Gazing up at St Cuthbert’s Parish Church we witness a story etched in brick and stone. It is a story of faith art and resilience.
St Cuthbert’s Church stands as one of London’s grandest 19th-century churches. Hugh Roumieu Gough designed it. The church recalls monastic styles of the Middle Ages.
Construction spanned from 1884 to 1887. The church dramatically rises among Victorian terraces. It forms a group with the clergy house and Philbeach Hall.
Henry Westall oversaw the church’s interior enrichment. He served as vicar from 1883 to 1924. St Cuthbert’s was designed as a container for rich fittings.
Parishioners formed craft guilds to create interior decorations. Women played a leading role. They worked on stone and wood carvings mosaics and embroidery.
Kempe and Tute created stained glass that further enriched the interior. Some glass was lost during World War II.
The most dramatic furnishing is the reredos. Priest-architect Ernest Geldart designed it. It drew inspiration from Spanish styles. The reredos was designed in 1899 but installed in 1914.
William Bainbridge Reynolds contributed much to St Cuthbert’s. He was a talented metalwork designer. He created the clock screens altar rails and the Paschal candlestick. Sir John Betjeman described Reynolds’ lectern as Nouveau Viking.
Second World War bombs damaged St Cuthbert’s. The roof was blown off. After the war the roof was reclad in copper. The copper failed and water penetrated the interior. During the 1990s Westmorland slates were used to reroof the church.
St Cuthbert was born in 635 near Melrose in Scotland. One night he saw a vision of angels ascending to heaven. The next morning he learned of St Aidan’s death. Cuthbert became a monk and later the Prior of Lindisfarne. He became known for his piety.
St Cuthbert’s Church possesses four relics of its patron saint. A stranger offered a piece of St Cuthbert’s chasuble. A lady offered a piece of his stole. A gentleman presented fragments of St Cuthbert’s coffin. These relics are displayed on St Cuthbert’s feast days. These relics connect us to St Cuthbert himself.
The style of worship at St Cuthbert’s is Anglo-Catholic. It offers a traditional liturgy. The liturgy includes ritual choir and organ music vestments and incense.
Evening Prayer occurs daily except on Mondays.
St Cuthbert’s stands not just as a building but as a living testament. It embodies faith community and artistic expression. It suffered damage in the Second World War but was reconstructed. Its relics connect us to the past. Its art inspires today. St Cuthbert’s is a place of worship and a monument to Anglo-Catholic taste.