St Mary Magdalene, Woolwich

St Mary Magdalene stands on a spur of land reaching north towards the Thames in Woolwich, a town in southeast London. The present brick church was built between 1732 and 1739 to replace an earlier medieval building. Its plain round-headed windows and Portland stone dressings show the influence of London’s 17th-century brick churches. In 1894 a Gothic Revival chancel with Bath stone details was added by J.O. Scott. The iron-cast tomb of engineer Henry Maudslay, designed by himself, can be seen in the Lady Chapel. The church has witnessed notable figures and events over the centuries. Rectors included John Sweetyng, who helped build the Great Harry at Woolwich Dockyard in the early 16th century. In the 1960s rector Nicolas Stacey launched the “Woolwich Project,” turning parts of the building into a café and youth club. Princess Margaret opened the Coffee House in 1961, and local Presbyterians began sharing the space. The church’s interior retains a 1754 Byfield organ and a moveable walnut pulpit from 1899. St Mary’s Garden, once the churchyard, is now a public park designed by Fanny Wilkinson in 1893. It features gravel paths, lawns and mature trees, with gravestones along the northeastern edge. A drinking fountain was removed in the 1960s, and the tomb of bare-knuckle boxer Tom Cribb stands nearby. Two belvederes offer views of the Thames and Woolwich Ferry, though new buildings partly block the vista. Steps lead up from Woolwich Church Street to the park entrance, with other gates on Church Hill, St Mary Street and John Wilson Street.