St Michael & All Angels - Lowfield Heath, Crawley, UK
N 51° 08.760 W 000° 10.796
30U E 697244 N 5669842
A church close to the main runway at Gatwick Airport near Crawley.
Waymark Code: WMEXPA
Location: Southern England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 07/19/2012
Views: 6
The church's website (visit
link) tells us:
"The church's foundation stone was laid on 15th July
1867 and the church was consecrated on 1st December 1868. In the beginning
Lowfield Heath was part of Charlwood Parish of the church of England and in the
dioceses of Winchester, Rochester, Southwalk and finally Chichester in 1959 when
St Michael was joined to Crawley. The church was built on the land previously
used as a duck pond and a damson orchard, given by Mr William Dalton who was a
corn merchant in the village and Mr Joseph Montefiore. The building cost £2, 000
plus legal fees. The stone came from a quarry in St. Leonard's forest near
Horsham. The architect was Mr Wiliam Burgess who was also the architect of Truro
& Cardiff Cathedrals and Cardiff Castle. St. Michael's was the only small
church he designed in the country."
The church is a Grade II* listed building and the entry at
the English Heritage website (visit link) tells us:
"Built
in 1867. Architect William Burges. Style is Early C13 French Gothic. Cnancel,
north vestry, nave, western narthex and south-west tower, surmounted by
pyramidal timber spire covered in oak shingles. Walls of undressed local stone
laid in thin regular courses. Bath stone used for dressings. Plate tracery in
wide windows of Nave, the west window a large wheel window with sculpture
representing the Four Ages of Man, St Michael and the Dragon carved over west
doorway. Timber narthex resting on stone plinth and having tiled lean-to roof.
Nave and chancel have steeply pitched roofs covered with fishscale tiles.
Internally the roofs are of pine, of 2 centred arch form, pointed, boarded in,
with tie beams and tall king posts."