St Charles Borromeo Roman Catholic Church, Hampton-on-the-Hill
St Charles Borromeo Roman Catholic Church, Hampton-on-the-Hill, is a Grade II* listed Gothic church built in 1819 with a perpendicular-style addition of 1830. The interior contains a four-centred arch altar recess with panelled walls and a white marble late empire altar.
There has been a Catholic presence here for a long time thanks to the fact that the local “squire”, Lord Dormer, had a chapel in his house at Grove Park in the village.
The baptismal register goes back to 1808, although the present church was built around 1820 and extended to its present form in 1830.
The first parish priest, Fr Jean Lavigne, was most probably resident at Grove Park. He was a Franciscan and the Franciscans were responsible for a Catholic clergy presence in the area from Reformation times. The house (now the presbytery) and the land around was bequeathed to the church in 1819 by the 9th Lord Dormer.
