Church Heritage Record 623042

The plan of the building is an aisled-transeptal planform, complicated by adjoining rooms to the north of the chancel and an apsidal chapel to the south. There is a tower in the north-west corner of the building with a porch which projects from the west wall and forms the main entrance. There is also and a porch on the south-west corner of the building projecting from the south side.

The nave of the church is Nave 28ft (8.5m) wide. The nave and chancel rise to a height of 55ft (16.5m). The height of the spire is 254ft (77m).

The foundation stone for the church of St Augustine, Kilburn was laid in 1871. The church was designed by the architect J. L. Pearson in 1870. It is an exemplary building in the Anglo-Catholic or High Church tradition of the Church of England, a fact which is highly in evidence in the design of the building and the various works of art displayed within and without. The church is situated between Kilburn and Maida Vale. Its setting is now one of a developed urban environment. This area experienced growth in the nineteenth but the church is now largely surrounded by buildings which are twentieth century in origin.

Archaeology

The area around the church has low archaeological potential. Archaeological investigation within 1km of the building has uncovered nineteenth century building rubble and pottery, as well as nineteenth century cellars. Part of the course of the Kilburn stream has also been discovered in excavations close to Kilburn High Road north of the church. The silted channel of the water course contained post-medieval and modern artefacts, as well as a piece of Roman pottery.

Kilburn and Maida Vale

The site of the church is on Kilburn Park Road. Historically, this area was in the Ossulstone hundred of the county of Middlesex. Kilburn Park Road itself was begun in 1855 and branches off what was then known as Edgware Road, and is now Maida Vale, a section of the A5 which it is thought runs along the ancient route way known as Watling Street. The route of Watling Street was paved by the Romans in the first century and primarily used to connect the settlements now known as Canterbury and St Albans but runs as far as Wroxeter in the west. A turnpike trust was set up for Edgware Road in 1710. This was disbanded by the Metropolis (Kilburn and Harrow Roads) Act in 1872 and the administration for the route passed to the relevant local authorities.

In the 1130s Kilburn had been the site of a priory housing nuns living under either the Benedictine or Augustinian Rule. By 1535 there was a mansion on the site of the priory. The mansion house is thought to have been located on the present site of the Bell public house, with the Red Lion pub thought to be a continuation of the priory guest house. In 1714 a medicinal spring was discovered near the site of the Bell, and by 1733 the public house had gardens and a great room to attract high value patrons. However, this did not lead to a great expansion of residential population of the area as it had in other places. In 1762 the area had only ten houses, seven cottages, a tollhouse and a smith’s shop, as well as three public houses. None of these buildings survive today, although the sites of the public houses are thought to remain the same, with the present buildings dating from the nineteenth century

Kilburn Park Road, originally Park Road, was historically considered to form the border between Kilburn and Paddington.  Housing developments along the Edgware Road grew pace in the 1830s, with the frontage of Edgware Road filled by 1851, prompting land to be sought behind it. Kilburn itself, which is north of the Park Road, saw piecemeal development of the priory estate completed by various builders in the same period. In 1825 a proprietary chapel with a dedication to St Paul was founded on Kilburn Square. The area was traversed by LNWR line in 1837 with Kilburn Station (now Kilburn High Road Station) opened in 1852. In 1856 a church with a dedicated to St Mary was founded on Priory Road, Kilburn.

Park Road was renamed Kilburn Park Road in 1862 and a builder based in the street built houses along the east side of Randolph Gardens, leasing them from 1864. In 1871 St Augustine’s C.E. School was opened on Kilburn Park Road with an extension built two years later. In 1874 St Augustine’s Mission School was built on the Road, with the Kilburn Sisters opening an orphanage nearby the following year. The area would continue to be characterised by residential development in the coming years and an agreement for around 90 houses along the Paddington side of Kilburn Park Road was struck in 1880, with the houses of moderate value. In 1884 a new orphanage was constructed by the Sisters on land in Randolph Gardens. Building in the part of Paddington known as Maida Vale continued during this time, although not at a fast pace. A section remained empty and in 1886 part of this space along Kilburn Park Road became designated for public use as Paddington Recreation ground.

Social surveys in the late nineteenth century found Kilburn to be mixed between middle-class estates and poor with a high proportion of Irish people resident. Maida Vale was a wealthy area at this time and as a border between the two, Kilburn Park Road was found to be a mix of poverty and comfort. From the 1890s Maida Vale became characterised by middle class flats with few changes up until the middle of the twentieth century. The Bakerloo line was extended to Kilburn Park Station in 1915 connecting to the Edgware Road and Paddington Stations, which opened in 1907 and 1913 respectively.

