St Luke's Parish Church, Charlton - Monuments
The parish church of St Luke s, Charlton, near Woolwich in South London, of ancient origin and one time within the county of Kent, was rebuilt from 1630 to 1640 through
a bequest of Sir Adam Newton, Lord of the Manor with the north aisle paid for with funds bequeathed by Sir William Newton
at the end of the century, and the usual additions in the 19th Century.
From the outside, what we see is largely 17th Century then, built in brick, with a fine square, castellated tower,
low but rather prominent because of the building s position at the corner of two streets on the brow of a hill.
The small interior includes 17th Century and later work, and at least one surviving window from the earlier church on the site.
More interestingly for this website, the Church is fairly packed with monuments, over 40 in all,
of which a quarter are to members of the Wilson and Maryon Wilson family. They are mostly simple panels,
but with a couple of much grander things: two massive combined altar tomb and wall monuments, to Lady and Sir Adam Newton himself,
by the important sculptor Nicholas Stone, and to the Vicountess of Ardmagh with much decoration;
a full statue to Brigadier Michael Richard, three portrait busts, including one to the assassinated
Prime Minister Spencer Perceval, by the great 19th Century sculptor Francis Chantrey,
and a girl with pot sculpture by Charles Regnart, a skilled but more minor figure.
St Luke's Charlton, exterior and interior view with monuments.
Monuments
Monuments up to 1700
There are three of them: a 16th Century panel surviving from the earlier church on the site, and the two significant combined
alter tomb and wall monuments. I did not see a monument noted in the Gentleman s Magazine to Thomas Willes, d.1602,
'aged above an hundred'.
- Master Edward Wilkinson, d.1567, and his wife Clare; he was Master-Cook to
the Moste Exelent and our Sofferaygne Lady Quene Elizabeth . With a roundel of arms within a scrolly border carved in low relief,
in the form of what is called strapwork, with the usual knight s helm above, many leafy appendages therefrom,
and smaller shields at the upper and lower corners. The whole being on a rectangular panel with a modern frame;
it may have been a small part of a much more complicated memorial panel at one time.
Wilkinson and Newton monuments, the latter by Nicholas Stone the Elder.
- Katherine (Puckering) Newton, d.1629, and husband Sir Adam Newton, d.1629/30,
with a long Latin inscription, within the grandest of architectural settings. The white panel has a black frame,
and to the sides, Corinthian pillars with polished marble shafts support an entablature and pediment,
curved and broken at the top to fit a large shield of arms, highly carved. All this rests on a black and white altar tomb.
There is no effigy, and the sheer mass of differently coloured marbles rather than the minor carving gives this tomb its grandeur.
It is by the important early English sculptor Nicholas Stone the Elder.
His notebooks documenting nearly all of his monuments survive, so we know this was put up in 1630,
very quickly after Sir Adam s death. Sir Adam we have already met, as he who gave the bequest to rebuild the Church,
so a significant monument indeed.
- The Rt Hon. Lady Grace, d.1699/1700 (her first husband was Patrick, Earl of Ardmagh), and second husband
Sir William Langhorn, d.1714. A highly decorated monument on the large scale, with altar tomb below, tall,
broad panel above flanked by standing allegorical figures, and a heavy canopy supported by freestanding pillars.
As well as the figures there are a variety of other sculptural embellishments. The tomb chest at the base, raised on two steps,
has on its front a panel with a careful carving of a pair of winged cherub heads, cheek to plump cheek,
with bunches of fruit and flowers, ears of corn etc, and around all a drapery hanging from three hooks and knotted at the corners.
A bit over-sentimental, saved by the convincingly muscular gadrooned (corrugated) shelf of black marble above.
Above and set back, the inscribed panel is also framed by drapery, supported at the top corners by winged cherub heads
they could have been helpfully covered with the drapery and bowed down in the centre by a bouquet of fruit, leaves and flowers.
The drapes then hang down the sides of the panel in straight folds, with carved flowers at the half way point or a little above,
and tassels on the lower fringe, which stretches across the base so we see that the whole inscription appears to be on a
hanging drape. This style of carving a panel as a hanging cloth is widely found, though never that frequently so,
and the example here is a very fine example of the type.
