All Saints' Church, Southampton

All Saints' Church
All Saints' Church with neighbouring shops (and East Street in between) in 1852
All Saints' Church, Southampton is located in Southampton
All Saints' Church, Southampton
Shown within Southampton
Former namesAll Hallows' Church
General information
StatusDestroyed
TypeChurch
LocationSouthampton City Centre
AddressHigh Street, Southampton
Coordinates50°54′07″N 1°24′15″W / 50.90182°N 1.40409°W / 50.90182; -1.40409
Construction startedSpring 1792
Completed1795
Destroyed30 November / 1 December 1940
Design and construction
Architect(s)Willey Reveley

All Saints' Church was a church building in Southampton City Centre, located on the corner of the High Street and East Street, a short distance south of the Bargate.

The original church on the site was named All Hallows, and was constructed in medieval times on land granted by the monarch at the time, Henry II, to the monks of St. Denys Priory. This building fell into disrepair and in the 1790s a new church building was constructed and the church renamed to All Saints. The old church was demolished in 1791 and the new building was completed in 1795, following two acts of Parliament allowing trustees of the church to raise funds from rates on property and rents in the parish. The All Hallows catacombs were incorporated into the All Saints building, and a separate graveyard was established. The church was regularly attended by author Jane Austen while she lived in Southampton and painter Sir John Everett Millais was baptised there. A new organ was installed in the church in 1861 and a substantial refurbishment programme took place in 1872. All Saints was heavily damaged in the Southampton Blitz and was subsequently demolished.

The All Saints building was designed by architect Willey Reveley and featured an arched ceiling that spanned the whole sanctuary, some 90 feet (27 m) long and 60 feet (18 m) wide, without the use of any supporting pillars. The neoclassical frontage of the church was dominated by four columns supporting Grecian pilasters and a triangular pediment.

The catacombs were the resting place of a chancellor of the Exchequer and two notable Royal Navy officers among others. In August 1944 the remains of all 403 people buried in the catacombs were transferred to a communal grave elsewhere in Southampton.