The Parish Church of Saint Anne

The Parish of St. Anne now has a permanent vicar having been without since the untimely death of Rev. Stephen Ingham in October 1999.

The institution and induction of Rev. Stephen Masters (right) as Vicar of Alderney was conducted  by the  Dean of Guernsey the Very Reverend Marc Trickey (left).  Rev. Masters has been the Church of England’s Priest- in- Charge in Alderney for the last 2.1/2 years but his appointment as permanent vicar was subject to the provision of a new vicarage which was completed to diocesan standards in March and stands proud at the bottom of St. Anne’s  churchyard.

The  service was graced by many local and visiting ministers and dignitaries including the Lt. Governor Sir John Foley who formally presented Reverend Masters to the Dean at the chancel steps for the institution and induction ceremonies which included  receipt of “The Cure of Souls” and symbolic receipt of the freehold of both St. Anne’s Church and its handsome new vicarage, followed by the formal installation Stephen Masters as parish vicar.

The Parish Church of Saint Anne
A Brief Guide
by the late
Reverend Stephen Ingham
Vicar of Alderney

Welcome to Alderney and its Parish Church

The Parish of Alderney, originally part of the Diocese of Coutances in Normandy, is a detached portion of the Diocese of Winchester within the Deanery and Bailiwick of Guernsey and is subject to the pastoral supervision of the Bishop of Winchester.

The church is maintained by the States of Alderney and the Ecclesiastical Parish, both of which have spent considerable sums on the fabric in recent years. The building stands as a witness in stone to the continuance of the Christian faith on the Island and is an active centre of prayer and worship throughout the year.

The Parish Church
The church of Saint Anne, consecrated in 1850 and built to the design of Mr George Gilbert Scott, is acknowledged to be one of the finest Victorian buildings in the Channel Islands. Scott was one of the most prolific architects of the 19th century and apart from a considerable amount of restoration work on ecclesiastical buildings, including Westminster Abbey, he was also responsible for the Albert Memorial in London (recently restored), the Foreign Office and the St Pancras Station Hotel.

The church is often referred to as 'the cathedral church of the Channel Islands' because of its size but the original intention was that it should serve not only as a parish church for the island but also as the garrison church for the military stationed here in the mid 19th century; a time when the island was being heavily fortified against any potential threat of invasion by France, only a few miles away.

The present building, dedicated to Saint Anne, Mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, replaced the ancient mediaeval building which was situated in the old churchyard adjacent to the Island Museum, but was demolished in the mid 19th century with the exception of the tower, which still serves as a clock tower. The new building, situated on a hillside between Victoria Street (from which it is approached through the Albert Gate) and La Vallee, was the gift of the Reverend Canon John Le Mesurier, the son of the last Hereditary Governor of Alderney, in memory of his parents at a cost estimated then to have been some £8,000.

The church is cruciform in the transitional style from Norman to Early English with a clear French influence and is constructed of local granite with Caen stone dressings. The best impression of the interior is gained by taking a direct view from underneath the west window towards the high altar, the eye moving from the stolid round pillars of the nave towards the soaring arches which become increasingly more ornate through the body of the church to the apsidal sanctuary which was, in itself, a prototype to be used subsequently by Scott in the design of six further churches.

The west window was dedicated to the memory of Anne French, the wife of a former Judge of the Island, in 1957 and depicts children of the world (including Alderney). It is best viewed from the tower space. Beneath the window are commemorative plaques to the Le Mesuriers outlining the family history from 1648 to 1803. The font also stands here in its traditional place adjacent to the two main entrances to the church. The stone on which the priest stands during a Baptism was taken from the font of the old church.

The north aisle, immediately ahead of the south entrance, contains a window to the memory of Vincent Ryan DD, first Bishop of The Mauritius, a former incumbent of Alderney, and an attractive cartoon depicting 'The flight into Egypt'. Looking ahead one can glimpse the rose window behind the organ chamber, now sadly obscured, but depicting the Revelation of St John the Divine. Scott, it appears, did not anticipate an organ.

The north transept contains the Memorial Chapel. Five Standards are suspended in the roof space, four are detailed on a plaque to the left of the Roll of Honour and the fifth, the flag of Trinity House, commemorates the long association of Trinity House with the Island. The tapestry on the communion rail reflects the poppy motif in the British Legion window over the altar. On the organ case is displayed a bronze head of the crucified Christ by the late Enzo Plazzotta, a work of considerable beauty and sensitivity.

Under the tower space stands the lectern - with its two 1850 Bibles, one in French and the other in English, a reminder that until the 1920's a French Service was conducted in the church every Sunday and that French was the preferred language until the 19th century. Adjacent to the lectern is the memorial to the Reverend John Le Brun, incumbent from 1886 until 1929, and beneath that a display case containing the Bible from the Old Church. Its curious history is related later.

