Holy Trinity

Holy Trinity is a church built in 1878–9 by Ewan Christian, located on Beechwood Road in Hackney (formerly listed as Woodland Street, E8). The church was constructed from the proceeds of the sale of St Martin Outwich in the City.

The building is constructed of red brick with minimal stone dressings and slate roofs. It is a powerfully composed structure in the Early English style, achieving a bold effect with economy of means. The plan comprises a nave with north and south aisles, a rectangular tower placed over the choir, a sanctuary, north and south transepts (the south transept now reduced in height), a southeast vestry, and a northeast entrance.

The most impressive aspect is from the southeast, showing a short sanctuary, a severe rectangular tower (longer in the north–south direction) placed over the choir, and behind it a three-bay nave. The east end of the chancel has three equal-height lancets. The tower has three lancet belfry windows on the east and west faces and two on the north and south. Its roof, truncated at the top, is of pavilion type and gives this part of the church a somewhat Germanic character. At the northeast corner stands a bold circular stair-turret which terminates above the level of the tower eaves in a conical roof, again reminiscent of Germanic rather than English precedents. To the north of the tower is a tall transept arrangement for the organ chamber. The nave has two plain lancet windows for each bay of the clerestory. The north and south walls of the aisles are blind. At the west end, the nave wall has four large equal-height lancets above which are three further shorter lancets placed beneath an enclosing arch. The north transept has a circular window filled with a series of circles. At the northeast corner is a large entrance with a moulded arch, central shaft, large circle in the head and nook shafts.

The interior surfaces and architectural details are covered in white paint (applied by 1966). The building is tall and, given its relatively small physical dimensions, has a sense of generous proportions. The arcades have three wide, plain arches either side with squat waterleaf capitals and round piers, with roundels placed in the valleys of the arches. The clerestory forms a continuous band of identical arches and lancet windows. At the crossing, the arches from the nave and to the chancel are tall with moulded arches rising from short shafts, which rise from small corbels. The tower space is vaulted. The nave roof comprises plain seven-sided rafters and small tie-beams. The chancel roof is keeled.

The church has been refitted internally, although the low plain wall between the nave and chancel, and the octagonal font, are from the 19th century. At the west end is a screen bearing depictions of saints under cusped arches, brought from St Philip, Dalston, after that church suffered war damage in October 1940. The east window contains post-war glass by A F Erridge.

Immediately west of the church stands the brick-built Trinity Church Institute. This has two tiers of stone mullioned and transomed windows to the main elevation facing the road and a further such window in the gable. It appears to have been built in two phases, the main block nearest the road being dated 1880.

Ewan Christian (1814–95) was a prolific church-builder and restorer. He was schooled at Christ's Hospital until 1829, when he was articled to Matthew Habershon. He broadened his education with continental travel in 1834 and the following year assisted one of the entrants in the New Palace of Westminster competition. He worked in the offices of William Railton in London and then John Brown in Norwich. He commenced practice in 1842 and was appointed architect to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners in 1851, a post which brought many commissions, especially in the chancels for which the Commissioners were responsible. He gained a reputation for efficiency and bringing jobs in on time and on budget. His best churches, notably St Mark's, Leicester, and Holy Trinity, Folkestone, can stand comparison with the better churches of the 19th century.