Chelsea, in the Olden & Present Times

by George Bryan

Consecration and other interesting particulars of St. Luke’s Church and Burial Ground—Its Monuments, &c.—Rectors, Curates, and Lecturers—Parochial National Schools, &c.—The Workhouse and the Old Burial Ground—The Origin and Condition of the King’s Road in the “Olden Times:”—Its state at the commencement of this Century, together with some notices of the New Buildings, and its thriving Trade at the present Time—Markham Square Congregational Church—Savings’ Bank—Chelsea College—Charles II. and Nell Gwynne—The Royal Military Asylum—Old Ranelagh—The Original Bunhouse—The whole interspersed with many other interesting notices of Distinguished Residents, &c.

St. Luke’s Church and the Burial Ground.

It will be necessary before we give a description of this beautiful edifice to state some particulars respecting the Burial Ground, or, more properly speaking, the Cemetery, in the centre of which the Church is erected. The Act of Parliament for providing this additional Burial Ground for the parish was passed in 1810, and certain Trustees therein named were appointed to carry it into effect. They accordingly purchased of Earl Cadogan, the Lord of the Manor, a piece of ground, in the present central situation, containing rather more than four acres, and enclosed it with a substantial wall and strong iron railing.

As I was present at the consecration of this Burial Ground, and also of the Church, a brief account of which I published at the time, the following particulars I can fully authenticate. With respect to many circumstances which I shall mention, in connexion with the Church, they may be relied upon as being accurately stated from my own personal observation.

In November, 1812, the enclosure of the spacious new Burial Ground having been in every respect completed, with a small Chapel erected close to the entrance on the north side, designed exclusively for reading the Funeral Service, on Saturday, the 21st of the above month, the same were consecrated by the Bishop of London, accompanied by his Chaplains, the Chancellor and Registrar of the Diocese, the Hon. and Rev. Dr. Wellesley, rector, the Churchwardens, Trustees, and a large number of the inhabitants.

The preliminary prayers were offered at the Old Church, and the Bishop having declared his assent to the petition presented to him for consecrating the new ground, the procession proceeded from the Church. On their arrival there was an immense assemblage to witness the consecration. The Bishop then perambulated the ground, reading such portions of the Service as is specially appointed, and afterwards completed the consecration in the Chapel.

In the year 1819, an Act of Parliament, 59 Geo. III., cap. 35, May 19, was obtained for building a new Church, and the Rector and Churchwardens, and 59 other inhabitants of the parish, were appointed to carry the same into effect. The central portion of the new Burial Ground was appropriated for this purpose, and on the 12th of October, 1820, the first stone of the new Church was laid by the Hon. and Rev. Dr. Wellesley, as proxy for his brother, the Duke of Wellington, who was prevented from performing the ceremony by receiving “the King’s commands to attend him on public business that day at his palace in Pall Mall.” Many of the vast assemblage of spectators having waited a long time for His Grace’s arrival felt somewhat disappointed, and some of them attributed his absence to the political excitement which prevailed just at that period, but this was far from being the general opinion.

A procession was at last formed in the following order:—His Royal Highness the Duke of York’s Band; the Beadles of the Parish; Mr. James Savage, the architect; the Builder, with a silver trowel on a crimson velvet cushion; the Treasurer, with a metal box and sundry coins, and a brass plate, on a velvet cushion. The Hon. and Rev. Dr. Wellesley, rector, supported by the Churchwardens; the Curates and Lecturer of the Parish, and the Trustees appointed under the Act of Parliament for building the Church.

The service used on similar occasions having been read by the Rector, the box with the coins, and the brass-plate were deposited by the Rector upon the stone prepared for the purpose, which was then lowered down and secured with the customary formalities. The inscription on the stone was as follows:—“This stone was laid on the 12th day of October, A.D., 1820, by Field Marshal His Grace the Duke of Wellington, the Hon. and Rev. Gerald Valerian Wellesley, Rector; Richard Rattenbury and Richard Mann, Churchwardens.” The day was remarkably fine, and the spectacle altogether produced a very imposing effect, notwithstanding the disappointment experienced by the absence of the Duke of Wellington. A spacious amphitheatre was erected for the accommodation of ladies, and the ceremony concluded with a beam of satisfaction on the countenances of nearly all present.

The Church is built of Bath stone, in the Gothic style of the 14th century, and is approached by a sweep carriage way and flagged footpath. The west front has an arcade, extending the whole breadth of the frontage. From the centre of this arcade rises a lofty tower, the upper part panelled and crowned with an open battlement. It is strengthened at the four corners by octagonal buttresses, which are finished by open-worked pinnacles, of a form which gives the exterior of the edifice a very picturesque appearance, and when seen at a distance is very attractive. The height from the ground to the top of the pinnacle is 142 feet, and the view from the tower on which these pinnacles rise, affords a very fine view of the parish and its surrounding scenery. From the tower, the body of the building is seen to extend, embraced and supported by its flying buttresses, which stretch their airy fronts from between the Clerestery windows to the outer wall of the side aisles, when they are continued solidly down to the ground. The walls of the side aisles and Clerestery are both finished with perforated parapets of elegant forms.