CULT

Since S.Charles’s martyrdom numerous churches and altars throughout the Anglican Communion have dedicated in his honour. On this page we list many of these churches and chapels, a testament to the continuing cult of S.Charles. Some of these churches and chapels in the list include a link: click on the link to see the description and/or photo of the church included on this page or use the pull-down menu above.

Churches and Chapels of S.Charles, King and Martyr

England

17th Century
• Falmouth, Cornwall
• Newton-in-Wem, Shropshire
• Peak Forest, Derbyshire
• Plymouth, Devon
• Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
• Shelland, Suffolk

18th Century
• Canterbury Cathedral, large devotional painting, north aisle of the choir

20th Century
• Belchamp St. Paul, Sudbury, Suffolk, Licensed Chapel, The Vicarage
• Carisbrooke Castle, Isle of Wight, Chapel of S.Nicholas, Restored as Memorial Chapel of King Charles the Martyr
• City of London, Chapel, S.Catherine Cree
• Digswell, Herts, Chapel, Harmer Green Parish
• Guildford, Surrey, Chapel, Guildford Cathedral
• Headington, Oxford, Chapel, S.Mary’s
• London, Chapel, S.Mary-le-Stand
• South Mymms, Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, Parish Church
• Tollerton, Alne, Yorkshire
• Whitchurch, Bucks, Private Chapel, Hurdlesgrove House
• Youlgreave, Chapel, Youlgreave Parish Church

21st Century
• London, Chapel, S.Bartholomew on Stamford Hill

Ireland

17th Century
• Chapel of the Royal Hospital, Kilmainham, Dublin

18th Century
• Hollymount, Co. Mayo

Scotland

20th Century
• Chapel, S.Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh

Australia

20th Century
• Bullfinch, Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
• North Nollamara, Western Australia
• West Mackay, Queensland

South Africa

20th Century
• Kruisrivier, Keidelberg, Cape Province

Tangiers

1662-1682
• British Garrison Church

United States of America

20th Century
• Bridal Veil, Oregon
• Colton, Chicago, Illinois, Chapel, Zion Episcopal Church
• Columbia, Mississippi
• Daringerfield, Texas.
• Fairburg, Nebraska
• Fort Morgan, Colorado
• Huntsville, Alabama
• La Verne, Oklahoma
• St. Charles, Illinois
• Waupun, Wisconsin, Church of the Blessed Trinity
• Chapel, St. Charles of England

Japan

20th Century
• St. Charles-by-the-Sea, Wakkanai
• U.S.A. Air Force Chapel

Descriptions of Some of the Churches

England

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Falmouth, Cornwall

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Falmouth, Cornwall

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Falmouth, Cornwall

It was from Pendennis Castle near Falmouth that Queen Henrietta Maria fled into exile and at the end of the war, with the King already a prisoner, that the future King Charles II also set sail for the continent from Falmouth.

Before he left Prince Charles declared that he would build in that place, ‘a chapel for public worship…and when the wars ceased, to send an able and conscientious chaplain to preach
God’s word therein.’

Soon after the Restoration a local Churchman, Sir Peter Killigrew gave land for a new church and by petitioning in London, ‘received much help… through the generosity of
Charles II and the Duke of York’. The church was consecrated under the title of King Charles the Martyr in 1665.

The building, although altered many times since, still has the appearance of a classical Wren style church. Of particular note in the church is a painting of S.Charles attributed to Sir Peter

Lely and given in the early twentieth-century ‘by a few admirers of the many virtues of His Most Sacred Majesty’. The church is open daily.

Link to Web-site: www.btinternet.com/~kcm/

The Parish Church of Charles King & Martyr Church, Peak Forest, Derbyshire

The Parish Church of Charles King & Martyr Church, Peak Forest, Derbyshire

The Parish Church of Charles King & Martyr Church, Peak Forest, Derbyshire

During the interregnum and the rule of Cromwell the Countess of Devonshire made her act of defiance by building a church dedicated to the Royal Martyr. The work was completed in 1657.

In the nineteenth-century the small classical building was found to be too modest for the needs of the parish. A new church was built in 1878 in the Victorian Gothic style. The original classical porch and Venetian-style east window were reused in the village
Reading Room.

In the south aisle there is a stained glass window of S.Charles.

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Newtown, Shropshire.

Like many of the other King Charles churches, Newtown church was dedicated to the Royal Martyr soon after the Restoration, in 1665. The neighbouring village of Wem had supported the puritan Cromwellians and the inhabitants of Newtown wished to
demonstrate their support for the Church.

The original church was rebuilt in 1868 in the Early English Style.

The Parish Church of King Charles with S.Matthias, Plymouth, Devon

The Parish Church of King Charles with S.Matthias, Plymouth, Devon

The Parish of King Charles with S.Matthias, Plymouth, Devon

Until the seventeenth-century the town of Plymouth was served

by one church only, S.Andrew. In 1634 the Mayor petitioned King Charles for permission to create a new parish; this was granted and work began in 1641. When the new church was
eventually consecrated in 1665 it was dedicated to King Charles the Martyr (being known locally as Charles Church).

Its most famous vicar was Robert Hawker, known as the Star of the West for his evangelical preaching. The church is also well
known as it was responsible for pioneering the Sunday School movement.

In March 1941 the church was reduced to a shell during the enemy blitz of the city. This devastation caused by the enemy can still be seen today and in the photo to the right.

The roofless walls of the building serve as a war memorial to the civilian war casualties of the city and the church is only occasionally used for worship.

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent

The town of Royal Tunbridge Wells developed after the discovery in 1606 of spring waters with curative properties.

Queen Henrietta Maria took the waters in 1630 after the birth of Prince Charles and as was the case with Charles II, the King and his court were frequent visitors to the town.

The church was built at first as a chapel in 1678 (not being raised to parish church status until 1889) and was further enlarged and beautified in 1682 and 1696. The glory of the
interior is the ornate plaster ceiling, the work of John Wetherell and Henry Doogood. It is of a quality rarely seen outside London.

It is suggested that the chapel received its dedication to off set near-by Puritan conventicles. The church is open Monday-Saturday, 11am-3pm.

Web-site: www.kcmtw.org

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Shelland, Suffolk

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Shelland, Suffolk

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Shelland, Suffolk

The church of 1330 was rebuilt in 1646 by the local landowner, Thomas Cropley and soon after dedicated to King Charles the Martyr, a courageous act during the Commonwealth.

The present church was re-built in 1767 and has a fascinating and unspoilt eighteenth-century interior. The church is open daily.

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr ,
Potters Bar, Hertfordshire.

The parish was formed in 1937 in a new suburban development and the church was completed and dedicated in 1941 under the patronage of King Charles the Martyr. It is therefore an unusual wartime building. The church contains a good votive image of S.Charles and a handsome parish banner.

The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, Guildford Cathedral

The Chapel of King Charles the Martyr in Guildford Cathedral

Guildford Cathedral, Guildford, Surrey

The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regiment, whose original garrison church was of the same dedication and located in Tangiers (and built in 1661), uses the chapel.

The present chapel was consecrated as the Chapel of King Charles the Martyr in 1959.

U.S.A.

Parish Of Saint Charles, King And Martyr, Huntsville, Alabama

Anglican Province of Christ the King,

Diocese of the Southern States