Countess of Ardmagh, d.1699/1700, and details.
To the sides of the central panel are the pillars, a rich variation on the Corinthian, detached ones in front,
and the flat architectural equivalents pilasters against the back behind. Outside of these stand a pair of figures,
one on each side. These small statues are angels, female and juvenile, with short legs and plump faces,
a rather squat appearance which is uncomfortable to those seeking the perfectly proportioned figure.
They are dressed in enveloping robes with wide sleeves, with something of movement to the drapes and limbs.
Each carries a palm frond. Finally, above all this is the superstructure, an entablature with repeating patterns
in a band around it, and then an open, curved pediment of the type called swan-necked, with the usual coat of arms of
rather large size within it. A satisfyingly large and confident monument.
18th Century Monuments
- Elizabeth Craggs, d.1711, Vertuous and Pious , with a short inscription.
The Classical panel has outer side-pieces with scrolls at the base, a popular device, upper and lower shelf,
and on top, without any pediment, or any surviving embellishments, a fine bust of the deceased.
At the base of the monument, between two moulded brackets, is a deeply curved apron bearing a shield of arms
surrounded by carved Acanthus leaves and with knight s helm above.
The portrait bust shows Mrs Craggs with mature but youthful aspect, a slight baroque pose to the head, curled hair
of a length to leave her neck exposed, and wearing some sort of robe or drape with a frilly collar. A serious piece of sculpture.
Elizabeth Craggs, d.1711.
- James Craggs, d.1722, a Post-Master General, listing his son the Rt. Hon. James Craggs, d.1722,
one of the Principal Secretaries of State to his present Majesty , and his three daughters and their marriages:
it was they who erected the monument, which is a plain panel of streaked white marble with a frame, underneath
the more glamorous monument which he had erected to his wife (if you click to enlarge the picture of her monument, above left, you
can see the upper part of his panel).
- The Hon. Brigadier Michael Richards, d.1721, inscription, and battering ram., Surveyor General of the Ordnance to King George I,
erected by his three nieces, daughters of James Craggs. A flamboyant monument of the grandest style of its times,
with a strutting figure posed above, surrounded by dramatically composed drapery and heaps of weaponry, above an equally grand
lower portion, with the two inscribed panels surrounded by scrolls and vegetation. The figure of the Brigadier
is in close-fitting plate armour, which according to those in the Church at the time was the last such figure
to be found in a British church. Certainly I have not seen a more recent one, and plate armour is characteristic of an
earlier generation of monumental statues. To modern eyes, the armour looks odd, tightly fitting to emphasise the lines of the leg,
fashionable for males of the time, and giving a bulgy rather than muscular or spiky look to the figure,
particularly with the soft-featured head above, above a tall and tight collar. Around him is a piece of drapery,
not so much as to obbscure the figure, and he holds in one hand a thin truncheon, the other resting fashionably against his hip,
while his legs are posed like an actor s rather than a warrior. Behind him on either side are heaps of warlike accoutrements:
cannon, a drum and two furled flags tied to spears on one side more opportunity for drapery here and smaller spears or arrows,
again draped with flags, on the other side, with lower down a goat-head ram, helm with visor, and a small bugle.
Our man stands within a rounded arch with a black backing, and on each side hangs a small shield from a knotted ribbon:
being what it is, the ribbons too have to be long and coiling.
Hon. Brig. Michael Richards, d.1721.
Our perhaps raised eyebrows at this prideful, affected and self confident figure surely the now-defunct word popinjay was
invented for such should not obscure that we are looking at an excellent example of the sculptor s art,
with many fine details on the small scale, dramatic composition on the large, and where the drapery alone exhibits
a range of beautiful folds and curls and twists. The lower part of the monument is equally good.
The memorial inscription is within an oval surrounded by scrolling a cartouche and outside of this
on each side is more scrolling, palm leaves, and delicately carved flowers of different types.
Beneath this, on a separate roughly rectangular panel, is the note of the three nieces and their marriages,
and this too is surrounded by more scrolls and leaves; the whole has a many-curved outline of Baroque design.
It has been suggested by Margaret Webb, who has written widely on 18th Century sculptors, that this work is by the Italian sculptor Giovanni Battista Guelfi, restorer
of the Arundel marbles, and sculptor of James Craggs in Westminster Abbey.
