Reasons for Designation
The Church of St Germain is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* It is a good example of the Early Christian / Byzantine style which enjoyed a revival during the period and can be compared to some of the work being undertaken at Westminster R.C.cathedral just prior to this.
* It is considered to be the church which made the architect's reputation.
* It remains very largely unaltered, with many original internal fixtures and fittings surviving
* It is notable for the range of good quality materials used and careful detailing, in particular for the interior.
Details
This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 16 April 2021 to reformat the text to current standards
997/0/10479
Edgbaston
PORTLAND ROAD
180, Anglican Church of St Germain
23-JUL-09
II
The Church of St Germain was built in 1915-17 on land sold by local landowners the Gillott Trustees, and was designed by the architect Edwin Francis Reynolds. It stands at the corner of Portland Road and City Road.
MATERIALS: the building is constructed from brick with Hollington stone dressings and sections of decorative stone and tile work. The interior of the church has hardwood floors with walkways of stone and green Westmorland slate. The nave columns are of Shap granite and those in the chancel are green Swedish marble, both with Portland stone capitals.
PLAN: the church is built to a basilican plan, with the long nave and chancel in the same space, orientated south-east to north-west. The nave is flanked by aisles on both sides, with transepts flanking the chancel. The north transept has a small chapel at its east end and an external door, while the south transept contains the organ in the corresponding position. Behind these are a parish room and office linked by a corridor taking the form of an ambulatory. At the west end of the church are two entrance porches flanking the nave.
EXTERIOR: the church has a pitched roof with gables at each end of the nave, the transepts and porches also having gabled, pitched roofs. The aisles have lean-to roofs. The west façade has three round-headed windows at the base with a larger window above, all surrounded by sections of decorative brickwork and diaper pattern ventilation. In the apex of the gable is a carved stone panel depicting a shepherd, probably St Germain. Flanking the west façade are the twin porches with timber doors in Romanesque brick and stone surrounds with blank tympana and columns with cushion capitals. Above the west gable is a bellcote in late Gothic style, possibly constructed of timber with lead covering. The nave is of six bays, each marked by a clerestory window and divided by buttresses. At aisle level, each of the bays has two windows. Above the windows at both aisle and clerestory level are rows of brick dentilling with cogging above them. The transepts are marked on the exterior by a raised parapet with three round-headed windows separated by brick piers and decorative brickwork panels. At the east end of the church the single-storey church office and parish room, connected by ambulatory corridor, have mullioned windows in stone surrounds with round relieving arches above, and a central doorway. Above these is the exterior of the apse with a small round headed window and decorative brickwork on each face.
INTERIOR: the interior of the church consists of nave and chancel in a continuous space, divided from the aisles by an arcade of round-headed arches. The nave columns have cushion capitals with convex discs, while those in the chancel are Byzantine Ionic. The main altar, of decorative metalwork with marble panels, sits in a semicircular apse with three small windows and a plastered semi-dome. The southern transept houses the organ in a wooden case while the northern transept has a small side chapel with altar and triptych, both of which have frames of beaten metal. The aisle windows and those at the west end of the nave have some stained glass, and the clerestory windows contain clear quarries. The timber roof of the nave and chancel has three ranks of purlins and simple trusses with king posts and queen struts. Several beams are painted with Arts and Crafts motifs while the lean-to roofs of the aisles are undecorated timber. The floor of the church is largely hardwood, with walkways of stone and Westmorland slate in diamond patterns. The four original pews originally served as choir stalls, but have been removed to the western end of the nave with their reading desks, and have decorative marquetry inlay. The altar rails are of stone and those in the side chapel retain their original marble panels. The pulpit and lectern are also of stone and marble. The organ case is also simply decorated with patterns of cut-outs and holes and it bears memorial plaques to those who died in both world wars. The parish room and church office have cast iron window frames and cupboard doors with Arts and Crafts style decoration.
HISTORY: the original church was built in 1895 as a Mission church to serve the growing Edgbaston district of Birmingham, and was known as City Road Mission Church. In 1902 the Gillott Trustees donated the land for a new church with the condition that one be built within 15 years. More than ten years later, the architect Edwin Francis Reynolds was selected to design the church and the foundation stone was laid in July 1915. The church was dedicated to St Germain in September 1917 and has been in use since that date. In 1924 the vicarage was built adjacent to the church, also by Reynolds, and the original church building of 1895 was replaced in the 1950s, enabling its continued use as the church hall.
