Christchurch Gardens
Directions
Go into Christchurch Gardens behind the Rose & Crown pub.
Description
The church was built in 1671 and re-built in 1738-41 with money bequeathed by John Marshall. The churchyard was extended in 1738 and again in 1817 when adjoining cottages were demolished. It closed to burials in 1856. In 1890-91 a Romanesque chancel was added but the church was destroyed by bombing on 17 April 1941. The place where the burning cross fell into the churchyard scorching the ground is marked with stones set into the grass. In 1960 a new church was opened, designed by R. Paxton Watson and B. Costin and now the headquarters of the South London Industrial Mission Centre. Stained glass in the church depicts Southwark industries. In 1900 the churchyard opened as a public garden, laid out by the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association and maintained by St Saviour's District Board of Works. A drinking fountain was donated by John Passmore Edwards. The garden was renovated to designs by Marcus Beale Architects in 2000 (see plaque). It is one of a number of gardens in the area maintained by the Bankside Open Spaces Trust (BOST). See also www.christchurchsouthwark.org.uk.
Further information on LGT Inventory