St Andrew's Church, Tangier

For other uses of "St Andrews", see St Andrews (disambiguation).

St Andrew's Church
Church of Saint Andrew
Church of St. Andrew
35°47′05″N 5°49′23″W
Address	Tangier
Country	Morocco
Denomination	Anglicanism
History
Status	Church
Dedication	Andrew the Apostle
Consecrated	1905
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architectural type	Church
Style	Moorish
Completed	1894
Administration
Archdeaconry	Gibraltar

The Church of Saint Andrew is an Anglican church in Tangier, Morocco. Consecrated in 1905, the church is within the Archdeaconry of Gibraltar. The building is constructed in a Moorish architectural style.

History

Moroccan Christians from Tangier.

In 1880, Hassan I of Morocco donated land to the British community in order to build a small Anglican church in Tangier. The resulting church was soon found to have insufficient capacity for the increasing number of worshippers, and a new building was constructed in 1894 which became the Church of Saint Andrew.[1] It was consecrated in 1905.[2] The interior is designed as a fusion of numerous styles, notably Moorish. The belltower, shaped like a minaret, overlooks the adjacent cemetery.[3] Henri Matisse's painting of 1913, Landscape Viewed from a Window, depicts the church.[4]

The church has a number of memorial plaques, including one to commemorate Emily Keene, (1849–1944), Sherifa of Wazzan, who introduced the cholera vaccine to Morocco. She was a British humanitarian who married the Shareef of Ouazzane, a local religious leader. She died in Tangier and there is a plaque in the western side of the church to commemorate her - her actual grave is in the Wazzan family burial ground in the Marshan district of Tangier overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar. Another memorial commemorates Thomas Kirby-Green, one of the members of the Great Escape who was executed on recapture.[5]

Administratively, the church is in the Archdeaconry of Gibraltar.[6]

Notable burials

The churchyard holds the graves of a number of notable people:

• Christopher Gibbs, (1938–2018), antique dealer and collector, credited with inventing Swinging London[7]
• Walter Burton Harris, (1866–1933), a British diplomat, journalist and author[5]
• Claire de Menasce and her second husband Commander Roy Howell RN. Claude-Marie Vincendon, her daughter by her first marriage, was the third wife of Lawrence Durrell[8]
• Paul Lund, (1915–1966), British gangster and friend of William Burroughs[9]
• Sir Harry MacLean, (1848–1920), soldier and commander of the Moroccan Army[10]

References

1. "St Andrew's Church, Tangier". London Metropolitan Archives. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
2. Humphrys, Darren (2008). Frommer's Morocco. John Wiley & Sons. p. 280. ISBN 978-0-470-18403-5.
3. "Tangier: A delight for your senses". Iberia.com. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
4. Grenney, Veere (10 April 2017). "My favourite painting". Country Life.
5. "St Andrew's Church, Tangier, Morocco". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
6. "Church Locations". Diocese of Europe. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
7. Owens, Mitchell (13 July 2018). "Remembering Christopher Gibbs". Architectural Digest.
8. "Review of Lawrence Durrell's novel Balthazar" (PDF). Blackwells. p. 21. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
9. Lockley, Mike (6 November 2016). "The infamous gangster and tabloid favourite who hailed from Brum". Birmingham Mail.
10. Cook, William (16 November 2013). "Tangier-Hidden Treasure". The Spectator.

External links

• Flickr images