Church of St Mary and All Saints, Whalley
Encyclopedia
The Church of St Mary and All Saints is an Anglican
church in the village of Whalley
, Lancashire
, England. It is an active parish church
in the Diocese of Blackburn
. A church probably existed on the site in Anglo-Saxon times and the current building dates from the 13th century. It has been designated a Grade I listed building by English Heritage
.
times; there are three well-preserved Anglo-Saxon crosses in the churchyard, as well as fragments from that time in the exterior walls of the current building. The "Church of St Mary held in Wallei" was mentioned in the Domesday Book
of 1086. Most of the present church was built in the 13th century, replacing a simpler structure which probably consisted of an aisleless
nave
and chancel
.
The tower was added in the late 15th century. A porch
was added to the south of the building in 1844, and one to the north in 1909. Restorations
took place in 1866 and 1868.
rubble and has stone slate roofs. Its plan consists of a clerestoried
nave with aisles to the north and south, a porch to the south, a chancel with a vestry to the north, and a west tower. The large east window is in the Perpendicular style and has five cinquefoil lights. The four clerestory windows on either side each have two cinquefoil lights square heads. The north and south aisles both have square-headed windows, five on the south side and three on the north. There are two modern dormer
windows in the roof of the north aisle.
The tower is in the Perpendicular style and, according to Hartwell & Pevsner
, is similar to many North Lancashire church towers. It is 70 feet (21.3 m) high and has square, angled buttress
es and a crenellated
parapet
. The belfry
louvres
each have two trefoil
ed lights with tracery
. There is a clock on the east wall of the tower.
dates from the 15th century while the oak cover 17th century.
The nave measures 72 feet (21.9 m) by 24 feet (7.3 m) and has four bay
s. It is in the Early English style. The north arcade has round pier
s and the south arcade has octagonal piers; all have moulded caps and bases. The arcade arches are pointed and double-chamfer
ed. On the nocth aisle is a churchwarden
's pwe, which seats eight, dating from 1690. At the east end of the north aisle there is a chantry
chapel dedicated to St Nicholas which is also known as the Soldiers Chapel. It contains evidence of a stair to a rood loft, probable remains of a piscina
and an altar stone
dating from the Middle Ages
and mounted on the wall. The chapel is surrounded by a screen from the 15th century. A chantry chapel at the east end of the south aisle is dedicated to St Mary. It too is surrounded by a 15th century screen and contains a piscina probably from the 14th century, with an ogee
-shaped head. The chapel contains square, wooden pews. The north aisle's north door is oak
with glass bullseyes and is enclosed by a wooden porch.
The chancel measures 51 in 6 in (15.7 m) by 24 in 6 in (7.47 m). The stalls date from the 15th century and came from the church at Whalley Abbey
. The misericord
carvings represent subjects including angels, devils, grape vines, griffin
s, pomegranates, the Holy Trinity and St George and the dragon.
St. Anton's Cage, a large pew next to the Lady Chapel, was originally the family pew for the Nowell family of Read. Made in 1534 it was added to in 1610 and again in 1697. Above the door the date of 1830 refers to the time when the pew was divided, by Ecclesiastical court order, in a dispute over ownership. The pew was never subsequently used. A oak box within the pew contains a 1684 edition of Foxe's Book of Martyrs
and an early edition of Whittaker's History of Whalley.
The organ, dating from 1727, was originally built for Lancaster Priory
. It was purchased in 1813 at a cost of three hundred guineas.
stone crosses, probably dating from the 10th or 11th century. There is a sundial
east of the church which has been given a Grade II designation by English Heritage. It dates from 1757.
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
church in the village of Whalley
Whalley, Lancashire
Whalley is a large village in the Ribble Valley on the banks of the River Calder in Lancashire, England. It is overlooked by Whalley Nab, a large picturesque wooded hill over the river from the village....
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England. It is an active parish church
Church of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
in the Diocese of Blackburn
Diocese of Blackburn
The Diocese of Blackburn is a Church of England diocese, covering much of Lancashire, created in 1926 from part of the Diocese of Manchester. The Diocese includes the towns of Blackburn, Blackpool, Burnley, and the cities of Lancaster, and Preston, as well as a large part of the Ribble Valley...
. A church probably existed on the site in Anglo-Saxon times and the current building dates from the 13th century. It has been designated a Grade I listed building by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
.
History
A church probably existed on the site of St Mary and All Saints in Anglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
times; there are three well-preserved Anglo-Saxon crosses in the churchyard, as well as fragments from that time in the exterior walls of the current building. The "Church of St Mary held in Wallei" was mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086. Most of the present church was built in the 13th century, replacing a simpler structure which probably consisted of an aisleless
Aisleless church
An Aisleless church is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways either side of the nave separated from the nave by colonnades or arcades, a row of pillars or columns...
nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
and chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
.
The tower was added in the late 15th century. A porch
Porch
A porch is external to the walls of the main building proper, but may be enclosed by screen, latticework, broad windows, or other light frame walls extending from the main structure.There are various styles of porches, all of which depend on the architectural tradition of its location...
was added to the south of the building in 1844, and one to the north in 1909. Restorations
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
took place in 1866 and 1868.
