Free Church, Hampstead Garden Suburb

The Free Church is a building located in Hampstead Garden Suburb, Barnet, London. It was built to a design by Sir Edwin Lutyens starting in 1911, and, like St Jude's Church at the opposite side of Central Square, is a Grade I listed building.

Free Church, Hampstead Garden Suburb
Country	United Kingdom
Denomination	United Reformed Church/Baptist
Website	Official website

History

Initially, Christians in Hampstead Garden Suburb congregated but it was decided in 1909 to organise the Church of England and Free Church meetings separately. The Free Church first met, before the existence of the building, in 1909 and was officially founded in 1910.[1]

Construction of the Free Church was begun on 16 January 1911 and it opened for worship on 25 October that year, though its west end was not completed until the 1960s.[2][1] It was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, who was the consultant architect for the Central Square of Hampstead Garden Suburb from 1906 and had influence on the design of the whole square, including both churches.[3]

Architecture

An interior view of the church, showing the altar, organ and dome

The church has a low concrete dome, by contrast to the spire of St Jude's. The interior features Tuscan columns with brick plinths, and a barrel vault. The interior is in pastel colours.[2]

References

1. "Background". Hampstead Garden Suburb Free Church. Archived from the original on 20 March 2017. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
2. Cherry, Bridget; Pevsner, Nikolaus (1998). London 4: North. The Buildings of England. Yale University Press. p. 146. ISBN 978-0-300-09653-8.
3. "Hampstead Garden Suburb Free Church". Open House London. Retrieved 19 March 2017.

Further reading

• Miller, Mervyn; Gray, Alexander Stuart (1 January 1992). Hampstead Garden Suburb. Phillimore. pp. 85–. ISBN 978-0-85033-805-8.
• Brown, Jane (1996). Lutyens and the Edwardians: An English Architect and His Clients. Viking. pp. 127–. ISBN 978-0-670-85871-2.