Busbridge ChurchA relaxed and friendly Church family in the heart of the community

History of Busbridge Church

St. John the Baptist Church was designed in the Early English Gothic style by Gilbert Scott, R.A. , and built in Bargate stone between 1865-7. On 1st March, 1867 the Church was dedicated and consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester; this service is recorded on a plaque in the Sanctuary.

Places of Worship in the Busbridge Parish have been traced back to a pagan temple to Tiw, the Saxon Deity of War, which was converted into a Christian church in the 7th Century. Its site is marked by a monument of the Virgin and Child in the Minster field at Tuesley. St. John’s continues the traditions of worship in a comparatively modern setting. It is essentially a `living’ church with an active and caring community, and has amassed a rich heritage from the talents and generosity of local people.

Foremost of these are John and Emma Ramsden of Busbridge Hall Estate, who founded the parish of Busbridge and built the church (at a cost of £4,000) and the school. They devoted themselves to the welfare of Busbridge for a quarter of a century.

Other benefactors include Mrs. Graham of Busbridge Hall who, in memory of her parents, replaced chairs in the Nave with the fine oak pews. She also presented the oak panelling in the Chancel and Sanctuary, the marble altar rails and pavement and the alabaster Reredos in the Sanctuary.

From 1965 - 1967, ladies of the parish under the supervision of Lady Tidbury-Beer and Mrs. Mellersh skilfully and painstakingly worked the attractive designs on the pew runners.

The windows

Sir Edward Burne-Jones designed the windows in the Sanctuary and Chancel and at the West End, and they were made by Morris & Co. The windows in the Nave are by A. K. Nicholson. The West window, 1899, is in memory of Mrs. Ramsden and the East window in memory of her first husband, Ellis Gosling and their son. It was presented by their daughter, Viscountess Galway.

The War memorials

The names of 54 parishioners who died in two world wars are inscribed on the North Wall. Two leather-bound War Registers containing their names and short biographies-professionally and beautifully scripted-are kept in a glassfronted oak case under the War Memorial Window. The key of the case is obtainable on application to the Rector.

The Chancel screen

This is a remarkably fine example of the early work of Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869 - 1944) whose design was made up in metal by J. Starkie Gardner in 1899. The system of slender uprights ending in mid-air in a complex set of loops and scrolls show some of the geometrical artistry for which he was to become famous. The figure of Christ is so perfectly composed and angled that it is always seen against the dark Chancel roof, and yet it always dominates the rest of the composition.

The William Morris Altar Frontal

This striking embroidery design by William Morris is in use between Epiphany and Lent, and between Trinity and the Sunday before Advent. It was worked in about 1870 by Morris & Co. in coloured floss silks and gold on ivory, with a complicated design of vine leaves and bunches of grapes. It was loaned for the William Morris Centenary Exhibition in 1961 at the request of the Arts Council of Great Britain, and exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London and various other centres around the country.

In the churchyard

The lovely churchyard is full of history.



The elegant War Memorial is also by Lutyens who was well known for his War Cemeteries and Memorials, particularly the Cenotaph, Whitehall.

An outstanding monument in the graveyard surrounds the three tomb slabs of Miss Gertrude Jekyll , her brother Sir Herbert Jekyll and his wife Agnes. It has a stone urn and balustrade and fittingly enough it was designed by Lutyens. Gertrude Jekyll, a parishioner of St. John’s and famous as a gardener and writer, invited Lutyens to design her house nearby. It was the beginning of their `Homes and Gardens’ partnership and the legacy they were to leave to Surrey, and particularly to Busbridge.

The graves of Mrs. Ramsden’s first husband, Ellis Gosling and their son are under the East Window. In 1960 The Memorial Garden for the burial of cremated ashes was created by landscape architects Milner White & Son.

The St. John’s Centre was built in 1977 in keeping with the architecture of the Church and has proved a popular venue for many church activities.

Text by Carolyn Sloan