| St Raphael | |
|---|---|
 Surbiton's Roman Catholic church of Saint Raphael | |
 St Raphael | |
| OS grid reference | TQ 17823 68365 |
| Location | Portsmouth Road, Kingston, Surrey |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | St Raphael's Church |
| History | |
| Founded | 1846–1848 |
| Consecrated | 28 September 2012; 13 years ago (2012-09-28) |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Archdiocese of Southwark |
| Parish | Kingston |
| Clergy | |
| Priest | Fr. Michael Lovell |
| Deacon | Dn. Peter Sebastian |
Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Designated | 24 December 1968 |
| Reference no. | 1080045 |
St Raphael's Church, Surbiton is theRoman Catholic parish church ofSurbiton. It is dedicated toSaint Raphael and located onPortsmouth Road. It isGrade II* listed.[1]
It was designed by the eminent architect Charles Parker in anItalianate style, with early Christian and Renaissance influences. The entire cost was met byAlexander Raphael, a Catholic Armenian whose family came from India.[2] He became the first Roman Catholic to be electedSheriff of London after the passing of theCatholic Emancipation Act in 1829. Raphael built the Church in 1846 as a family chapel and named it after St Raphael. It was completed in 1848. But soon after, in November 1850, he died. His nephew, Edward, inherited the property and opened it to the public as the first Roman Catholic church in Kingston.[3]
Through successive bequests, the Church and land became the property of Captain Hon. George Savile, brother to the SixthEarl of Mexborough, a Yorkshire family.
There is a memorial plaque forLady Anne Savile, daughter of the fourth Earl,Colonel Minchin andCaptain Hamilton who were lost attempting to set an aviation record by being the first aviator to fly over the Atlantic Ocean from east to west. Other members of the Savile family who lived nearby inThames Ditton are buried in the vault under the High Altar.[3][4]
The church was sold to theDiocese of Southwark after the Second World War and is now on the Registered List of Buildings of historical and architectural interest.[3] The church was officially consecrated on St Raphael's Day (28 September) 2012.[5]
| Districts |   | |
|---|---|---|
| Attractions | ||
| Bridges and tunnels | ||
| Parks and open spaces | ||
| Constituencies | ||
| Rail stations | ||
| Places of worship | ||
| Sport | ||
| Other topics | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
51°24′08″N0°18′27″W / 51.4021°N 0.3076°W /51.4021; -0.3076
