The church I describe in my novel The Goddess And The Thief is in fact a real one, situated in the centre of Windsor.
It was originally founded with a gift of 200 guineas that came from Queen Victoria, after which it was built as a parish church to serve local army garrisons too - although the Ministry of Defence offers the church no funding at all.
The foundation stone was laid by Prince Albert in 1842, and when entering the church today you will also be greeted by a life-sized marble statue of the prince.
It is said that Albert also designed the very fine painted ceilings - but sadly the structure is now at risk due to a theft that took place on the night of Monday October 25. During this wicked act several sheets of lead were stolen from some of the exterior roofing, during which process the interior has now been placed in danger.
Work to repair the now stripped roofs has been estimated at tens of thousands of pounds, and it seems that this damage was uninsured. The Virtual Victorian is therefore taking the unusual step of linking to a Pay Pal funding page set up by Holy Trinity to try and help to raise these funds, and therefore to save this historic church.
If you could spare something to help the fund - however small that donation might be - I know that those who care for the church would be incredibly grateful.
The link to donate is HERE
What do thieves destroy sections of beautiful or historic public institutions like churches? I don't normally believe in long goal sentences, but this is one man I would like locked away for a long time!!!!
ReplyDeleteHels and Joseph
It is very upsetting. I feel so sorry for the vicar and all the volunteers as they work so hard to keep the church alive.
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