Kilburn experienced significant bomb damage in Second World War and the overcrowding of back to back terraces in the area prompted plans for redevelopment, with a large number of council houses constructed from 1948 onwards. By 1975 in the area around St Augustine’s, the GLC had constructed a number of social housing developments as part of the Maida Vale housing estate, including Torridon House at the corner of Randolph Gardens and Kilburn Park Road.

St Augustine’s

J.L. Pearson’s design for the church of St Augustine was completed for supporters of the Vicar Richard Carr Kirkpatrick and the construction and initial history of the church are very much tied up with the life of the Vicar.  Carr Kirkpatrick had received his BA in Divinity from Trinity College, Dublin in 1846 and was ordained to the parish of Hale in Lincolnshire, before moving to the curacy of Grange in County Armagh in 1851, and then to the curacy of Leigh, Staffordshire five years later. During his time at Leigh he is said to have become friends with Edward Bouverie Pusey, one of the most prominent members of the Oxford Movement, and Rev. Kirkpatrick would be listed as one of those attending Dr Pusey’s funeral in 1882. Rev. Kirkpatrick left Leigh in 1862 and was presented by the parishioners with a silver teapot and cream pot in recognition of his “indefatigable labours” for the parish.

Following his time at Leigh, Rev. Kirkpatrick became a curate at St Mary’s, Kilburn which had recently been completed. When the incumbent there, Rev. Adams, fell ill, Kirkpatrick assumed charge of the parish. In 1867 following the publication of details of the services in commemoration of the dedication of the church, which included strongly ritualist elements, the Bishop of London took the decision to order that St Mary’s close for a short time. At the time, Anglo-Catholic ideas and the ritual practice they implied were points of controversy in national life, and despite the congregation’s enthusiasm for this style of worship, some of the elements favoured by them may have contravened the Church Discipline Act (1840). In August that year, the patron of the church presented a vicar not favourable to the Oxford Movement and members of congregation set about raising the money to found a mission church in Kilburn more suitable to their religious preferences.

An application to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for what was to be the site of St Augustine’s was made in 1867. It was proposed to create the parish from a sub-division of the parishes of St Mary’s, Kilburn; St Mark’s, St Marylebone; and St Saviour’s, Paddington. However, there was an objection made by the incumbents of these parishes, and by the incumbent of Holy Trinity, Kilburn. Nevertheless, those proposing the new church proved extremely effective in raising the funds necessary for their project, and the boundaries of the proposed parish were redrawn, so that in July of 1869 approval was given for the new church. Richard Carr Kirkpatrick was licensed to the parish in March of 1870 and an iron church was erected on the site for use whilst the construction of the building proper took place.

The building work for the church was undertaken by Colls and Sons of Moorgate Street. Reflecting its size and splendour, the building proper would not be complete until 1878 and was consecrated in February 1880 by the Bishop of London. The spire of the church, one of the tallest in London, would not be completed until 1898.

Rev. Richard Carr Kirkpatrick retired from his ministry in 1907, at the age of 85. His funeral, nearly ten years later in 1916, was attended by the M.P. Leicester Harmsworth, marking the relationship between the church and the Harmsworth family. The Harmsworths had moved from Dublin to one of the Villas on the Heath, Hampstead in 1870, and as well as Leicester, the family included the future Viscount Northcliffe and Viscount Rothermere. The ennoblement of these two brothers was partly as a consequence of their success in the publishing world, which included the launch the Daily Mail in 1896. Their mother, Geraldine, worshiped at the church and commissioned a plaque in the church commemorating Richard Carr Kirkpatrick following his death.

In 1918 the church building suffered from an enemy bombing raid, which is said to have demolished the Carlton Tavern, which was sited on Carlton Vale, just south of the church. The architect’s report of 1921 drew attention to damage the air raid had caused, and to settlement of the building that had taken place on completion of the tower in 1898, which had caused cracks to appear in the west wall and the groining. This had necessitated patch repair at the time and marked the beginning of a long period of fundraising and repair, with the churchwarden writing in the section marked “Last Repairs” on an application for grant aid in 1922 with the words “it is always under repair”.

In return for the small amount of funding the church had received towards its repairs from the Incorporated Church Building Society in 1922, they had agreed to have an annual collection for the Society. The funding received from the ICBS at this time contributed £300 towards a £1,800 project with the congregation supplying the balance. Building work in 1921 and 1922 depleted the fabric fund which had been set up by the vicar and churchwardens ten years before, although some money was found to replace the heating system in 1924.