- Dame Mary Langhorn, d.1730, wife of Sir William Langhorn, Baronet, and then later, George Jones of Twickenham,.
With a thick frame, a carved bird above, and shield of arms below, on a shaped white marble backing.
We have already met Sir William Langhorn, as the husband of the Lady Grace, noted above.
- Ann (Craggs) Robinson, d.1736, noting she was sister to James Craggs,
late one of his Majesties Post-Masters General, whose Monument is very near this place Erected.
(being at the East end of this Church). In a nice font of the period, but without decoration, bar
a simple frame around the inscribed tablet.
Elizabeth Dingley, d.1759, obelisk and Classical bust.
- Elizabeth (Thompson) Dingley, d.1759. With a bust of the deceased in front of an oval recess
within a tall, white obelisk, which also has a shield of arms near the top. Below is a shelf and the inscribed tablet,
supported on two brackets with mouldings. The monument is severely Classical, and the bust likewise:
she stares straight ahead, her head framed by her hair, wavy at the top and back, carefully ringletted at the sides,
a Classical drape more or less symmetrically over her chest and the thinner undergarment without rim or ornament.
A contrast can be made with the portrait sculpture of Mrs Craggs, which is much more informal and Renaissance in feel.
- Margaretta Maria Jones, d.1777, and four infants, and Raleigh Trevelyan, d.1814.
A decent late 18th Century monument, with the central panel flanked by scrolly side pieces, and a pediment on top
without any entablature; this is broken in the centre to admit a small fluted pot or funereal urn. At the base, a black shelf,
under which is a curvy apron, presumably once bearing the coat of arms, now lost, with scrolly supports to the side,
unusually not supporting the shelf, and at the base, a small winged cherub head. In pale and dark marble.
I wonder if the monument has been somewhat reconstructed, to a slightly different configuration than originally laid out.
Late 18th Century panels: Margaretta Jones and James Moffat.
- Robert Dingley, d.1781, FRS, and one of the Principal Promoters of the Magdalen Charity ,
and his second wife
Esther, d.1784. Panel with upper shelf and lower, moulded brackets.
James Moffatt, d.1790. Decorative text on a white panel, with plenty of space beneath for relatives
whose names were never added. There is a border, upper and lower shelves, and a curved top like a pediment
bearing upon it a scrolly leaf design with a small central shield of arms, once painted but now worn away.
At the base, between two block supports with carved flowers upon them, is an elegant terminus or apron with ogee (s-shaped)
curved sides, carved with leaves, drawn together by a band and with smaller leaves or petals as a bud below. Elegant, refined.
- General George Morrison, d.1799. Another grand panel, with a fine female statue.
The monument is in three portions: the figure and surround at the top on a broad black backing,
rather too wide at the top to be called an obelisk; a central portion with the inscription carved on the side of a casket end;
and this rests on a lower shelf under which is the apron. We start with the female figure: a Classical girl,
Hellenistic rather than calmly Greek, who would seem to represent the mourning wife rather than anyone allegorical.
She stands by the funeral urn of her husband, and in the fashion of the time, lounges against it,
elbow casually resting on the lid, one foot raised to stand on the base. Her other hand rests on the top of an anchor,
which she uses as a swagger stick. She has a nice slender figure, outlined against the thin drapery which envelops her figure
and forms a cowl over her head. The sleeves are rolled up and buttoned to show slender, curvy arms; her sandalled feet
stick out below. Her face, beneath the cowl, is downturned with eyes shut, and very youthful, almost too girlish.
Behind and to the sides are the collection of military trophies: flags hanging from spears, and the barrels of muskets.
Really very well done, the skilful work of the sculptor Charles Regnart. All this rests on a shelf, under which is the
inscribed panel, with outward slanting sides to give the casket shape, and it has ball-feet underneath.
These rest on a smaller shelf, and below this is the third part of the monument, with black curved apron between two supporting
side-pieces (signed by the sculptor). The apron bears a small shield of arms, and above it, the remains of festoons of
flowers hanging from three supports.
Charles Regnart's mourning girl for Gen. Morrison, d.1799.
