The Saxon Church of St Peter and St Paul
The approach to the redundant church of St Peter and St Paul is through
the grounds of Albury Park. The building dates from Saxon and Norman times.
The interior is uncluttered and light with a flagstone floor. The door
dates from the 13th century, a well-preserved painting of St Christopher dates from the 15th,
and there is a brass of John Weston who died in 1440.
Henry Drummond
The old church of St Peter and St Paul
In 1819, Henry Drummond, the banker purchased the Albury Park estate and engaged
Augustus Pugin to convert the house to the Gothic style. He appointed
Hugh McNeile as the Rector of Albury in 1822 having heard him preach
at the Percy Chapel in London.
During the 1820's, Drummond's involvement with the Irvingites and the
foundation of the Catholic Apostolic Church in the 1830's had a
deleterious effect on the relationship between Drummond and the
Rector. In 1831, McNeile published a series of his sermons on miracles
countering many of the basic beliefs of the Catholic Apostolic faith.
Although the majority of the Albury residents had been moved away,
they still worshipped at the parish church close by the mansion.
In 1820, the seventeenth century spire was demolished
and replaced with the cupola which you now see.
Ten years later, the fabric of the church had deteriorated further
and required substantial repairs. The churchyard was almost full
and could no longer meet local needs.
Painting by Henk Huffener after an early engraving of the Saxon Church
Henry Drummond was building a new Catholic Apostolic Church on the
boundary of the Estate, and offered to close the Saxon church and
replace it with a new church in Weston Street, now Albury. Whether
the rift between Drummond and McNeile contributed to this decision must
remain a matter of conjecture.
The closure of the church
Opposition to the proposed closure of the church was led by Martin Tupper,
author of the book 'Proverbial Philosophy'. He was resident in Albury House
and by 1840, the Bishop of Winchester asked him to stop his public pleas and
refrain from writing newspaper articles against the closure of the Parish
Church. However, one source states that Bishop Sumner objected to the
change so much that he 'declined to consecrate the new building for some
time after its completion'.
The closure of the Old Church enabled Drummond to commission Pugin in
1839 to design a mortuary chapel in the South Transept.
This is lavishly decorated, with stained glass, painted walls and ceiling, a tiled floor,
a wonderful example of the Victorians’ taste for richness and colour.
He also undertook the necessary repairs. However, by the 1880's,
the roof was in such poor repair that the Rector, Robert James Dundas
requested its removal.
The Church is now maintained by the
Churches Conservation Trust
and open daily. Services
are held there at Easter, midsummer and Christmas.