All Saints, Westbrook, Margate, Kent

All Saints, Westbrook, Margate Church

Image Source: Rob Baker

All Saints was built between 1892-94 to cater for the new and prosperous suburb of Westbrook. The land was donated by the owner of the Hartsdown Park Estate, Captain C.T. (Charles Taddy) Hatfeild.Between 1882 and 1894 the Westbrook Anglican congregation had worshipped in a small Mission Church administered by the curate of Margate's Parish Church of St. John's. This was a building originally built as a Primitive Methodist Chapel and since 1964 has been home to St. Michael's Greek Orthodox Church.The new church was designed in late 13th century Gothic style by local architect Thomas Andrews and originally consisted of a nave and chancel with parallel aisles to the north and south; a south transept (now used as an organ chamber) and a north porch. Its most notable architectural feature is the imposing south west tower consisting of slender buttresses rising up to a battlemented parapet topped with a small pyramid roof.This was added in the early 20th century and has completely transformed what could have been considered a very unremarkable late Victorian church.The lower stages, including a first floor choir vestry, were designed by E.S. (Edward Schroeder) Prior in 1897.The upper part of the tower was completed between 1907 and 1909 by W.D. (William Douglas) Caröe.It is a real tour de force and even today is a striking local landmark that can be seen on the western approach into Margate. The modern weatherboarded wooden vestry to the north of the chancel was added in 1978. There is some excellent stained-glass in the church; all installed between 1895 and 1931 and mostly the workmanship of two artists: G.J. Hunt and Percy Bacon. In addition to the Nativity window above the High Altar and the Te Deum window at the west end, both north and south aisles have paired lancet windows dedicated to several local saints. The six north windows by Bacon feature female characters: Queen Bertha, St. Ethelburga, St. Sexburga, St. Eanswith and the mother and daughter St. Domneva and St. Mildred, the Founder and the Abbess of Minister Abbey. Each individual face is beautifully detailed, as if the artist depicted people known to him. The eight south aisle windows by Hunt depict seven canonised Archbishops of Canterbury: St. Augustine, St. Thomas Becket, St. Alphege, St. Anselm, St. Dunstan, St. Brihtwald and St. Theodore; and St. Adrian, Abbot of the Monastery of St. Peter & St. Paul in Canterbury (now known as St. Augustine's Abbey).s with the north aisle windows, these also have such intricately expressive faces.High up in the clerestory on the north of the nave is a window in memory of C.T. Hadfeild's wife, Maud, who became Margate's first female Mayor in the 1920s before her death in 1931. Ss. Andrew and Thomas are the saints depicted in a church appropriately named All Saints.In the 1930s the church became more Anglo-Catholic in its churchmanship. Incense was introduced in 1932 in response to a Petition of parishioners and in 1933 the statues of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the Infant Christ and The Sacred Heart were installed.The Hanging Rood over the sanctuary was put in place in 1948 in memory of Canon H.L. (Harry Lovett) Hubbard, Vicar from 1921-41.Unlike many other Victorian-era churches that are in the process of replacing wooden benches with modern seating, All Saints has had individual wooden chairs since its consecration in 1894. Text by Rob Baker

1851 Census Details

Seating Capacity: Not built

Morning Attendance: Not built

Afternoon Attendance: Not built

Evening Attendance: Not built

Architecture Details

Original Build Date/Architect: 1892

Restoration: -

Second Restoration: -

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