Description

ROYAL LEAMINGTON SPA

SP3266SW LEICESTER STREET
1208-1/4/243 (South side)
Church of St Paul

GV II

Church. 1873-84 with later additions and alterations including
those of c1980. By John Cundall of Leamington. Reddish-brown
brick with purple brick and ashlar dressings and cement-tile
roof.
STYLE: Gothic Revival, Early English.
PLAN: 4-bay nave with clerestory and aisles, 3-stage north
tower and steeple to second bay, north and south transepts,
2-bay chancel with south chapel, vestry and church rooms and
north office and youth rooms. North side of church faces
street with entrance to north side.
EXTERIOR: double-chamfered plinth. Nave has buttresses with
off-sets and pinnacles between bays; 3 cusped lancets to each
bay with continuous chamfered sill band and continuous
hoodmould. Clerestory has pair of 2-light windows with plate
tracery to each bay and continuous hoodmould, modillion
cornice.
Tower: clasping buttresses with off-sets to 2 stages; entrance
to first stage, double plank doors in Caernarvon arched
surround within solid pointed-arched gable with three orders
of shafts with foliate capitals and roll-moulding above; stair
turret to west to lower stage; first-stage band; to second
stage are 2 slit lancets to north; second-stage band; 2-light
tall belfry windows to each side with 2 orders of arches on
slender columns with hoodmoulds; band with trefoil decoration;
steeple has further gabled belfry openings to base.
West end: plate-glass double doors in C20 extension give
access to corridor and west end, west end has a pointed-arched
opening with hoodmould; above a 5-light window with
geometrical-type tracery to head.
Transepts: to north a plank door in double-chamfered,
pointed-arched surround, with quatrefoil to arch; to both ends
a circular window with geometrical-type tracery, band to
gable; to north transept, east side a steeple. East end has
5-light window with geometrical-type tracery to head, bands
and quatrefoil to gable.
INTERIOR: one and a half bays to west end of nave have balcony
and, with aisles, are partitioned-off below to form church
rooms. Pointed-arched, double-chamfered arcade with inner
order of roll-moulding on red granite columns with
water-holding bases and foliate capitals, gault brick arches

above and continuous hoodmould. Windows have chamfered
surrounds; clerestory windows have single order of shafts with
roll-moulding to head.
Nave has scissor-braced roof. Transepts have pierced
balconies, the area below which is now partly blocked to form
church rooms, vestry etc.; crossing has tall, wide
double-chamfered arches on square piers with inner order of
roll-moulding on corbel capitals.
Chancel: aisle to north formerly contained organ, with
pointed-arched opening, now blocked; to south the Lady chapel
has pierced screen; to east end a 7-bay wall arcade has
slender shafts and roll-moulding to head; hammer-beam roof.
Stone pulpit has column clusters below and column shafts with
foliate capitals to body. Similar, lower lectern.
Some stained glass.
Inscription to foundation stone at base of north transept: 'TO
THE GLORY OF GOD / THIS FOUNDATION STONE OF/ S. PAUL'S CHURCH
WAS LAID BY / WILLIAM WILLES ESQ.RE 15TH MAY 1873'.
HISTORICAL NOTE: John Cundall was also architect of Leamington
Spa Town Hall, Parade (qv).
Forms an interesting architectural group with St Paul's
Parochial Rooms and Church House (qv).
(The Buildings of England: Pevsner N and Wedgwood A:
Warwickshire: Harmondsworth: 1966-1990: 334).

Listing NGR: SP3225166296

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• St. Paul's Church, Leamington Spa at Wikipedia
• St. Paul's Church, Leamington Spa official website
• Wikidata Q7591047

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy
• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  A Buying and Owning a Listed Building: A Brief Guide
• 
  Churches: An Architectural Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  Bristol (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)
• 
  Huddersfield in 50 Buildings