Christ Church And Adjacent Church Hall

Christ Church and Adjacent Church Hall

Church and Church Hall, built between 1837 and 1840 on Malvern Road in Cheltenham. The church was designed by architects RW and C Jearrad, with builders Thomas Newton, Solomon Sims and Joseph Puzey. The building underwent significant changes between 1888 and 1893, when an apse was added and the interior was remodelled by JH Middleton, HA Prothero and Phillot. Byzantine-style wall decoration was added by Sir William Richmond and J Eadie Reid. Stained glass was provided by Lavers, Barrand and Westlake, and Heaton, Butler and Bayne. Most monuments were created by Lewis of Cheltenham. The building was restored by RW Paterson in 1956. It was constructed in ashlar over brick with a slate roof.

The church was built as a proprietary chapel intended to accommodate about 2,000 people in anticipation of expansion of the Lansdown Estate. The architects were simultaneously building the Queen's Hotel on the Promenade.

The design is Regency Gothic in Early English style. The plan features a tall Perpendicular-style west tower symmetrically placed in the centre of an elaborately gabled west end, with north and south porches, an aisled nave, a single preaching box with north and south transepts, and an apsidal sanctuary. The interior combines Classicized elements with Byzantine-style decorations in the apse. A church hall is attached to the south.

The west end has a chamfered plinth and buttresses. Stepped gabled buttresses rise to the ends and centre, topped with pinnacles. Both porches and the centre section are gabled with pointed doorways featuring paired plank doors with a pilaster between and cusped heads with quatrefoil to the apex. These are enriched with 2 orders of roll-moulded arches and hoodmoulds. The central stepped 3-lancet-light window has pilasters between and a hollow-chamfer to the head, with a clock above in the gable. The tower is enriched with carved decoration and a band. Two 2-light belfry openings feature Perpendicular-type tracery above, with a pierced parapet. Octagonal turrets surmounted by finials with pinnacles complete the tower. The aisles have tall 2-light lancet windows.

The Church Hall is single-storey with a gable facing forward, featuring a slightly projecting central gable in a 3-bay facade. Hood moulds sit over chamfered lancets, except for a stepped 3-light Early English window to the centre with moulded architraves and stylised Gothic carving to capitals set on engaged shafts. A plain but similar 3-light window is at the rear.

The interior retains an original gallery from 1837-40 to 3 sides. Two unclad iron stanchions with Gothic capitals survive in their original form at the west end; those to both sides are Doric with plinths encasing the iron supports. Box pews remain to the upper stage. Otherwise virtually the entire interior dates from 1888-89, with the exception of an 1865 font.

The apse features 2 arches with pilasters ornamented with arabesque patterns. Tempera frescoes depict Christ, the Apostles, St Michael and St George in the dome, and the Annunciation, Visitation, Nativity and Presentation on the walls, with the Resurrection on the reredos. A flat ceiling with oak panels rests on paired colonnette corbels in the transepts. Both porches contain open-well staircases with alternate stick and ornate balusters and wreathed handrails; the north porch has an additional spiral staircase. An ornate screen separates the choir, and a coloured marble pulpit is present. Many wall tablets commemorate members of the military who had served in India and the East India Company and retired to Cheltenham, including James Webster (died 1858) of Hatherley Court, Hatherley Road, and Richard Crosier Sherwood (died 1850) of Suffolk Lawn. The interior of the Church Hall was not inspected.

A subsidiary ashlar wall with a pointed arch is attached to the Church Hall on the south side.

The distinctive and unusual proportions of the building have attracted considerable attention from architectural historians. Sir John Betjeman described it as "one of the most successful buildings in Cheltenham externally."