The south transept contains a chapel commonly known as the Children's Chapel with a small window dedicated to St Nicholas and the main south window, a fine example of modern stained glass, depicting the badges of the various services and images of wartime action. That may seem strange, but consider that by an accident of history, this window is best viewed from the tower space or Memorial Chapel and not from the south transept on which it barely impinges.  It has its own innate logic.

To the east lies the Lady Chapel which is used for weekday services and contains the Reserved Sacrament. The windows over the altar were gifts of members of the Le Mesurier family. On the south side one window commemorates the visit of Queen Elizabeth 11 to the Island in 1957 and another depicts the arms of the Diocese of Winchester and those of the Province of Canterbury. The screen at the chapel's west end was carved by Tom Batiste, a well-known Island craftsman, who was also responsible for the organ case.

A gate through the chapel screen leads to the Chancel and the High Altar. Panels on the wall of the Sanctuary are inscribed with the words of the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the Apostles' Creed in both English and French. The window over the High Altar contains some good Victorian stained glass with two main designs of the Ascension and the Crucifixion (a skull lying at the foot of the Cross in the latter) set mainly in plain leaded glass but with some of the outer panes depicting symbols of the Eucharist and, high above, the emblem of St Anne.

To the north of the Chancel is the Sacristy and the organ chamber with its fine two manual organ recently renovated and enlarged. St Anne's has been privileged to have had a number of distinguished recitalists over recent years and the musical tradition of the parish is strong with two choral services each Sunday.

A list of the Vicars of Alderney from before 1490 to the present day hangs adjacent to the Sacristy door.

Returning down the main aisle of the nave, two pillars are hung with embroidered banners worked by Sister Marjorie Anne of the Community of Saint Mary the Virgin, one depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary and the other St Francis of Assisi. The church contains a considerable amount of fine needlework which has been given recently and much enhances the interior including, behind the Vicar's stall in the Chancel, a hanging to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the church and the Millennium and depicting local wild flowers. Most of the needlework to be seen has been worked by a parishioner, Diana Golding. The parish also possesses a high altar frontal which is used only on special occasions and which was designed and created by embroiderers on the Island.

The Bells
The church has a peal of six bells which are rung for Sunday services and, when required, for the Occasional Offices. The bells were removed during the German Occupation and four were sent to Cherbourg on their way to be melted down for munitions. They were identified after the War by the Garrison Engineer and returned. Together with the two bells remaining in Alderney they were sent to England for re-casting before being re-hung as part of the overall restoration.  Click here for more information on the Bells of St. Anne and Bellringing (article by Pamela Jorgensen).

The War And Subsequent Restoration
The church, like so much of the Island, suffered from the German Occupation and was cleared and used as a general store for the duration. A machine-gun post was set up in the belfry and the walls still display the graffiti carved into the stonework by bored soldiers. Almost all the pews were removed from the church and the Island was subsequently faced with a considerable amount of restoration work quite apart from the domestic devastation caused during those unhappy years. The work was eventually completed in 1953 and the church re-dedicated by the Bishop of Winchester on 11th June that year.

The Old Church Bible
The Old Church Bible, displayed in a case next to the lectern, was only re-discovered on Maundy Thursday 1998. It was returned to the Island by the widow of a former Padre to the German Forces stationed in Alderney in 1942. A soldier had brought the Bible to the - chaplain (presumably during the clearance of the church) who removed it to Germany after his posting where it remained in his possession as a treasured part of his library. His widow was anxious to return it before she, herself, died and made the trip to Alderney in the company of her Lutheran Pastor and his wife for that express purpose; an act for which the parish is enormously grateful.

Dated 1683 the Bible is bound in with a copy of the Book of Common Prayer and a Metrical Psalter dated 1679. Parts of the Prayer Book were clearly damaged by damp at some stage and the ruined pages replaced with handwritten sheets written in exquisite small copperplate.

The Island is justly proud of its church and we very much hope that you have enjoyed your visit.

Published by the Friends of St Anne's Church, Alderney

Text copyright 1999: The Vicar and Churchwardens of Alderney

The Bells Of St Anne's
by
Pamela Jorgensen

The bells of St Anne's Church in Alderney may not be so very old in years, but they have certainly led an exciting life.

The original six bells were cast in 1849, by C & G Mears of London, and were rung at the consecration of the new Parish Church in 1850. The new church was to replace the old one as a Garrison Church, there used to be a British Army stationed here in Victorian times, and was big enough to warrant a ring of six. The old church tower was left standing with the town clock, but is not open to the public, even bell-ringers. There is no evidence that the new bells were rung other than in rounds when they were installed, though there was an official 'chimer' for 45 years up until the last War.

