Overview of the district and its places of worship List of places of worship in Arun

the district of arun on west sussex coast.



in rural north of district, churches such 1 @ patching nestle on slopes of south downs.



st catherine s roman catholic church founded in littlehampton in 1860s.

the district of arun, created in 1974, covers 22,811-hectare (56,370-acre) area of english channel coast , hinterland in county of west sussex. clockwise coast, bordered districts of chichester, horsham , adur , borough of worthing. name comes river arun, flows north–south through middle of district , reaches sea @ littlehampton, 1 of main towns , district s administrative headquarters. littlehampton developed seaside resort in 19th century; now, eastern suburbs of rustington, east preston , angmering (originally separate villages), forms part of brighton/worthing/littlehampton conurbation. each urban centre has several churches including old anglican parish church. west of arun estuary, bognor regis conurbation includes suburbs of elmer, middleton-on-sea, felpham, aldwick , pagham, , 19th-century seaside resort of bognor (suffixed regis 1929) itself. many churches exist within urban area well. flat hinterland supports market gardening industry , several villages , suburbs development stimulated 19th-century rail links. further north, on southern slopes of south downs, hamlets such madehurst, houghton, burpham , poling have existed hundreds of years, clustered around churches. in north of district arundel, ancient hilltop town landmark castle , roman catholic cathedral make distance ... 1 of great town views in england . until coastal strip became heavily urbanised late 19th century, arundel main urban focus of area, , supported places of worship several christian denominations. protestant nonconformism particularly strong in town.

anglicanism, england s state religion, represented ancient , modern churches throughout district. simple norman-era , medieval buildings include @ ford, burpham (whose cruciform design uncommon in area), tortington , pagham. period of churchbuilding started in 19th century in response increasing urbanisation. in bognor regis, church dedicated st john baptist built speculatively in 1821; pulled down in favour of arthur blomfield s large, uninspired replacement of 1886. in turn demolished in 1972, , town s main anglican church st wilfrid s, stone gothic revival building of 1910 george fellowes prynne. littlehampton s parish church, dedicated st mary, has medieval origins rebuilt in 1826 , again in 1935 (in eerie, disembodied gothic revival style according ian nairn , nikolaus pevsner). in late 19th , 20th centuries, suburbs such north bersted, aldwick , wick allocated parishes , given own churches. mission rooms—small, cheap chapels of ease in outlying settlements distant parish church—were opened in places such lidsey, westergate , warningcamp.

roman catholic worship outlawed centuries after english reformation, mid-19th century experienced striking growth ... in , around arundel , helped construction of lavish church of our lady , st philip howard in 1869–73. became arundel cathedral in 1965 when roman catholic diocese of arundel , brighton created, , administrative centre of region. staunchly catholic dukes of norfolk, seat @ arundel castle, influential in catholicism s development in arundel , rest of england many years. anglican vicar of 1860s said there more roman catholics anglicans in parish of arundel, , 750 lived in area in 1973. elsewhere in district, roman catholic worship has taken place @ slindon since late 18th century, , present church dates 1865; late-19th-century priest @ arundel founded churches @ angmering, houghton (both closed) , littlehampton; , rustington , east preston gained churches in 20th century. monks of servite order founded bognor regis s church of our lady of sorrows in 1881.

protestant nonconformism—a strong force in sussex since 17th century—continues thrive. baptists, methodists, united reformed church, plymouth brethren, quakers , other denominations represented in main towns , in cases smaller villages: example, baptists have met @ walberton since 1840s , methodists @ westergate since 1851. congregationalists—predecessors of current united reformed denomination—found success in arundel, chapel of 1838 (now market) thrived until late 20th century , established daughter churches in nearby villages such yapton. quakers in littlehampton took on former penny school building place of worship, , converted barns house brethren in felpham, evangelicals in aldwick , baptists in angmering (whose strangely towered former chapel in residential use). baptists in arundel , walberton sold original chapels , built new ones.

for centuries, coastal erosion has affected area covered modern district. several churches , whole settlements have been lost sea or depopulation brought erosion. cudlow , ilsham, both in climping parish, lost churches 17th century, did nearby atherington. church @ middleton-on-sea fell disrepair late 18th century, , sea eroding graveyard, revealing dead bodies. destruction came in 1838, when high tide engulfed ruins. new church built afterwards. ancient chapel of st bartholomew @ bognor washed away in 16th century. in parish of angmering, st margaret s church survives: described church of west angmering during medieval era, when east angmering , barpham each had own building. barpham s fell down , went out of use in 16th century, , east angmering s derelict same time , no longer survives. excavations in 20th century revealed fragmentary remains of each. other churches , chapels fell out of use before english reformation survive in other uses—for example @ bilsham (now house), nyetimber (part of retirement home complex) , bailiffscourt (in grounds of luxury hotel).