Roman Catholic Church Of St Peter And St Paul

ISLINGTON

TQ3182NW AMWELL STREET 635-1/68/39 (West side) 29/09/72 Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter and St. Paul

GV II

Formerly known as: Northampton Tabernacle. Formerly known as: Rosoman Street Mission. Non-conformist chapel, now Roman Catholic church. 1835. By John Blyth for Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion. Gold stock bricks set in English bond with stucco ground-floor, dressings and rusticated quoins; roof obscured by high stucco cornice. Rectangular plan with symmetrical facade to Amwell Street; forms part of contemporary terrace. Neo-classical style. Two storeys; 3-window range with projecting central bay. Steps rise to 3 ground-floor deeply-recessed entrances, all architraved and keystoned with pairs of panelled C20 doors. Ground-floor central bay of grander proportions and composed of blind Ionic irregular tetrastyle pilastrade. Freize above main entrance faintly inscribed 'NORTHAMPTON TABERNACLE '. Door to centre flanked by 16-paned fixed sashes; outer bays with 18-paned rectangular overlights to doors. 1st floor stucco storey band with corbels to outer bays; central bay storey division articulated by cornice of ground-floor tetrastyle. Large architraved Venetian window to central bay with irregular multi-paned glazing, a high keystone and balustraded base; flanking round-arched sashes to outer bays of similar design with balustraded bases. Stucco cornice and parapet with heightened blocking course to centre inscribed 'ERECTED 1835.' INTERIOR: Plain Neo-classical interior, but partially remodeled C20. Original full-height blind arcading carried on Corinthian pilasters to 'ritual' East end. Plain plaster side walls with C19 dado; modillioned cornice, original flat ceiling with square coffering, gilded rosettes and 3 elaborately patterned cast iron ceiling roses to centre. Fine C19 gallery to rear and sides of chapel supported on slender cast-iron Ionic columns and balustraded with cast-iron panels of gilded Gothic-style tracery. Limited fenestration to side-walls. Shallow vestibule created by c1972 glazed partition gives access to rear of chapel and to flanking gallery staircases. History: Built as Northampton Tabernacle for Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion; from 1847 leased to Roman Catholics. Also formerly known as Rosoman Street Mission before it became the Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter and St. Paul. (Report prepared by Philip Temple for English Heritage: Islington Chapels: London: 1989-1989: 1-3/AMWELL STREET).

Listing NGR: TQ3128482606