Church Buildings and Spiritual Heritage in the North East
By Geoffrey Purves
An important and sometimes neglected part of the cultural heritage of Northumberland is its stock of early Christian churches. The Church of England is currently working with other Regional Bodies in an effective way to raise the profile of this history and help to put them on the ‘tourist map’. Newcastle Diocese has recently secured a grant from English Heritage of £90,000, spread over three years. The application set out a series of objectives to enhance community and visitor use of churches. It stated that “the Christian Heritage of the North East of England is one of profound importance to the evolution of English history and culture. The region’s earliest saints and scholars, Aidan, Bede and Cuthbert, set in place the spiritual, learning and cultural foundations not only for the north east but also for our national heritage.
This heritage is exemplified in the iconic state given to its major sites in Durham, Lindisfarne and the two monastic sites at Jarrow and Monkwearmouth. But the cultural inheritance spreads far wider than these sites and beyond the other Cathedrals, Abbeys and major churches in the region.
What remains of heritage importance today is both deep and wide: deeply historical from 7th century architectural evidence, stone carvings and coloured window glass, expanding dramatically to Norman and later Medieval innovations in architecture, monuments and decoration, then through the later waves of creativity, labour and social change associated with the era of industrial revolution of mining, steel manufacture and ship building. The challenge is how to care for this great inheritance, to sustain and present it well for future generations, to enable it to serve the needs of local communities and make it accessible to visitors in clear and engaging terms.”
The article by John Laidler about Leonard Evetts’ work as a stained glass artist in the last issue of City and County highlights the opportunity to develop tourist links and open up these historic places to a wider audience: the N & N Society is well placed to support and encourage this initiative and I would encourage all members to think of examples in their local community Church Buildings and Spiritual Heritage in the North East 14 where they could influence and encourage the development and protection of these historical assets.
Another example of how these ideas could be developed is illustrated by the tour in August of the Diocesan Advisory Committee (or put simply, the Church of England local Planning Authority) to look at churches in the North Tyne Valley including Thorneyburn, Humshaugh, Wark and Simonburn. These Georgian churches, designed by the architect H. H. Seward, were constructed by the commissioners of Greenwich hospital, to provide livings for Navy chaplains after the end of the Napoleonic wars. As a group of buildings they provide an interesting afternoon tourist trail. We also included in that tour a visit to Otterburn church designed by John Dobson and including some stained glass by Leonard Evetts – the cross connections are endless and we should be doing more to raise the profile of these buildings. The Northumberland and Newcastle Society could play an important role in this process.
**see also Church Walks by our Hon. Treasurer John Laidler and Peter Donaghy with a forward by Sting.
City and County
November 2009
