Church Of St Paul

Church of St Paul

Church, built around 1848 as an overflow church for the parish of St Clement, funded by local banker William Mansell Tweedy. The original architect is unknown. The church was consecrated in 1864 and acquired its own parish. Major extension and remodelling was undertaken in the early 1880s by the notable architect J. D. Sedding, working in the Perpendicular style. Sedding's work was consecrated in 1884, the north aisle was completed in 1889 with the church reopened on 27 June 1889, and the battlemented tower was completed in 1910 by Sedding's nephew E. H. Sedding.

The church is constructed of dressed coursed local stone with granite dressings to the west end and Polyphant stone to the east end. The roof is scantle slate and dry Delabole slate with coped gable ends.

The plan comprises a six-bay aisled nave with a south porch at the west end. The chancel extends for two bays and includes an organ chamber to the north of the choir, a chapel (dedicated to St Clement) north of the sanctuary, a tower to the south of the choir, a vestry to the south of the sanctuary, and a brick vaulted crypt beneath the east end.

The exterior displays inventive Perpendicular styling. The three-stage embattled tower with angle buttresses features corner statues of Sir Richard Grenville, Sir John Elliott and Bishop Trelawney, with three niches to the second stage containing two surviving carved statues of Christ and St George (the statue of St Paul has been removed). A six-light tracery window sits above a flat-headed basement window with four lights. The symmetrical east end has a central projecting chancel with offset angle buttresses to embattled corner turrets flanking a large seven-light tracery window above a seven-light basement window. The flanking organ chamber and chapel have moulded parapets, three-light windows with simple Perpendicular tracery and similar buttresses, with pairs of two-light windows to the returns, all featuring tracery and hoodmoulds with mid-floor and sill strings. The embattled south porch has a round-arched doorway with an empty niche above. The north and south walls of the six-bay aisles are lit by three-light tracery windows. The west end has a five-light nave window and a four-light window to the south aisle.

The interior is less dramatic in character. Tall six-bay aisles have granite piers with four-centred arches to the north side and round arches to the south side. Two-bay arcades with engaged shafts and four-centred arches connect the choir and chancel, and the vestry and tower. Round choir and chancel arches are present. Waggon roofs in different designs with widely-spaced bosses cover the nave and north aisle, whilst the south aisle has moulded ribs with square plaster panels. The chancel ceiling has painted decoration featuring the motif IHS (Jesus) and gilt bosses. The stone flag floor to the nave includes multi-coloured tiled sections. St Clement's Chapel has a ceiling with moulded wooden beams and floral motif bosses. Flat coffered ceilings with moulded beams are provided to the transepts and tower. At the west end is a plain holy water stoup. The nave contains pitch pine pews with square traceried ends and panelled backs, though some pews have been removed in the east bay to accommodate an inserted granite platform nave altar. The organ has a highly decorated case which encloses a vestry. The rood screen was removed in 1968.

The church retains significant fixtures and fittings from Sedding's campaign. The choir stalls with tracery carving come from the workshops of Robinson of London, and the screens between the choir and adjoining rooms, featuring Perpendicular tracery and carved cornices, were all installed in 1893. A scheme of late 1880s stained glass by Lavers, Barraud and Westlake is present, including a seven-light Te Deum east window in memory of Sir Philip Protheroe Smith, Mayor of Truro, who died in 1882. The octagonal stone font has elongated quatrefoils to the bowl and niches with fleur de lys around the stem, with a stepped base and flat oak cover. A stone pulpit to the south side beneath the tower arch is believed to have come from St Clement's Church and dates to the 15th century. The oak pulpit, with blind ogee tracery, was given to the church in 1901 in memory of Lady Protheroe Smith.

A small derelict gabled hall of 1905 with pointed windows stands to the west end of the church, and a former Chapel of Rest (listed Grade II) stands opposite, both attributed to Sedding.