Designing Church of England churches between the wars: process and participation

Thesis

In the Interwar period, the Church of England built a great number of churches to serve the expanding urban suburbs. Yet, despite their proliferation, this thesis is the first to explore the contribution of these stylistically eclectic buildings to the arc of twentieth century architectural history. Contradicting the post-war Liturgical Reform Movement narrative, this thesis argues that these churches form a key part of the design timeline of the century, presenting evidence of evolutionary changes previously overlooked due to the noise of many competing opinions and the lack of a generally accepted philosophy. Focussing on the Dioceses of London and Manchester, this study demonstrates that understanding the process of design, and within that the roles played by three key groups, the Church, the people, and the architects, is vital to interpreting these buildings.

The motivation, influence, and prejudices of each of these groups as design instigators are interrogated in the first four chapters. Liturgical change and experiments are identified as factors influencing design, and the important role of the newly created Parochial Church Councils as participants in the process is established. The architects’ views are investigated, in roles as commissioned designers and as gatekeepers on advisory committees. Architects seeking to maintain traditional approaches to church design and those intent on modernising through collaboration with clients and evolving a stylistic ‘middle way’ are contrasted. Chapters five and six examine the physical attributes of the buildings: externally displaying manifestations of the contradictory aspirations of suburbia and site practicalities, and internally as evolutionary experiments in accommodating new liturgical emphases. Concluding with an application of the findings to the claims of post-war polemicists, the eclecticism of these churches is re-cast - no longer an indicator of a moribund era in church design, but instead evidence of experimentation, imagination, and adaptation within prevailing norms.

Authors: Price, C

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-pp5reg01z
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: architecture; London; church; Manchester; liturgical reform; twentieth-century; interwar; suburbs
• Subjects: Twentieth century; Architecture; Religious institutions; History, Modern; Anglican church buildings; Social history