Further problems were reported in 1926 with external stone work having come loose, which again necessitated emergency repairs. The building would continue to require repair work throughout the nineteen thirties, with money coming from the parish and various other sources, including the ICBS who would be called upon again in 1937 for funds. An architect’s report in this year found defective stonework, defective brickwork, repair and renewal necessary for the roofs, and problems with the flooring. An appeal was launched with the goal of raising £20,000, with a group of artists and architects, including Edwin Lutyens and Giles Gilbert Scott, writing to the Times in support. The repair work was carried out by Dove Bros of Islington, under the supervision of the architects Caroe and Passmore and appears to have been completed by 1940.

In 1951 the building was added to the statutory list of buildings of special historic or architectural interest. In 1956 the church benefitted from works to the heating and replacement fencing. The church again required money for repair works in 1965 and launched a successful appeal for £10,000 with a note in the Times in July that year. From 1974 to 1978 the building played host to at least one concert a year as part of the Proms, taking advantage of the excellent acoustics that the building offers. St Augustine’s has also been a successful location for films and for television over the past thirty years. In 2010 St Augustine’s was the recipient of funding from English Heritage towards repairs which included re-slating the south aisle roof.

The building is very large for a parish church. The style of the church is Early English in architectural terms, although its design is influenced by St Etienne, Caens and Albi Cathedral. It is built predominantly of red brick, including the buttressing, but has Bath stone dressings. The church consists of aisled naves, chancel, transepts, two chapels, two porches, and ancillary rooms. It is remarkable for its size, its height and its spires.

The east end of the church was the first part to be constructed, with work taking place in 1871 and 1872. Externally, the east wall of the chancel is divided by four string courses. Above the first string course there is an unadorned wall arcade which provides the setting for a row of windows. The second string course has three large lancet windows above, divided by the buttresses. The third string course repeats the pattern of windows but on a larger scale. This second set of lancets forms a trinity window with the central light rising higher than those which flank it. Above the two buttresses on the east wall are two roundels with quatrefoil niches in each of which is set the statue of an angel. At the top of the chancel wall is niche into which is set the figure of St Augustine, shown with a crosier and wearing a mitre. The gable end of the chancel carries a cross shaped finial.

On the north and south sides of the chancel are three windows extending from a little below the eaves line and through the line of the string course. Below these on the north side is a vestry. The vestry has a slate covered roof with a gabled end and a four-centred arch window on the east wall. On the south side at the east end is an apsidal chapel which is buttressed and has one large window divided into three lancets on the south side and a row of lancet windows above the string course of the apse.

The chancel is flanked by two turrets, each in five stages. The turrets are buttressed, with the buttresses rising to the fourth stage. On the fourth stage of each turret is a single lancet window on the east wall. The fifth stage of the turrets have wall arcades running along each of its sides. The turrets are capped with spires set on corbel tables which run around the perimeter.  The spires each carry cross shaped finials.

The transept on the north side has three buttresses, with the central buttress taller than the one at each side. The central buttress divides two equilateral-arched windows which have plate tracery in the arrangement of two lancets with a quatrefoil above. Above the lancets is one quatrefoil roundel window. On the roof line at the gable end there is a cross shaped finial. The transept on the south side has two angle-buttresses at each side and a central buttress of the same height. There are two drop arched windows, each with plate tracery forming three lancet shapes, with the central light taller than those which flank it. Above the two windows is a lancet window with stone lintel and stone cill. Above the transepts is an open work turret which is capped by a tall clad broached spire that carries a cross shaped finial and a weathervane.

The western part of the church was built between 1876 and 1878. The nave and aisles on both the north and south sides have three tall lancet windows forming a clerestory above the slate roofs of the aisles. Each lancet has a hood mould that rests on two corbels at either end. The aisles have a line of lancet windows above a string course. The windows have bath stone dressing and the line is broken up by buttresses.

At the west end, above the first string course, there are two blind arcades consisting of drop arches carried on engaged columns. These are in two groups of three divided by a central buttress which extends above the arcade to the eaves of a slate roof. This projects from below a row of drop arched windows set in a wall arcade. Above this arcade is a large rose window set in a single drop arch. Above the rose window is a lancet window with stone dressings. On the roofline at the gable end is a cross finial in stone.

The west end is flanked by two turrets very similar to those at the east end. However, the buttresses on the west side of the turrets rise only as high as the eave line of the roof which projects from the west wall. There is a lancet window above the string course on the second stage of the turrets and an arrowslit window further up, with another just below the string course which separates the second and third stages. On the third stage there is a quatrefoil roundel below the string course before the final stage. As with the east end, the fifth stage has wall arcades which are lancet shaped running along each of its sides. The turrets are capped with spires set on corbel tables which run around the perimeter.  The spires both carry cross shaped finials

The turret at the north side of the west end has a stair tower which is apsidal. However, at the top of the turret the roof is only partly engaged and gives the appearance of being conical.  Below the line of the eaves is a row of arrowslit windows with stone dressings.

