Old Tower of Former Church of St Margaret
OLD TOWER OF FORMER CHURCH OF ST MARGARET, LEE TERRACE SE3
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1193159
- Date first listed:
- 30-Aug-1954
- List Entry Name:
- Old Tower of Former Church of St Margaret
- Statutory Address:
- OLD TOWER OF FORMER CHURCH OF ST MARGARET, LEE TERRACE SE3
Location
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Images of England Project
- Date:
- 2003-05-21
- Reference:
- IOE01/07975/26
- Rights:
- © Mr George Davey. Source: Historic England Archive
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1193159
- Date first listed:
- 30-Aug-1954
- List Entry Name:
- Old Tower of Former Church of St Margaret
- Statutory Address 1:
- OLD TOWER OF FORMER CHURCH OF ST MARGARET, LEE TERRACE SE3
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- OLD TOWER OF FORMER CHURCH OF ST MARGARET, LEE TERRACE SE3
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Greater London Authority
- District:
- Lewisham (London Borough)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ 39026 75724
Details
779/15/L51 LEE TERRACE SE3 30-AUG-54 (North side) Old tower of former Church of St Marga ret
GV II West tower of former church, medieval. The remains of the west tower of the medieval former Church of St Margaret consist of the ground and part of the first stage of the tower, the rest of the church being demolished in 1813. It is of Kentish ragstone and flint covered in Roman cement. The west side has diagonal buttresses and an arched entrance with early C19 hoodmoulding. The south side has a lancet window, and the east side has an original stone arch interrupted by an early C19 brick four-centred arch. The interior has a semi-circular inscription tablet. The surrounding churchyard contains a number of good quality C18 tombs.
HISTORY: Lee old churchyard contains many notable monuments which reflect the area's Georgian past as a place of retirement for City merchants and those involved with Greenwich and the Deptford shipyards. In the centre of the churchyard stand the remains of the west tower belonging to the former medieval Church of St Margaret. It was the first of three churches dedicated to St Margaret of Antioch, and was probably built around 1080, although it was not mentioned in contemporary chronicles until 1275. The rest of the church was demolished in 1813. The outer walls of the nave and chancel have been marked in the grass by single stones. The current Church of St Margaret stands to the south side of Lee Terrace (listed Grade II*). It dates from 1839-41 by John Brown of Norwich, and replaces a church on the same site by Joseph Gwilt, 1813-14, which collapsed. The church was restored and enlarged in 1876 by James Brooks.
SUMMARY OF IMPORTANCE: The remains of the west tower of the medieval former Church of St Margaret, Lee old churchyard, Lewisham, are of interest as the remnants of a medieval church erected c1080 and subsequently remodelled, which stands within its churchyard containing a number of good quality C18 tombs, and close to the current early C19 Church of St Margaret (Grade II*). Surrounded as it is by an excellent set of commemorative funerary monuments, some to historically significant figures, this ruined church tower contributes to a notably romantic and elegiac landscape.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 203327
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 30-Jun-2026 at 17:20:00.
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