DECADES of smoke, incense and candles have finally taken their toll –
but now historic St Charles Borromeo Church, a hidden gem in the centre
of Hull, is embarking on a £1m restoration project.
The 19th century building – the
mother church of the Catholic community in the city – withstood the
aerial bombardment of two World Wars, but is now in dire need of repair
and redecoration.
Walls are crumbling where blocked guttering some
years back caused water to cascade into the church and 200-year-old
paintings are sagging off their canvases.
The painted angels that
peer out from all corners of the building – no-one has ever counted them
all – should be rosy-pink and the Saints could do with a brush up, the
glorious technicolour of the church’s Baroque interior having been muted
by the accumulated grime of half a century.
Canon Michael Loughlin said: “Many people who come to see it for the first time are amazed by it.
“One
of the English Heritage books described it as ‘one of the most
astonishing interiors of any 19th century church’ and we want to make it
as lovely as it should be.
“Some of the walls have crumbled and
the plasterwork has deteriorated quite badly and generally the interior
needs total cleaning or repainting.
“The water used to pour down the walls.
“Over
the six years I have been here we’ve plugged most of the holes but as
the damp has dried out, the plaster has started coming off the walls –
and I think the children at Mass have been pressing the plaster back to
brick in some places.
“We have all got fed up with the state of the place.
“Thankfully it is not a situation where the church is going to fall down. We are not saving a building in that sense”
The
congregation has raised £50,000 so far and a probable bid of £1m will
be made to the Heritage Lottery Fund for most of the remainder.
However,
there will still be a funding gap and the Rt Rev Bishop Terence Drainey
of Middlesbrough will be launching an appeal next Friday, July 8.
The
hope is that churchgoers – their numbers have been swelled by the
recent influx of immigrants – will each be willing to make monthly
donations of £10 for the next four years.
Unlike many churches, St
Charles is open during daylight hours and Canon Loughlin hopes more
people will come and enjoy its unique interior.
“On the special
Heritage open days we get quite a crowd, but I don’t think so many
people realise the place is open or don’t think they can come in,” he
said.
The church was the first major Catholic church to be built
in Hull following centuries of persecution and its grandeur is in
striking contrast to the modest chapels it replaced.
Money to
build the church came from an emigre priest who escaped the French
Revolution and came to Hull, laden with the paintings that now adorn the
walls, and which still bear the tears made by Revolutionaries’ bayonets
checking for hidden treasure.
Although the church dates back to
the 19th century, the bones of Friars uncovered during a dig on what is
now the site of the city’s magistrates courts were reburied within the
crypt beneath the church, which also holds the bricked-up remains of
Catholics who died from 1829 to 1846.
In a sloping hand written in concrete on one of the two underground “streets” is the message: “Full – not to be opened.”
Monsignor
David Hogan, who is handling the funding application, said: “On one
site the church represents a time capsule of history of Hull from the
12th century as there is the burial underground of the remains of
Mediaeval Friars while the church itself owes its inception to the
Napoleonic Wars.
“We have had every encouragement from the Heritage Lottery to pursue this, so we are hopeful.
“We
are very anxious that this is seen as part of the heritage of Hull, it
isn’t just a preoccupation within the Catholic community.
“This is an architectural treasure of Hull, that has much to tell you about the history of Hull.”
The
appeal will be launched at the church in Jarratt Street, near the Hull
New Theatre, in the presence of Lord Mayor Councillor Colin Inglis and
other civic dignitaries and representatives of Catholic organisations
from the city and the East Riding.