The porch at the north side of the west end has clasping buttresses which rise slightly above the second string course. The doorway of the porch has three engaged columns on each side with which carry a compound arch of three orders with dog-toothing on the first and third. The hood mould of the arch is two straight lines and is unadorned. Above the doorway is a corbel table below a wall arcade of trefoil arches. Along the arcade is a row of plinths all empty except the central one which supports a statue of John the Evangelist. Above the arcade is a rose window. On the west side of the porch is a wall arcade of drop arches with large blind roundels in the centre above lancets these lancets are set in a wall arcade of drop arches. On the roofline at the gable end there is a cross shaped finial.

The tower is in five stages with shallow buttressing running up the north side to the fourth stage. There is a stair tower at the west end of the tower. The stair tower has four lancet windows in the second stage, each with Bath stone cills. Above the string course of the second stage of the stair tower is another lancet window with a stone dressings. Above the string course of the third stage of the stair tower are three lancet windows on Bath stone cills, with the central window taller than those which flank it. Each window on this stage has a Bath stone lintel. The stair tower has a steep pitched roof with a slate covering.

At the foot of tower at the west end is a porch that forms the main entrance of the church. The doorway of the porch has four engaged columns on each side with capitals which carry a compound arch of four orders with dog-toothing on the second order and zig-zagging in relief on the fourth.  There is also a dog-tooth pattern on the hood mould of the doorway, which itself is supported by a corbel on each side. Above the arch is a relief of three angels. The central figure in this group is holding a chalice and is flanked by two angels swinging censers. The door-case provides a fifth order engaged columns supporting a Tudor arch above a course of corbels. Above the door is a tympanum depicting Christ in Majesty holding a Globus Cruciger (cross-bearing globe), surrounded by the symbols of the Four Evangelists (Matthew the winged man, Mark the winged lion, Luke the winged ox and John the eagle). Each is shown carrying a book in order to symbolise their Gospel. The porch carries a cross shaped finial above the gable end.

On the north side of the second stage of the tower is an unornamented wall arcade made up of four arches. Two lancet windows are set in the central arches that are three-centred in shape, whilst the outer two arches are lancet shaped and blind. The third stage of the tower has one lancet window on the west end and a clock. On the north side there are two lancet windows divided by the middle buttress. The fourth stage of the tower has two lancet windows with Y-shaped tracery. The windows are surrounded by compound arches of two orders forming a wall arcade. The fifth stage of the tower has two unglazed lancet windows on each side each with Y-shaped tracery. The windows are again formed of compound arches this time of three orders forming a wall arcade. Above the lancets are three small rose windows, the central window of these is slightly larger than the other two. Above the rose windows on each side is a corbel table which stops short of the corners of the tower. The tower is topped with a soaring broach spire in Bath stone.

The Spire was the final part of the building to be completed, being added between 1897 and 1898. The spire has with four gabled lucarnes and there are four spirelets rising from each corner of the tower. The spirelets rest on corbel tables which run along the perimeters of the towers which carry them. The spire design was inspired by the spires of the thirteenth century Cathedral of St Etienne, Caen. This design was the model for many other spires the architect designed, but one of a very small number which were ever part of the completed structure. The spire carries a cross shaped finial.

The decoration in the church follows the books of the Bible from Creation at the west window to the Resurrection of Christ at the east window.

The church is richly ornamented through-out with the stained glass in the church by Clayton and Bell, as are the wall paintings. The west window shows scenes from the early books of the Old Testament. The inner circle of the window shows the figure of our Lord surrounded by windows depicting the creation of the heavenly bodies, the green herbs, the fishes and the birds and beasts. In the trefoils are the sun, moon, the planets and a comet. Below the rose window are five windows of stained glass depicting Biblical patriarchs set behind a shallow triforium. These windows depict Abraham entertaining the three angels; Isaac blessing Jacob; Melchizedek receiving tithes from Abraham; Moses at the burning bush; and Aaron with his rod budding as it produces ripe almonds. Below these windows is an arcade which fronts a triforium or gallery. The lower level of these is enclosed and on the wall panel of each bay is a wall painting of prophets from the Old Testament. In the spandrels below the gallery walls are depictions of angels in the Garden of Eden in relief. In a niche between the two spandrels is a statue of John the Baptist carrying a lamb and holding a staff.  The west wall on the west wall are windows depicting Adam and Eve after the fall. Eve is on the north side, Adam is on the south side.

