by Geldart and originally in St Margaret of Antioch, Stanford-le-Hope, and wrought iron gates by Bodley from St Matthew, Great Peter Street, Westminster, were introduced in the late 1990s. The wooden screen at the east end of the north aisle is 1919 by Nicholson as a war memorial, with reticulated tracery above dropped ogee arches; the names of the dead are inscribed along the lower register. The nave has 19th-century benches with poppyheads.

There is excellent stained and painted glass of the 18th to 20th centuries. The chancel east window has a very striking painted depiction of the crucifixion against dark clouds, possibly 18th-century German work. The chancel south window is also painted, and is a copy of designs by Sir Joshua Reynolds for New College, Oxford, depicting Faith and Hope. The chancel north window is by F Preedy, 1872, with a former companion window now in the vestry. Towards the east end of the north aisle are the Good Shepherd by Mayer and Co., around 1875, and St Andrew by William White, 1887. The Lady Chapel windows are early 20th century by Horace Wilkinson. South aisle windows of 1868 and 1869 are by Powell. The west window was designed by Geldart, 1893. The north aisle windows are largely mid to late 20th century by Francis Stephenson and W Wilson.

There are a number of good monuments. Brasses include figural brasses to Richard Haddok, died 1453 and his wife Christine, also his son John and his wife and children, and Richard Chester, Elder Brother of Trinity House, died 1632 and his wife Elizabeth. Wall monuments include Anne, wife of Sir Edward Whitaker, died 1705, a white marble tablet with Ionic columns, volute pediment and arms. Robert Salmon, died 1641, Master of Trinity House and Sheriff of London, has an alabaster and black marble memorial with a half figure holding a globe, side pilasters, cornice and achievement of arms, attributed to Thomas Stanton. There are also a number of 17th- and 18th-century floor slabs, many recording maritime connections.

History

Leigh is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, but the church is not included, although this was not unusual for Essex and many churches existing at that time were omitted. The first rector is recorded in the 13th century. Leigh was a port and fishing town, and also had a fair. The whole church was rebuilt in the late 15th or early 16th century, reflecting the prosperity of the town at that date. Most of the church, including the nave, north aisle and chapel, and west tower was rebuilt in the late 15th or early 16th century, but the chancel may have been 14th century and some evidence for an older structure, including a piscina and parts of a window, were discovered when the north chapel was refitted in the early 20th century. The south porch and rood stair turret were added in the early 16th century.

The Thames pilots' Guild of the Holy Trinity and St Clement, later Trinity House, had close associations with the church, and many of the monuments record the inhabitants' connections with the sea. All work done to the church in the 17th and 18th centuries, such as furnishings, was swept away in the 19th-century restorations, as was commonly done. The church was restored in 1837–1840, and the chancel was extended 16 feet (4.85 metres) eastwards by Hayward in 1872. The south aisle was added in 1897 by Geldart, who was also responsible for some refurnishing, and extended eastwards to form the Lady Chapel in 1913 by Sir Charles Nicholson. Nicholson also added the north vestries, and he refitted the east end of the north aisle as a First World War memorial chapel in 1919. The chancel and Lady Chapel were reordered in the 1990s.

The south aisle was added to accommodate the growing population of the town, and the Lady Chapel of 1913 was a memorial to Edward King (1829–1910), Bishop of Lincoln, brother of the former Rector, Canon Walker King, and uncle of the then Rector, Canon Robert King (rector 1892–1950). Edward King, who held very High Church views for which he was prosecuted, was considered to be a saint by some, and although he was never canonised, a lesser feast in his honour is part of the Anglican calendar for 8 March.