Wilson and Maryon-Wilson monuments
We have missed out one panel from the end of the 18th Century, that to General Sir Thomas Wilson, Bt,
and that is because his is the first in a sequence of panels to the Wilson and Maryon Wilson family,
all the way through to the late 20th Century. We take them all together.
- General Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson, Baronet, d.1798, erected by his wife, Jane (Weller) Wilson,
noting his offspring and their marriages. Plain panel with a thin frame and a painted shield of arms at the top - see picture below left.
Gen. Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson, d.1798, and Dame Jane Wilson, d.1818.
- William Maryon Wilson, d.1808, an infant son of Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson, Bt and his wife Dame Elizabeth.
An idiosyncratic panel, with a triangle above, perched on a shelf, with coat of arms carved upon it, and at the base,
a further shelf, somewhat corrugated, above a concave-sided triangular apron. There is a narrow backing panel cut to shape all
the way round, and at the lower point of this is a small bracket formed of a pair of carved leaves opening to either side (see picture below, left).
- Dame Jane Wilson, d.1818, wife of Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson Bt. Carved as a hanging shroud,
with the inscription on a panel upon this, rather than written on the actual hanging, which is more usual. The cloth forms a festoon
above, caught up at the sides by tying it with nicely carved ribbons, and then hangs down. This is all on a black backing,
with upper shelf, curved upwards in the centre to form a sort of curved pediment shape, and giving a space filled with the coat
of arms and two crossed branches. At the very bottom is a single bracket carved with Acanthus leaves - see picture above right. Signed by Reeves and Son,
a firm of sculptors based in Bath whose work is widespread across southern England, including many fairly simple panels
like this one, as well as a few figural pieces, three of which can be seen in Bath Abbey.
- Dame Elizabeth Maryon Wilson, d.1818 erected by Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson Bt. Diamond shaped inscription
against fluted backing, upper and lower shelf, a fair pot above, with a pyramidal backing. At the base, a curved down apron with
a shield of arms carved in low relief, and two flowers at the side (picture below, 2nd left).
- Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson, Baronet, d.1821, and family, through to his wife,
Elizabeth, d.1853. White marble monument of prodigious size, having a small obelisk above,
and a larger Classical panel below. The panel has side pilasters, an entablature above with a central flower in low relief,
and at the base, a shield of arms with architectural trophy in relief behind, with crossed flags; to the sides, two square supports
include winged cherub heads and flowery corbels. At the top, a shelf, bearing the central obelisk and with two rounded pots to the
sides. The obelisk includes an oval with carved knight s helm, and a high relief pot with asymmetric drapes.
Maryon-Wilson panels, 1808s-1909.
- Captain Dudley Maryon Wilson, d.1871, at Rawul, Pindee, India, erected by Sir John Maryon Wilson, Bt.
Panel with blocky base, upper shelf and a small pediment with oversized acroteria decorated with anemone patterns,
on a shaped backing.
- Sir John Maryon Wilson, d.1876, 9th Baronet, wife Charlotte Julia Wilson, d.1895,
and daughter Jane Charlotte Wilson, d.1902. Conventional but ornate small Classical tablet, with side pilasters,
entablature, pediment with acroteria, and upwardly curved base to give two feet and an overall casket shape.
The surfaces are decorated with repeating patterns and flowery scrolling, and on the bases of the pillars, the text Christ,
Our Life - see picture below right. Like some of the other Maryon-Wilson monuments, it hearkens back in style, and this one could have as easily been
from the 1850s or 60s a generation before.
- Dame Rose Emily Maryon-Wilson, d.1909, erected by her son, Sir Spencer Maryon-Wilson,
11th Baronet of Eastbourne. Diamond shaped plaque on a square backing with fluting, with upper and lower shelf, a small pot above,
three stylised flowers below on the apron - see picture below, far right. Clearly looking to be a bit different from the usual styles, without creating
anything particularly of its own period.
- Thomas Spencer M. Maryon-Wilson, d.1938, only son of Sir Spencer Maryon-Wilson,
11th Baronet of Eastbourne. Plain white marble panel with concave edging. (see earlier monument to Dame Jane Wilson).
- Charles Frederic Earle, d.1939, agent to Sir Spencer Maryon-Wilson, plain plaque; and further plaques
to others of the Maryon-Wilson family through to 1977, their heraldic devices being the only ornaments.
