St. Peter and St. Paul, Aldeburgh

St. Peter & St. Paul, Aldeburgh

Aldeburgh is a refined seaside town which has become synonymous with music. It was the home of Benjamin Britten and he and his partner, Peter Pears, are buried in the churchyard, along with several other notable musicians. When I come here I always think of Peter Grimes, Britten’s famous opera, which was performed on the beach here this summer. There are always plenty of visitors and it is not always easy to find a parking space. But to the church…

It is open every day although the sign boards only list the services held here. Inside there is much to see. There is information about some of the famous people associated with the town, especially Benjamin Britten. There are others as well. The church has a monument to George Crabbe as well as a moving one to a lifeboat disaster in 1899. I guess that many visitors come here because of Britten and there is a fine memorial window by John Piper.

The Trinity Chapel at Aldeburgh

There are some guide books for sale (although these had sold out on the day I visited) and some postcards, cards, book marks and prayer cards for sale. Also a ‘bat’ about the Nineteenth century glass in the church.The visitors book showed 16 visitors for October but there must be many more than that. There is a good folder on church life with lots of pictures of various events – this is obviously an active and friendly church. There is a prayer book to enter prayer requests into and a good children’s area set up for use.

I rate St. Peter and St. Paul’s as good for the visitor.