Country Churches

107. St John the Baptist Boldre

This lovely old church with its battlemented tower lies hidden away on a hillock in the forest south of Brockenhurst and was for many centuries the mother church of the southern New Forest. This accounts for its surprisingly large churchyard of 3½ acres with graves dating from the 17th century. Originally a Norman Foundation c 1080 most of the present church dates from the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries whilst the upper part of the tower at the east end was added in red brick in 1697.
The church is well known today for its H.M.S. Hood Memorial. The battle cruiser, flagship of Vice Admiral Holland was sunk by the German battleship Bismark near Iceland on 24 May 1941. It blew up and sank in two minutes. Only three survived out of a crew of 1416 men. Now the illustrated Book of Remembrance can be seen in the north chapel alongside a painting of the ship by Montagu Dawson. In the entrance porch are two oak benches carved with the ship’s badge and a small glass St Nicholas window. An annual service is still held in memory of the ship’s company.

The interior of the church is spacious with a white barrel roof with carved bosses. On a pillar near the 15th century font is a brass plaque in memory of the Revd Richard Johnson, curate of Boldre 1784-5, who sailed as chaplain with the First Fleet to found a penal colony in New South Wales in 1788. A photograph of St Philips Church Sydney, where his Bible and prayer book are displayed hangs above.
At the west end of the south aisle is a 1980 window in memory of Ian Taylor in gold, blue and yellow symbolising the Trinity. The main west window showing Faith, Hope and Charity is Victorian. The finely carved west door was given in memory of Squadron Leader William Clark shot down and killed in a raid on Hamburg in February 1943.

On the north wall of the nave is a fine portrait bust of John Kemp, M.P for Lymington in 1640, and in the south east corner is a memorial to Lt General Cleaveland who died in 1744 ‘after more than 60 years service to King and country in the East and West Indies, at the Havannahs and in diverse parts of America’. Close by is the latest addition to the church - a superb engraved Millennium Window by Tracey Sheppard. It carries the text “I am with you alway even unto the ends of the world” and portrays the church, a deer and various forest trees and flowers. It adds much to the beauty of the church.

The north (De Fortibus) Chapel contains three new armorial windows designed in 1956 by Francis Skeat. Two commemorate the Burrand family and the third Cresswell Desmond a painter. The east window of the chapel portrays Mary and the Child in memory of Rosemary Bradley. On the wall of the chapel is a memorial to the Rev William Gilpen, vicar 1777-1804, who built a Poor House and a model school for the parish. His chest tomb can be seen in the churchyard north of the church. The churchyard also contains the war graves of 15 Canadians of 405 Coastal Command Squadron who flew from Beaulieu during the war. A Canadian flag in their memory hangs at the west end of the nave.

The east window dates from 1947 and shows Christ in Glory and is in memory of Sub Lt Richard de Mowbray R.N. Eight bells hang in the tower and they have recently been converted to be run as a carillon. Finally note the fine set of embroidered pew runners. All bear the arms of British saints with different colours indicating their station: red (martyrs), royal blue (kings and queens), purple (bishops), black (monks), and white (nuns). All were made by the church Needlework Guild from 1956 onwards.

John Symonds