- A tall brassy panel, arched, with coat of arms at the top, noting the descent of the Baronets of the Wilsons
and later Maryon Wilsons through to the 13th Baronet, d.1978.
- A small plaque noting that the north-west aisle of the Church was put up in 1693 by the executors of
Sir William Newton Baronet, and was restored and repaired in 1873 by Sir John Maryon Wilson Baronet,
patron of the living and Lord of the Manor .
19th Century Monuments:
Even without the Maryon Wilson panels noted above, the 19th Century panels constitute the majority of the monuments in the Church,
as usual mostly pre-Victorian. We see examples of several of the main types of small Classical panel of the time:
framed ones with upper and lower shelf and a small pediment, taller panels and broader ones, ones cut as casket-ends
with outward-sloping sides, and ovals, mostly white-on-white, but one example of that most popular of early 19th Century panels,
of white marble on a shaped black backing. And our bust of the Prime Minister.
- Thomas Welladvice, d.1807, a tall panel with decorated text and room for many further names, though none were ever added, shelf at top and bottom, and a scrolly pediment placed directly on top with no entablature. Within the pediment is minor floral ornament carved in relief, and above, a shield of arms, with two wilting branches, symbolic of death, in between and lying along the long sides of the pediment; small acroteria at the sides. At the base are two block supports with carved, stylised flowers upon them, a bell-shaped apron in between with leaf designs lightly carved on it, and a terminus in the shape of a bud; behind this is a backing panel of white marble, curvily cut at top and bottom.
- Spencer Perceval, d.1812, the only British Prime Minister to have been murdered:
the hand of the assassin/. Not only broke asunder the brilliant chains of duty // which bind the statesman to his native land,
// and mae a void in the high // and eloquent councils of the nation: // it severed the more tender and delicate, //
those of conjugal and parental affection... . Our third and final portrait bust in the Church. Classical again, showing the PM
with keen eyed stare, appropriate for a man of purpose, vision and looking to the future of the nation. His nose is thin, his cheeks
finely modelled, his hair, greatly receding, giving an air of erudite intelligence. His powerful, muscular neck is encircled
at the shoulder by a heavy drape or mantle. The bust is in front of a round-arched backing, and the shelf, panel and
supporting brackets below are solid chunks of marble without ornament. The bust is a noble work by the most successful of portrait
sculptors of his day, Francis Chantrey, and I feel is a more characterful piece than the full sized statue of Spencer Perceval
at Northampton, in the Guildhall there.
Spencer Perceval, d.1812, bust by Francis Chantrey.
- Daniel Salisbury Madde [Malde?] of Wakefield, d. 1806 [46?]. Worn oval plaque with a surround,
undecorated; underneath it is the identically shaped panel to Major-General Cleverty, d.1838, see below.
- Major-General Sir John Douglas, d.1814, with a long inscription drawn to the attention of
Junior Members of his Corps as an example, written by Major General Andrew Burn. Plain panel, covered in tight script up to
the bevelled edge, with two supports.
- Sir William Congreve, Baronet, d.1814, a military man who had the happiness of having saved
to His Country more than one Million Sterling yet died unenriched himself . Also his wife, Dame Julia Elizabeth, d.1832.
Vertical tablet with triangular top bearing a carved triumph, being a knight s helm with crossed flags and spears behind it,
and above, a pigeon about to take flight. At the base, a small shield of arms, again with crossed flags behind it, and weaponry,
and to the sides, two flowers - see picture below, left - you will need to click to enlarge to see properly. On a shaped white backing. A credible monument.
- Mrs Ann Mills, d.1816, and her sister Mrs Elizabeth Gosling, d. 1816, erected by her son
by her first marriage Henry Heylyn, d.1856(?). Plain white panel in a dark grey surround,
cut at the top to pediment shape, with anemone carving on the acroteria, and with two feet below.
- John Collins, d.1816, Commander of the HCS Warley, and wife Jane Collins, d.1866. Tall panel with moulded upper shelf, above which is carved a scrolly base to crossed ferny fronds holding up a painted shield of arms. At the base, a thin shelf under which is a bell-shaped apron with leaves carved upon it in low relif, tied at the base with further leaves below. At the sides of this are two flowers on blocky supports. All on a shaped pale backing.
