Church of St Pancras

Church of St Pancras, Chichester

A small town church built in 1750, probably designed and supervised by William Ride, with a north aisle added and extensive restoration undertaken in 1868-9 by Gordon M. Hills. Parish rooms were added around 1990.

The building is constructed of knapped flint with freestone dressings and has slate roofs. The plan comprises a nave, small chancel, west tower, north aisle, south-east vestry and shallow south porch. The church sits directly on surrounding streets with no churchyard.

The unbuttressed nave shows mixed architectural character. Classical elements include a Classical pediment with stone dentils in the west return before the tower interrupts it. Gothic influence appears in two uncusped three-light windows in Perpendicular style east of the small south porch. The chancel has a hipped roof and oculus window on the south side. The south-east vestry features a plain arched doorway and small window with timber Y tracery alongside. The west tower is small and low, unbuttressed, with two stages, an embattled parapet, plat bands, and a low pyramidal roof. A west window similar to those on the south elevation appears on the tower. Large lancet belfry windows are present, and a clock face sits in a circular stone frame on the south side above the belfry window. A very wide projecting north-east stair turret, possibly a later addition, distinguishes the tower. The aisle contains Decorated style windows and is partly concealed by the parish rooms block.

The interior is almost entirely the result of 1868-9 work. The tower arch and chancel arch with shafted mouldings and ring mouldings date from this period. The two-bay arcade is contemporary, featuring arches with chamfers and roll moulding in the soffit. The piers have unusual section with flat sides north and south and semi-circular responds with moulded capitals in the east-west directions. The chancel contains a 19th-century flat boarded ceiling with canted sides divided into panels by moulded ribs. The nave roof may preserve 18th-century construction elements (classical queen posts) but was remodelled in the 1860s with moulded tie-beams on arch braces and pierced tracery decoration. Walls are plastered and whitened.

A west gallery dates to 1869. The reredos, installed in 1900, features a painted HIS monogram in a timber frame, is gabled in the centre, and bears the Creed, Lord's Prayer and Ten Commandments in flanking panels. Eighteenth-century painted armorial glass by Tremaine survives in the two south windows, depicting the arms of the two principal benefactors and the bishop of the time. Seating installed in 1868 has been replaced by chairs since 1985.

The medieval church on this site stood just outside the medieval town walls. It was destroyed by artillery during the Civil War siege at Christmas 1642, and the parish remained without a church for over a century. The present building was erected in 1750 according to a design already settled upon. William Ride, surveyor to the Duke of Richmond (whose seat was at nearby Goodwood and who was among the chief subscribers), likely served as both designer and supervisor. Ride was born around 1723 and was employed as surveyor to various noblemen from the 1750s until his death in May 1778. If Ride was indeed the designer, St Pancras appears to be his only known church building. The Duke contributed £105 to the project, exceeded only by Mary, Countess of Derby, who gave £400. The 1868-9 additions and remodelling by Gordon M. Hills (1826-95) increased seating from 134 to 314 seats. Hills trained in Southampton and became managing assistant to celebrated London church architect R. C. Carpenter from 1850, commencing independent practice in 1854 and becoming diocesan surveyor to London, Rochester and St Albans.