[4] As such, it became a focal point for life in the town and was used as a place of worship by crusaders en route to the Holy Land, soldiers heading for Agincourt in 1415[5] and Philip II of Spain in 1554 on his way to marry Queen Mary at Winchester Cathedral.

The font, which has been removed from its ancient place near the church door, and now stands under the organ loft, is octagonal, and adorned with niches in a neat, though plain, Gothic style.

[8] In 1848–49[9] the vicar, Reverend William Wilson,[10] set about restoring the church, retaining parts of the 14th century chancel and aisles and the south-west tower and spire.

[10] Writing in 1850, Philip Brannon said: Holyrood Church, with the exception of the chancel and tower, is newly rebuilt, or rather restored, in a manner that reflects the highest credit on the Vicar and committee who promoted, and on the architect, builder, and carver who executed the work.

The effect of the interior is very fine; the rich tracery of the great west window – the lofty pointed arches between the body and the aisles, with the neat clerestories above them – the ancient chancel – and the open timber roof – produce a very imposing whole, judiciously preserved by the position of the organ, which does not here obtrude a heavy square mass on the sight, blinding other principal features, but is placed on the right.

As a result, a grant of £670,000 was received from the Heritage Lottery Fund to repair the tower and the chancel, with a new lighting scheme being installed to make the former church a feature of Southampton's night skyline.

[9] On the west face of the tower there is a memorial plaque to Charles Dibdin (1745–1814) described as a "native of Southampton, poet, dramatist and composer, author of Tom Bowling, Poor Jack and other sea songs".

[18] Inside the church, under the tower is a memorial fountain, erected in 1912–13 for those who lost their lives in the sinking of the RMS Titanic, which was removed from its original site in Cemetery Road on Southampton Common.

[9][19] The memorial is augmented by audioposts installed in 2007, from which can be selected historical recordings made by the Southampton Oral History Unit which "give the listener a very real impression of what the now ruined church looked like before the war and what that area meant to those who loved it".

Known for centuries as the church of the sailors the ruins have been preserved by the people of Southampton as a memorial and garden of rest, dedicated to those who served in the Merchant Navy and lost their lives at sea.