Church of St Michael and All Angels

Church of St Michael and All Angels, Borgard Road, Woolwich

A large, imposing church built in phases between 1875 and 1955, representing a High Church mission to poor areas of Victorian London. The church is constructed of stock brick with red brick banding and Bath stone dressings, with clay tile roofs.

The building was initiated by Reverend Hugh Ryves Baker, a fervent Tractarian who came to Woolwich in 1865. After securing a site and establishing a temporary tin tabernacle church with timber-framed and corrugated iron schoolroom, permanent schools were designed by J.W Walter in 1870–71. Fund-raising for a permanent church began in 1873, with the foundation stone laid on 15 July 1875 by the Bishop of Rochester. The first phase (1875–77) was designed by John William Walter and built by Kirk and Randall, comprising the chancel, chancel aisle, organ chamber and vestries. The church was consecrated in 1878. Walter's departure to the United States in 1880 meant that William Butterfield, one of the greatest 19th-century church architects, was engaged for the next phase. Between 1888 and 1889, Butterfield designed three and a half bays of the nave and arcades, providing a structure of great external visual strength. The west front followed in 1898–99, designed by W.D Caröe to Butterfield's design, though Caröe's ambitious scheme for a tower never proceeded beyond drawings. A south aisle was finally added in 1955 by Thomas Ford and Partners.

The church is oriented north-north-west/south-south-east. The exterior is a tall, powerfully designed structure in 13th-century style, deliberately creating a grand effect through economical materials and simple detailing. The two-bay chancel has tall lancet windows—two on the south, one on the north, and three graded lancets for the east window. Above the east window in the gable is an oculus with tracery. The south chapel features two two-light south windows and a three-light east window with Geometrical tracery. A prominent buttress divides the chapel into two bays, rises through the eaves and is linked to the chancel by a flying buttress. A further larger solid buttress occurs at the junction of south aisle, chapel, nave and chancel. The nave runs at the same height as the chancel and is dominated by three huge circular sexfoil clerestory windows. The lean-to south aisle is more modest, with three bays of pairs of plain lancets and a tall two-storey west bay with three lancets at ground level and two tall narrow lancets above. The north elevation remains unfinished—the north aisle was never built—with a large area of vertical tile hanging forming a temporary finish for much of the middle part of this wall. At the west end is a large five-light Geometrical window with chequerwork at the gable apex.

The interior is an impressive space. The nave has four bays with circular piers and octagonal capitals. The outstanding feature is the wagon roof over the nave with sexpartite divisions in each bay and extensive now-faded decoration. The chancel and south chapel are vaulted in brick. Between the nave and chancel is a tall chancel arch with shafted responds.

The church's fittings reflect strong Tractarian principles. The south chapel acquired a second altar around 1880 and has a tripartite reredos with low-relief figures. A sacrament house of 1927 by Cecil Hare stands in a corner. The high altar reredos, created in 1892 by Cox and Buckley to designs by architect-priest Ernest Geldart, is of marble, alabaster, blue Corsham stone and slate, featuring angel statues made in Bruges flanking a central painting of Christ enthroned. Geldart also provided low arcading left and right of the reredos, later replaced with panelling by Hare in the 1920s. Surviving 1878 fittings in the chancel include oak choir stalls by Harry Hems of Exeter and an encaustic tile pavement by Webb and Co. of Worcester. Friezes in rectangular panels with biblical scenes run below the windows of both chancel and nave. Painted decoration in the chancel and over the chancel arch dates to various periods, with insipid figures against the east wall by F.A Jackson of Ealing (working under Hare) added as late as 1928. The lower sanctuary walls feature ashlar work and zig-zag tile patterns of 1890. In the nave, the font and pulpit are typical Butterfield fittings, as are the low benches. An unusual wooden lectern is probably not his. The most prominent item is an elaborate oak chancel screen and rood of 1903 (designer unknown), a memorial to the church's founder. Among later fittings, the most significant is a war memorial altar, dossal and large crucifix on the south side at the west end by Ninian Comper, dating to 1919. Following war damage, most older stained glass has been lost; the Lady Chapel windows are by Goddard and Gibbs.

A remnant of the associated school survives to the north-west of the church.