St Michael the Archangel Church, Chatham
catholic church in Kent, United Kingdom

St Michael the Archangel Church is a Roman Catholic parish church in Chatham, Kent, England. It was built from 1862 to 1863 in the Romanesque Revival style, designed by Henry Clutton. In 1935, an extension was built, designed by the Frederick Walters and Son firm. It is situated on Hill's Terrace between Rochester Street and Maidstone Road, next to Chatham railway station. When built, it was the only Catholic church in Medway.
History
Foundation
In 1795, the first Catholic mission in Medway was founded in Brompton. It created by a French priest. At first, the chapel was housed on Westcourt Street and later on Manor Street. The mission would remain there until St Michael's Church was built.
Construction
The church was built from 1862 to 1863.
“St Michael the Archangel Church, Chatham” enters the record as catholic church in Kent, United Kingdom. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Michael, Archangel and Church can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“St Michael the Archangel Church, Chatham” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Michael, Archangel and Church provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q23018806. Authority coordinates are 51.379, 0.521. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1862, 1863, 1935 and 1795.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
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Three-step research path
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This entry incorporates text from “St Michael the Archangel Church, Chatham” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.