Relhan Collection : 126 Childerley Hall chapel. E view

Relhan, Richard, 1782-1844

Relhan Collection

This private chapel was built by the 4th Sir John Cutts (127), after the Cutts family had taken down the churches of both Great and Little Childerley. The income of the 2 churches was controversially switched to support this chapel, which in later years shared the varying fates of the Hall. John Layer (1586-1640) was on friendly terms with the 5th Sir John and admired the ‘most neat and delicate chapel’ with its stained glass window, when he visited in the 1630s. He describes in detail the stained glass that was extant in 1632. However, in 1748 Cole commented after a visit that ‘the present chapel was very neat, but now is made use of as a barn, and was so full of corn when I was there that I could not get into it. ....The Chapel is built of brick and was only one room, with a small turret on the N side in which hung the bell...In the chapel was anciently some fine painted glass containing the story of our Saviour’s passion, which was brought from Horham Hall in Essex, but now there is no sign of glass in any of the windows’. It is still brick with a tiled roof, a small turret-like wing on N and a gallery on half a bay. Eventually, it was repaired by General Calvert in 1852, to provide a worker’s cottage and also a smoking room for the Hall. By 1870 it was used as a tool shed although there were attempts to reintroduce worship, eg by Primitive Methodists, and in 1916 there was more refurbishment, with an altar, pulpit and lectern installed. In 1964 the last tenant left the cottage and the E end was used for family baptisms, but repairs were neglected, leading to a collapse of the chimney through the roof in 1980. This inspired restoration works and decoration in 1983, and uses increased. It is now well cared for by the present owners of Childerley Hall and used for retreats and for visitors’ teas etc when open to the public. Palmer 1932; RCHME 1968; notice in chapel