1820s horizontal compositions with pots: Willock and Miller.
- Alexander Charles Willock, d.1821, of the Royal Regiment of Artillery. With fluted frame and
slight, broad pot on top, on a shaped pale backing with two block supports - picture above left.
- Jane Perceval, d.1824, dark plaque in a frame, and above it, a similar panel to her husband,
the Honourable Edward Perceval, relatives of Spencer Perceval. A certain Lady Charlotte Perceval
is also buried in the Church, but I missed seeing her monument.
- Mary (Becher) Morrison, d.1822, daughter of Edward Becher of Kingston, Jamaica, and wife of General George Morrison,
whose excellent monument we noted above. A short obelisk monument (see picture, below centre). Usually such monuments have the obelisk above, and below,
a rectangularly framed inscription, but here the inscription is styled as a casket tomb, with sloping sides, and lion feet,
standing on its own little shelf and with a lower tongue-shaped apron between two half-flowers. On top of this,
a draped pot in relief rests on a base bearing a low relief of crossed branches, with acroteria to the sides.
Behind this is the obelisk, which is in white stone rather than the usual polished black marble.
Monuments with vertical compositions, 1820s-30s.
- Major-Genera James Miller, d.1823, wife Jane [Bramham], d.1838,
and daughter Jane Sarah Cooper, d.1838. Elegant casket monument, with the inscription on the side
of the central, forward section, receding sides with superimposed pillars, ball feet, an upper shelf, with mouldings
and repeating leaf designs, and above, a carved draped pot within a pediment shape. The whole is supported on a shelf
with two floral supports, on a curvy backing. A little unusual and with a fine effect - see picture a little above and to the right.
- Mira Sophia (Bull) Stopford, d.1830. With fluted side pieces, upper and lower shelf, relief pot above
and two side ornaments, and a curved apron below with a bauble as the terminus. On a shaped backing with concave curves - see picture above right.
Light and elegant.
- Maria Catherine Barnett, d.1832, simple tomb chest end with block feet and an upper moulded shelf,
made in white marble with black streaks, presumably a form of Carrara.
- Lt Col. Henry Rogers, d.1833, of the Royal Artillery, and wife Isabella, d.1838,
and a daughter, also Isabella. As a casket end, with outward slanting sides, upper shelf, and the lid
like an over-heightened pediment with acroteria and bearing a small shield of arms, painted.
The casket rests of lion feet, standing on a chunky shelf, with rounded brackets - a picture is below, far left. On a shaped white backing.
Bull family: Two sons and a daughter of Lieut. Col. Bull and his wife Harriett:
Lieut. Robert Bull, d.1828, a victim of the fever at Gibraltar , Norman Bull, d.1833, killed by a shot
from a howitzer gun while witnessing the practice on Woolwich Common , and added later on a separate panel,
Elisabeth Louisa Bull, d.1831. Plain panels with upper shelves on a plain backing.
- Major General Sir George Bulteel Fisher, d.1834, Commandant of The Garrison of Woolwich ,
and wife Elizabeth, d.1860. With upper composite shelf, and at the base, a carved design of scrolls
and anemone patterns, nicely done. Above is a separate coat of arms with flourishes, well carved (picture at top of page). All on a shaped backing panel
the complete separation of the coat of arms from the rest of the monument in this way is unusual.
- Mary Louisa Bill, d.1835, and sister Emma Bill, d.1844,
square panel with small inscribed designs at the corners, on a plain backing.
- Sir Augustus Simon Frazer, d.1835, Colonel of the Royal Horse Artillery and Director of the
Royal Laboratory. White panel with upper and lower shelf, supported by carved corbels, and with at the top a shield of arms
upon a base, the whole being on a white shaped backing to give a pedimental effect. Directly next to this, touching,
is the later monument to his wife, Emma Frazer, d.1856, and two children, Augustus Henry Frazer, d.1848,
Captain of the Royal Artillery, and Andrew James Frazer, d.1845. This monument is similar to that of the husband,
but with a lozenge of arms above which is free-floating rather than resting on a base.
