St Peter's Church, Cambridge
The Church of St Peter is a redundant Church of England (Anglican) church in Cambridge, in the Parish of the Ascension of the Diocese of Ely, located on Castle Street between Honey Hill and Kettle's Yard.
Former county archaeologist Alison Taylor speculates that due to its location, across the Roman road from St Giles' Church, it may have its origins in the Anglo-Saxon period but confirms that no evidence of the church prior to the Norman period has currently been discovered.[1]
The church has been known as "St Peter by the Castle" or "Beyond the Bridge". The present structure is the remnant of one that went back to the 12th century, with a nave, chancel, south aisle, and west tower and spire. Under the Tudor monarchy, the advowson came to the Crown, and Elizabeth I granted it to the See of Ely. In 1650 the town commissioners found that the parish had neither parsonage nor vicarage, and recommended that St Peter's should be united with St Giles'. It has been annexed to the vicarage of St Giles for several hundred years.[2]
St Peter's is now a single-cell church with a west tower and an octagonal 14th-century spire with dormers. Construction is of stone rubble with pebble for the tower and ashlar for the spire. The church was rebuilt on a reduced scale in 1781, although there are several surviving medieval details. It has a 13th-century south doorway, and a 12th-century font, decorated with mermen at the angles.[3]
The church is now in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.[4]
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12th century baptismal font -
Stained glass -
Saint Peter's keys -
Memorial stone to Jim Ede, the founder of Kettle's Yard, who helped to preserve the church
See also
References
- ^ Taylor, Alison (1999), "Cemeteries and Re-Growth: The Anglo-Saxon Period", Cambridge: The Hidden History, Tempus, ISBN 9780752414362
- ^ St Peter's church, Cambridge BHO, The city of Cambridge: Churches
- ^ Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland
- ^ CCT webpage
External links
- St Peter's Church at the Churches Conservation Trust website
- St Peter's Church, Cambridgeshire Churches Site
- CCT information for teachers
- Church at Castle parish
- 'The city of Cambridge: Churches', A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 3: The City and University of Cambridge (1959)
52°12′39.8″N 0°6′50″E / 52.211056°N 0.11389°E
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