A SHORT HISTORY & DESCRIPTION OF 

THE PARISH CHURCH OF 

ST SAVIOUR ON THE CLIFF, SHANKLIN

Until the middle of the nineteenth century, Shanklin was a small fishing 

village around the chine, its parish church being St Blasius.

The railway arrived in 1862 and the town began to develop to the north. 

It soon became apparent that the existing church was too small for the 

growing population.

An appeal for the building of a new church was launched by the Rector 

of Shanklin and Mr White-Popham, Lord of the Manor, amongst others.

The land was given by Mr White-Popham and his sister laid the 

foundation stone on Ascension Day 1867.  

The church was designed by Thomas Hellyer of Ryde and was to be built in stages.

The first phase of building - comprising Nave, Chancel, Vestry, and Organ Chamber 

was completed by 1869 at a cost of £2789. 

Bishop Ryan, formerly the first Bishop of Mauritius, consecrated the new church on 

7th May 1869. The South aisle and Porch were added in 1871 and the North aisle 

and Church Hall five years later.

the Vicarage, to the east of the church and now a private house, was designed by 

Henry Woodyer, a well-known Victorian architect.

In 1883 the Vicar, the Revd Charles I Burland, announced that it was proposed to

complete St Saviours by the addition of a Narthex at the West End, 

and "--- a heaven-pointing Tower with its suitable furniture of pealing bells"

By early 1887 the tower and spire were completed and the peal of eight bells 

was installed the following year.

The bells were manufactured by Mears and Stainbank of Whitechapel of London.

Their total weight is some 75 cwt, with the Tenor alone weighing 18 cwt.

Sadly the initial optimism which greeted this project has not been sustained. By 1900

the tower and spire were shrouded in scaffolding to enable repairs to take place. 

The bells were hung too high and this along with  the unsteady structure, led to their 

being chimed rather than rung from 1925 onwards. Four  pinnacles which stood at the

junction of the tower and spire were removed by a local contractor for safety reasons.

This enabled the bells to be rung once again. An appeal is ongoing for the restoration

of the bells..

The proposed Narthex, now known as the Galilee Porch, appeared in 1905 along with the

Baptistery. The building of the Church of St Saviour on the Cliff was now complete.

With the exception of the Baptistery, the church is built out of local island green 

sandstone. Such was the demand for stone in the latter half of the nineteenth century

,that the softer stone, by passed by the mediaeval masons was extracted. Sadly this has 

weathered badly on the exposed cliff top site.

Throughout its history, St Saviour's, like several other Victorian churches on the

Island has been faced with fabric problems which have been beyond its resources.

THE INTERIOR

The true glory of St Saviour's is its  interior which has been richly and  generously furnished

over the years. The full scale of Hellyer's church in the Early English style can be appreciated

by standing at the entrance to the Galilee Porch and looking towards the High Altar.

THE NAVE. 

The Chancel Arch contains the only example of Victorian painted text work in the church.

" Draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith" (Hebrews 10 22).

The Choir Screen, separating the Nave from the Chancel, was originally surmounted by 

a carved wooden 'penthouse' containing a statue of Our lord as the Good Shepherd.

This was removed some years ago as it obliterated the view of the East window. 

However 

the statue has been reinstated. The screen forms a good back drop to the Nave Altar 

which was introduced in 1987. the parish Eucharist is celebrated here with the priest

facing the congregation.

To the left of the screen is the richly carved wooden Pulpit. This replaced a stone one

which was given to St John's Moordown, Bournemouth, where it can still be seen.

The present Pulpit dates from 1903 and was designed and carved by Miss Editha Plowden.

In front of the Nave Altar and to the right is a handsome brass Lectern with figures of the

 four Evangelists at the base.

 this was presented in 1876 by the widow of Robert Smith

who had been greatly involved in the building of St Saviour's.