In front of the arcade supporting the gallery on the west wall and placed beneath the statue of John the Baptist is the font, which is in coloured marble and shows scenes of biblical baptisms. The font is on a raised platform with steps and rails on three sides. The font cover has a carving of the Dove of the Holy Spirit. The floor space below the font is marked out by an arrangement of black and red tiles.

The nave is not pewed and has a floor predominantly of red tiles, with black tiles used to create borders to the seating area. The nave is vaulted and surrounded by an arcade of seven bays on each side lengthways. The arcades support the triforium which runs into through the transepts and the chancel. On the spandrels above the arches of the arcade are depictions of scenes from the life of Christ each with a passage from the Gospels for the scene they represent. In front of the nave on the north side is a pulpit with alabaster panels representing preachers on either side of our Lord. In front of the nave on the south side is an eagle lectern.

Between the nave and the aisles is an ambulatory, which also is predominantly of red tiles, with the borders delineated by black ones. The ambulatory is vaulted and formed of a double arcade which supports the triforium. Set behind the triforium, above the arcades, are clerestory windows which alternate between clear and stained glass. The stained glass in the clerestory each depict figures of angels. Each of the aisles have a row of twelve windows with stained glass depicting English saints. On the north side are female saints and on the south side are male ones.

There is a lady chapel in the north transept with artwork dedicated to the sacred infancy of our Lord. This includes three frescoes by Alfred C. Weatherstone. On the west wall is the Annunciation, on the north wall are the scenes of the Nativity and the Visit of the Magi. On the east wall is an altar. The altar has a reredos by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott depicting the Presentation in the Temple.

In the south transept is a chapel dedicated to St Michael, which originally acted as a Chapel of the Reserved Sacrament. This chapel is richly ornamented along two themes. One of these is the description of heaven contained in the Book of Revelations. This is seen around the wall of the apse with the four and twenty elders described by St John depicted in relief and set in a wall arcade. The reredos depicts Christ in Majesty with angels at his side. The windows of the apse are also filled with stained glass, again depicting angels. The second theme of the chapel draws parallels between events described in the Old Testament, such as Melchizedek bringing bread and wine before blessing Abram, and Abraham offering his son Isaac for sacrifice, which are depicted in the transept, and events from the life of Christ, such as the Miracle at Cana and the feeding of the five thousand which are displayed in paintings in the chapel. The south window shows Christ on the Cross and the Last Supper.  There are sedilia on the south side of the apse, which are arcaded and richly ornamented.

The rood screen found between the nave and the chancel was designed by the architect S.J. Nicholl and placed in the church in 1890. It is made up of an arcade of five bays and is richly ornamented.  Surmounted on the screen is a large crucifix. On either side of the crucifix are statues of saints associated with the Passion and with Christ’s burial. Below these statues are scenes from the Passion in relief and statues of martyrs in niches above each column of the arcade. The spandrel has a floral pattern in relief with quatrefoil niches into which more scenes of the Passion are carved in relief. In front of the rood screen is a flight of three steps which is centrally placed and leads from the nave up to the chancel.

The chancel has arcading on all sides, continuing the style of the rood screen. The chancel is rich in statuary and continues the story of the Passion and the Resurrection in the spandrel carvings. The reredos is also by S.J. Nicholl and continues this theme, with the Crucifixion in the central panel. Beneath the altar and covered by a frontal are carvings of scenes from the Nativity, the Crucifixion, and the Entombment.  On the east wall in the quatrefoils on either side of the reredos are scenes from the Annunciation. In the niches in the pinnacles of the reredos are the four Evangelists, with scenes of Holy Sacrifice in the Old Testament shown below. The east window contains six lights in two tiers, with the lower tier set into an arcade. The lower tier of stained glass shows scenes from the life of St Augustine, from Pope Gregory’s encounter with Anglo-Saxon slaves to the deaths of King Ethelbert, Queen Bertha and St Augustine himself. The upper tier shows scenes from the life of Christ from the annunciation to the Ascension. The north wall of the chancel contains the organ loft. This is decorated with a statue of St Cecilia with reliefs of angels playing instruments below. In the quatrefoils in the arcade are statues of four of the archangels. In niches above the spandrels are statues of thirteen saints. On the south wall of the chancel, in the same position, are another row of thirteen saints. The quatrefoils on the south side show the cardinal virtues.  The floor is in marble as are the steps up to the high altar. There are choir stalls facing north and south just behind the rood screen.