They were used in 1940, to sound the alarm when all the inhabitants were evacuated with only a brief warning to escape the German invasion. Again, reports vary. Some speak of the bells being rung, others say the tenor alone was tolled. Certainly when we re-enacted the scene for the 50th Anniversary of the Islanders return, we rang all the bells agley (in reverse order), but I can't imagine 6 people being sufficiently dedicated to stand ringing while everyone else took their one suitcase and dashed for the harbour, so I incline to the idea that one person tolled.

Once the Germans arrived and set up forced labour camps, they had their own ideas as to what churches were for. The bells were removed to make room for a machine gun installation and when the Islanders returned in 1945, they found only one hanging outside the church on a wooden gantry, one down at the harbour and the other four gone. The missing four bells were later found and identified in a field in France, presumably dumped there on their way to be melted down for munitions. One was cracked, one was smashed with the remaining two reasonably sound. They were all shipped back to Alderney to be reunited with the others.

Until something could be done about them, the four sound bells were hung on a frame in the churchyard and the bellringer rang them all by running around pulling strings attached to the clappers.

By 1953, the church itself had been restored and it was time to consider the bells. Taylor's bell-foundry quoted the then enormous price of £1,370 to ship them to Loughborough, recast and tune them, return and hang them. With only 1500 people on the Island this was a huge sum to raise, so an Appeal was launched. The leaflet included a poem, whose writer had obviously never been in the bell-tower, as he mentions the 40 winding little-worn steps up to the 'bare-room' where the bells should hang. As many a ringer's aching legs will bear witness, it is 72 steps (well-worn) up to the ringing chamber, let alone the extra flight up to the bells.

Anyway, kind people, (including the Her Majesty the Queen Mother) soon raised the money and the bells were sent off on a happier journey.

They came back just before Christmas 1953 and were hung in their original oak frame, though now equipped with new cast-iron headstocks and with a modern chiming console.  By now there was only one ringer, and he used to chime hymn tunes for all the services. He must sometimes have been up with the lark as he apparently rang for Early Service too, if one can believe the pencilled reminders on the wall of the ringing chamber beside the chiming console.

Alderney's Bellringers
It was not until 1979 that a dedicated bellringer from the mainland came to work here and scraped together a band of volunteers, some of whom had learned to ring elsewhere, and often long before, supplemented with raw recruits willing to learn from scratch. For a few years they did well, with two teams, able to beat the other Islands in the annual striking contest, but then the younger ones went away for further education, or their jobs ended and they went back to the Mainland, and numbers fell off.

We still ring twice every Sunday, but we just can't seem to get new recruits. Most of us are old - of the adults only five are under 60 - and several are in their 70s. Whenever we get hold of some children they invariably go away to boarding school before we have had a chance to use them and those of us who took up the exercise as OAPs just don't have the agility of mind to advance much beyond simple methods - especially after climbing all those steps.

The bells are friendly to ring on, tenor 13cwt, key of F#, the ringing chamber is large and comfortable with chairs and even a sofa. There is heating in winter and fans in the summer. As we are mostly old retired people, we practice on Mondays from 5pm to 6.30pm. VISITORS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME.  Do come!
Anybody interested should contact Mr. Maurice Stupart on +44 (1481)822922.

This article was written by local resident, Alderney States member, Pamela Jorgensen.


One of the historic highlights of the Millennium year, during which St. Anne's Church also celebrated its 150th anniversary, was the presentation of two impressive new church gates by the 30th Signals, Alderney's adopted regiment.
The association between the 30th Signals and the island goes back some thirty years and, in 1989, the regiment was granted the freedom of St. Anne's, giving its soldiers the right to march through town with pennant flying, drums beating and bayonets fixed. Virtually every year since the start of this long-standing association, the regiment has paid a visit to Alderney and its soldiers have made many friends on the island while carrying out training exercises and helping with numerous important community projects.
On Sunday 26 November, 2000, Lt.-Col. Michael Lithgow, officially presented the gates to States President Jon Kay-Mouat.
The heavy wrought iron gates - a successfully completed millennium project - were made in Blackburn and follow the design of the pre-war gates which were removed by the Germans, but feature Alderney's lion crest on one side and the badge of the Royal Corps of Signals on the other.
The 12-ft high, 10-ft wide gates were blessed by Reverends Arthur Mignot and Piers Warburton before being opened in concert by the Colonel and the President to a fanfare played by the Alderney Island Band.