Tower and Town, March 2022

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Editorial: 'Tower' Stories

Following on from John Osborne's excellent edition of Tower and Town last month, this edition seeks to throw some light on some aspects of the worshipping community of Marlborough in the past. These are stories of our places of worship and some of the people associated with that history. It seeks to show what a rich heritage we have in this place and how a culture of faith has helped to shape us who we are.

David Sherratt tells something of the history of the church in Minal and the people who made it what it is today, and Jeremy York does the same for Preshute church. These are stories very much related to building and place, but the story of the Friends told by Chris Wheare focuses much more on the people. Sandra and David Wylie have a not dissimilar story to tell about the establishment of a Methodist congregation in town, but Nick Fogg's insight into the Catholic community takes us far further back in time. The church of St Peter and St Paul no longer supports a worshiping community, but one hundred and fifty years ago the reopening of the restored church was a day ‘unparalleled in the history of Marlborough’. Monuments and memorial windows in St Mary's throw light on some of the people who worshiped here in the past, and last but by no means least Niall Hamilton explains the importance of Marlborough College chapel to the evolution of that school.

To all those who have contributed in this way my grateful thanks for sharing some of their knowledge and their understanding of that rich past, as well as to others whose regular contributions illustrate what a rich present we also have.

David Du Croz