- Colonel Francis Smith, Royal Artillery, d.1837. As a casket end, with outward slanting sides,
thin shelf or rim and a lid, and resting on little lion feet below, which stand on a separate shelf with its own two supports - see picture below.
- Major-General Robert McCleverty, d.1838, and his wife, Elizabeth, d.1827,
oval panel in a stone frame.
- Capt. John Weatherall Smith, d.1839, son of Gen Sir John Smith, and wife Charlotte, d.1868.
Panel with fluted side pieces and upper shelf, above which it is cut to a pediment shape, bearing upon it a low relief carving
of a triumph, with crossed weapons and flags and a heap of accoutrements, rather slight. At the base, a carved shield of arms
with surround. On a shaped backing.
Common Classical shapes of monumental panels, mid-19th C: casket ends, oval, pediment.
- John George Crickitt, d.1840, Proctor of Doctors Commons, who counted all worldly honors
and riches as dross . Modest Classical tablet with upper shelf and cut to pediment shape above, and cut with two feet below,
on a backing.
- Mary Luard, d.1841, and husband Robert Reginald Luard, d.1857,
who died from an accident on his homeward passage from Canada . Plain panel cut with feet.
- Mary Perceval, d.1843 (wife of Sir Spencer Perceval), and son
James Francis Horati Perceval, d.1852, with upper pediment and lower shelf, and two block feet.
- Capt. Robert McCleverty, d.1845, son of Major Gen. Sir Robert McCleverty, noted above.
Blocky panel with little feet, and upper shelf, on a rectangular backing. See picture above, 2nd from right.
- Andrew Aylmer Staunton, d.1848, of the Royal Artillery, and his wife
Frederica, d.1854. Panel with upper shelf and pediment resting directly upon it,
with a small carving within of an open book in front of a leafy branch. Rather than sidepieces, little S-shaped scrolls
hang act as little brackets to the pediment on the sides, reaching about a third of the way down. There is the usual thick base
below, held by two small supports and attached to a painted backing. See picture above, far right.
- Major Charles Robinson, d.1849, of the Royal Marines, and his wife
Mary Robinson, d.1853. Plain panel with nipped corners on a white backing.
- Major-General John Boteler Parker, d.1851 with a list of his battles.
A blocky monument with recessed sides, and a curved base or apron bearing a carving of a curved sword,
I think a cavalry sword, passing through a wreath and with a pair of tasselled cords attached.
20th Century monuments:
Aside from the later Maryon Wilson panels noted above, we have:
- Downie Family plaques: Frances Winifred Downie, d.1905, modest plaque with Gothic text
and an inscribed line border on a pale backing. Mary Downie, d.1930, and daughter Constance, d.1922,
panel cut with a pointed top.
- George Guyer, d.1921, long time Church Warden. Plain.
Also in the Church
Outside
In the small area in front of the Church are a few monuments, including one panel against the Church wall from the 1660s,
with a little carved skull. The water fountain, in pink granite, is of 1902 and was a donation by Spencer Maryon-Wilson.
Across the road is the imposing Jacobean mansion first lived in by Sir Adam Newton as Lord of the Manor,
and later, also familiar from the monuments we have seen in St Luke s, Sir William Langhorn and the Maryon-Wilsons.
We may note en passant the stone portico with Corinthian columns and much relief sculpture,
simple ornamental patterns and some animal carvings: lion heads, grotesque dragons or sea-monsters,
dogs, birds and human masks. A free-standing gateway preserves a pair of cornucopias and a central device with another human face.
Outside St Luke's: 1660s panel, Jacobean mansion, and carvings.
With many thanks to the Church authorities for permission to show pictures of the monuments inside; their website is
http://www.southwark.anglican.org/parishes/065cf1.
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St Luke's Charlton, exterior and interior view with monuments.
Wilkinson and Newton monuments, the latter by Nicholas Stone the Elder.
Late 18th Century panels: Margaretta Jones and James Moffat.
Gen. Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson, d.1798, and Dame Jane Wilson, d.1818.
Elizabeth Dingley, d.1759, obelisk and Classical bust.
Spencer Perceval, d.1812, bust by Francis Chantrey.
Eliezer Burnett, d.1887: a Victorian Gothic panel.
