The Origins of Christ Church
There is no definite record as to when the idea of building a new parish church to meet the needs of the rapidly increasing Church population of Bray was first suggested, but it was certainly after 1850. Until the consecration of Christ Church, the Parish Church in Bray was St Paul's Church beside the bridge in the centre of the town. This was a much older church on a site with evidence of origins before the Reformation (16th century). (St Paul's closed for worship in the early 1970's)
As the population of Bray expanded in the early 1850's, particularly with the advent of the railway in 1854, so it was deemed necessary to build a second church. References in fund-raising literature were made to the influx of visitors to the town who, being those to benefit from a new church, should help pay the cost. The chief promoter of the work was the 11th Earl of Meath whose family and descendants have influenced the parish and been munificent benefactors throughout its history.
Architectural archives from 1861 record the laying of the stone for the new church in Bray by the Archbishop of Dublin. The architect was Mr William Slater of Messrs Carpenter and Slater of London and the builder was Mr Carroll of Dublin.
The church was consecrated in 1863 on St James' Day, 25 July, by the Bishop of Killaloe. It is built from local granite in a simple French style but with several features, especially windows, which could have been derived from Irish medieval origins. Work began in 1865 on the tower and spire but completion was delayed by storms until 1870. This 53.3m (175 ft) landmark can be seen far and wide from the surrounding countryside and indeed sea.
The Bells
The tower remained empty for ten years after its completion until the peal of eight bells was hung. It is said that the impetus for a collection for a peal of bells came in a visit to Bray in 1877 with a remark by Prime Minister William Gladstone that "so noble a church tower as this should not be silent". The bells were made in England by Taylors of Loughborough and they vary in weight from the Treble (7 cwt) to the Tenor (1 ton 10 cwt). They were first hung in 1880/81 at a cost of £1,100. In 1950 they were re-hung on a steel frame after being returned to England for tuning. They have been rung regularly ever since by teams of parishioners before Sunday morning service and by visiting teams of bell-ringers from further afield. They are still rung each year at midnight on 31st December to welcome a new year. The bells at Christ Church have been described as one of the finest peals in the whole of Great Britain and Ireland.
The Windows
All around Christ Church you will see a fine collection of stained glass windows, each one of which was given as a memorial. At one time a phrase had been stencilled above each window describing its contents in a few words. These were destroyed by water damage from serious roof leaks, and in the 1980's were replaced with the same inscription carved on Irish oak panels.
Christ Church Bray in the 21st Century
The 21st century began for many inhabitants of Bray with the traditional ringing of bells at midnight on New Year's Eve 1999 after an ecumenical service in the church. The dawn of the third Christian millennium was celebrated by floodlighting the exterior of the building "so now the landmark of Christ Church reminds us through the darkness that Jesus is the light of our world". The exterior lighting particularly highlights the granite cross which stands opposite the steps up to the front porch of the Church. This is made from the same stone as the Church itself and was presented in 1912 by his widow and family in memory of Archdeacon Scott.
The Cache
The cache is a nano and is located opposite the church. Please put the cache back exactly where you find it! There is no on-street parking available, but it is possible to park nearby and walk around the corner to GZ. The 84, 184 and 145 buses stop at either end of the road.
I want to place a Church Micro cache too...
The Church Micro IE series is open to everyone; if you have a church you would like to place a cache at then please contact THE_Chris through Geocaching.com. This is to keep track of the numbers of the churches and give you the general format for the cache page. In the UK there are ~1500 caches in the series so we have some catching up to do! Also, if you currently have a published cache at a church that you would like to include in the series, get in contact and we can add it.