St Giles in the Fields
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St. Giles in the Fields is a church in the Borough of Camden, in the heart of London's West End. It can be found nestling under the shadow of the 1960's Centrepoint skyscraper, only a minute's walk from Tottenham Court Road tube station. This is perhaps a little ironic, given that St. Giles was a 7th century saint, who spent most of his life seeking solitude and contemplation.
The first recorded church on this site was attached to a monastery and leper hospital, founded by Queen Matilda - wife of Henry I. At that time, it would have lain well outside the boundaries of the city of London, though on the main road to Tyburn and Oxford beyond. The associated monastery was dissolved during the reign of Henry VIII, but the chapel survived as a local parish church, and in 1547 the first rector was appointed and the phrase 'in the fields' added to the church's name.
Between 1623-1630, a new church was built on the site, replacing its now ruinous mediaeval predecessor. This building survived less than a hundred years, but did preside over two of the more notorious episodes in the life of the church. These were the burials of the Catholic martyrs denounced by Titus Oates as 'Popish' plotters, and the deaths within the parish of the first victims of the 1665 Great plague. In fact, by the end of the Great Plague year there were 3216 listed plague deaths in the parish of St Giles, which is particularly extraordinary, given that there were less than 2000 households listed at the time.
The number of plague burials was one of the likely reasons for the decline in the fabric of the church, and between 1730 and 1734 a new church was built in the Palladian style, designed by the architect Henry Flitcroft. This is the church that can be seen today, with the original Architect's model sitting at the altar end of the North transept. As well as being notable for its early and beautiful Palladian architecture, the church is home to other notable features, including memorials to Chapman (translator of Homer), and Andrew Marvell. In fact, the connections with writers have led to the epithet of 'The Poets' Church', and the Poetry Society hold its AGM in the vestry house. Other remarkable features include a wooden pulpit used by Wesley, and two paintings on either side of the altar by Francisco Vieira the Younger, court painter to the King of Portugal. A large throne at the top of the stairs to the balcony intriguingly boasts the legend 'Che sara, sara'. At the back of the balcony is the organ, rebuilt in the new church by Gerard Smith the younger by recycling a good deal of the pipework from the organ of 1678 built by George Dallam (rebuilt in 1699 by Christian Smith). There was a major restoration in 1856, and another large restoration in 2006 by William Drake. It is an important and imposing instrument.
The slightly seedy nature of St. Giles High Street is a reminder of the parish's disreputable history. Even during the reign of Henry V, it was the site chosen by the Lollard Sir John Oldcastle for his raising of an abortive rebellion, and then the site of his subsequent execution. Later acts of rebellion were on a more personal scale, as the nearby Seven Dials district became a centre for prostitution, and was a haven for petty criminals. The dissolute nature of the area is evocatively captured in Dickens' Sketches by Boz. St. Giles also gained notoriety as the last stop on the route to the Tyburn gallows. The priests of the parish would apparently pay for the condemned to have a final drink of ale as they faced the grim trip down Oxford Street.
[edit] References
- ^ Victoria and Albert Museum - although some sources claim the church shown in the background was in Greek Street
