A few photos gathered over the years of the iconic Brum landmark
St Martin's Church....to go with those above....and a bit of history....
The present Victorian church was built on the site of a 13th-century predecessor, which was documented in 1263. The church was enlarged in medieval times and the resulting structure consisted of a lofty nave and chancel, north and south aisles and a northwest tower with spire.
In 1547, although no record is kept to indicate when the first clock appears in Birmingham, during this year the King's Commissioners report that the Guild of the Holy Cross are responsible "ffor keeping the Clocke and the Chyme" at a cost of four shillings and four pence a year at St Martin's Church. The next recorded mention of a clock is in 1613. The earliest known clock makers in the town arrived in 1667 from London.
In 1690, the churchwardens "dressed the church in brick". All was cased in brick with the exception of the spire.
John Cheshire rebuilt 40 feet of the spire in 1781, which was strengthened by an iron spindle running up its centre for a length of 105 feet. It was secured to the sidewalls at every ten feet by braces. In 1801, several metres from the top of the spire were replaced after they were found to have decayed. The tops of the four pinnacles surrounding the main spire were also rebuilt. By 1808, the spire had been struck by lightning three times.
In 1853, the brick casing was removed from the tower by Philip Charles Hardwick, who added the open-air pulpit. The church also contained an organ, the reedwork of which had been done by John Snetzler. However, the pipes were found to be ineffective due to their proximity to the church roof and walls.
In 1875, John Thackray Bunce published a book, History of Old St. Martin's, Birmingham, illustrated with paintings by Allen Edward Everitt.
Current church
In 1873, the church was demolished and rebuilt by architect J. A. Chatwin, preserving the earlier tower and spire. During the demolition, medieval wall paintings and decorations were discovered in the chancel, including one showing the charity of St Martin dividing his cloak with a beggar. Two painted beams were also found behind the plaster ceiling.
The exterior is built of rockfaced Grimshill stone. The interior is of sandstone with an open timber roof, which shows the influence of the great hammerbeam roof of Westminster Hall. The beams are decorated with fine tracery and end in large carvings of angels. The roof weights 93 tons, spans 22 ft over the 100 ft long nave and is 60 ft high. The Victorian floor tiles are by Minton and display the quartered arms of the de Bermingham family.
![1730 Bull Ring Pictorial Map.jpg 1730 Bull Ring Pictorial Map.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56202-15f39ccce4db5defef0ee8b8f983361b.jpg)
![12901413_508127326041503_3795120712453055636_o.jpg 12901413_508127326041503_3795120712453055636_o.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56203-f1cf88f6b2751cc9c78c06fb9a01b9f0.jpg)
![56910185_10216476189008488_5837736934750814208_o.jpg 56910185_10216476189008488_5837736934750814208_o.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56204-60799ae692d4f37d92aedd11697c7728.jpg)
![Brum Map drawing Bull Ring. 1553jpg.jpg Brum Map drawing Bull Ring. 1553jpg.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56205-762cf04f6873361004da1ecc9b007102.jpg)
![St Martins 4.jpg St Martins 4.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56206-5a647c60faf5cc68c4dd48df049ac407.jpg)
![St Martins article F&P.jpg St Martins article F&P.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56207-ee83ad20567b575354a4353f123c4a09.jpg)
![St Martins before restoration.jpg St Martins before restoration.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56208-56087d419affe0709461f31cc1b6fda8.jpg)
![St Martins by JWW Turner....jpeg St Martins by JWW Turner....jpeg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56209-fee7aba335aba26ded46439bd8a8471b.jpg)
![St Martins demo down Digbeth .jpg St Martins demo down Digbeth .jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56210-7c0320572920c8e0cc640ed638ab2f78.jpg)
![St Martins Demolition 1872.jpg St Martins Demolition 1872.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56211-8b481f5435ed87150dcdeae57d6ac5ad.jpg)
![St Martins first.jpg St Martins first.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56212-5fbf9db9ba1d3a51e3af360f17aa99bc.jpg)
![St Martins old print.jpg St Martins old print.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56213-6a4e0d1de8d59ee3b1e0f33991633909.jpg)
![St_Martin_in_the_Bull_Ring_circa_1809.jpg St_Martin_in_the_Bull_Ring_circa_1809.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56214-c01f06ca0e4e83eae19c7807cafe5363.jpg)
![St_Martin's_church,_Birmingham_by_Allen_Edward_Everitt_-_06.jpg St_Martin's_church,_Birmingham_by_Allen_Edward_Everitt_-_06.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56215-dd61767738b205372d998e62db132fa7.jpg)
![St_Martins_Birmingham_external_pulpit.jpg St_Martins_Birmingham_external_pulpit.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56216-bcde0c3a9b7265e1dadcdbdef1cd188a.jpg)
![St-Martins-Church-1.jpg St-Martins-Church-1.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56217-eec7b94bedb3fdbcfa6ed38be060506c.jpg)
![St-Martins-Church-2.jpg St-Martins-Church-2.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56218-60d7f367f6c5744e8a15643cfae9332c.jpg)
![St-Martins-Church-5.jpg St-Martins-Church-5.jpg](https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/data/attachments/56/56219-89bf1df6143e23970fafce47aac87145.jpg)