The Chancel at Christ Church
The church was originally built with a plain east wall, with a pointed window, but no chancel. Soon after Canon Robert Allen became the third Vicar in 1877, a terrible storm threatened to blow down the church, which was unsupported on the north side (where there is now another aisle) and had no chancel to buttress the east end. Canon Allen appointed Mr E E Scott of Brighton as architect for the completion of the church, and by July 1878 the roof had been strengthened and the new ceiling had been installed.
The north aisle was completed in 1879, and by the end of that year the superb apsidal chancel
with its magnificent arch was completed, and the vestry built. The arch is actually the tallest
chancel arch in Eastbourne. In April 1880 the centre of the five
chancel windows (which together represent the Te Deum) was installed in memory of the much-loved
Princess Alice, a daughter of Queen Victoria, who had recently died. She had stayed in Eastbourne
and worshipped at Christ Church, taking a great interest in the parish and visiting the Day and
Sunday Schools and the poor in their homes. The windows are by Clayton & Bell, and were completed in
1884.The appearance of the apse has changed over the years. The walls were originally faced in red brick with stone dressings; the brickwork was covered with painted stencilled ornament by Clayton & Bell in 1887; and at that time there was a dossal [a rear curtain] and canopy behind the altar, bearing the text “HOLY HOLY HOLY” in large letters. In 1938 the dossal was removed and green velvet curtains were hung around the apse up to the window-sill line, covering the arched sediliae [seats for the clergy]. In 1958, in preparation for the centenary of the church’s consecration, the curtains were taken down and the stencilled decoration painted out; all the inside faces of the church’s walls were painted over the brickwork, producing the effect of light and space which you see today.
The nave altar, shown in more detail here, was installed in a re-ordering in 1992. It’s just been enhanced by the
addition of a reproduction Greek Orthodox icon of the Last Supper (below right). The organ, of which there is more detail
here, can be seen on the right, together with the statue of Our Lady of
Walsingham.The high altar cross (below), suspended just above the altar in the centre of the apse, was procured from a redundant church in 1995. The cross is in apple-wood, and features a carved figure of Christ in repose.
Text taken from A Short Guide to Christ Church, by F E Ford. Copyright © Christ Church PCC.