Exterior
The church is constructed of sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
rubble and has stone slate roofs. Its plan consists of a clerestoried
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
nave with aisles to the north and south, a porch to the south, a chancel with a vestry to the north, and a west tower. The large east window is in the Perpendicular style and has five cinquefoil lights. The four clerestory windows on either side each have two cinquefoil lights square heads. The north and south aisles both have square-headed windows, five on the south side and three on the north. There are two modern dormer
Dormer
A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used, either in original construction or as later additions, to create usable space in the roof of a building by adding headroom and usually also by enabling addition of windows.Often...
windows in the roof of the north aisle.
The tower is in the Perpendicular style and, according to Hartwell & Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
, is similar to many North Lancashire church towers. It is 70 feet (21.3 m) high and has square, angled buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es and a crenellated
Battlement
A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles. These cut-out portions form crenels...
parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
. The belfry
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
louvres
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
each have two trefoil
Trefoil
Trefoil is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism...
ed lights with tracery
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
. There is a clock on the east wall of the tower.
Interior and fittings
The south porch was added in 1844, but the doorway into the church contains parts of the pillars from the Norman church of the 11th century. The octagonal font of yellow gritstoneGritstone
Gritstone or Grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that are quarried for building material. British gritstone was used for millstones to mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for paper and for grindstones to sharpen blades. "Grit" is...
dates from the 15th century while the oak cover 17th century.
The nave measures 72 feet (21.9 m) by 24 feet (7.3 m) and has four bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
s. It is in the Early English style. The north arcade has round pier
Pier (architecture)
In architecture, a pier is an upright support for a superstructure, such as an arch or bridge. Sections of wall between openings function as piers. The simplest cross section of the pier is square, or rectangular, although other shapes are also common, such as the richly articulated piers of Donato...
s and the south arcade has octagonal piers; all have moulded caps and bases. The arcade arches are pointed and double-chamfer
Chamfer
A chamfer is a beveled edge connecting two surfaces. If the surfaces are at right angles, the chamfer will typically be symmetrical at 45 degrees. A fillet is the rounding off of an interior corner. A rounding of an exterior corner is called a "round" or a "radius"."Chamfer" is a term commonly...
ed. On the nocth aisle is a churchwarden
Churchwarden
A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish church or congregation of the Anglican Communion, usually working as a part-time volunteer. Holders of these positions are ex officio members of the parish board, usually called a vestry, parish council, parochial church council, or in the case of a...
's pwe, which seats eight, dating from 1690. At the east end of the north aisle there is a chantry
Chantry
Chantry is the English term for a fund established to pay for a priest to celebrate sung Masses for a specified purpose, generally for the soul of the deceased donor. Chantries were endowed with lands given by donors, the income from which maintained the chantry priest...
chapel dedicated to St Nicholas which is also known as the Soldiers Chapel. It contains evidence of a stair to a rood loft, probable remains of a piscina
Piscina
A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. Roman Catholics usually refer to the drain, and by extension, the basin, as the sacrarium...
and an altar stone
Altar stone
An altar stone is a piece of natural stone containing relics in a cavity and intended to serve as the essential part of an altar for the celebration of Mass in the Latin Church. Consecration by a bishop of the same rite was required...
dating from the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and mounted on the wall. The chapel is surrounded by a screen from the 15th century. A chantry chapel at the east end of the south aisle is dedicated to St Mary. It too is surrounded by a 15th century screen and contains a piscina probably from the 14th century, with an ogee
Ogee
An ogee is a curve , shaped somewhat like an S, consisting of two arcs that curve in opposite senses, so that the ends are parallel....
-shaped head. The chapel contains square, wooden pews. The north aisle's north door is oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
with glass bullseyes and is enclosed by a wooden porch.
The chancel measures 51 in 6 in (15.7 m) by 24 in 6 in (7.47 m). The stalls date from the 15th century and came from the church at Whalley Abbey
Whalley Abbey
Whalley Abbey is a former Cistercian abbey in Whalley, Lancashire, England. After the dissolution of the monasteries, the abbey was largely demolished and a country house was built on the site. In the 20th century the house was modified and it is now the Retreat and Conference House of the...
. The misericord
Misericord
A misericord is a small wooden shelf on the underside of a folding seat in a church, installed to provide a degree of comfort for a person who has to stand during long periods of prayer.-Origins:...
carvings represent subjects including angels, devils, grape vines, griffin
Griffin
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle...
s, pomegranates, the Holy Trinity and St George and the dragon.
St. Anton's Cage, a large pew next to the Lady Chapel, was originally the family pew for the Nowell family of Read. Made in 1534 it was added to in 1610 and again in 1697. Above the door the date of 1830 refers to the time when the pew was divided, by Ecclesiastical court order, in a dispute over ownership. The pew was never subsequently used. A oak box within the pew contains a 1684 edition of Foxe's Book of Martyrs
Foxe's Book of Martyrs
The Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, more accurately Acts and Monuments, is an account from a Protestant point of view of Christian church history and martyrology...
and an early edition of Whittaker's History of Whalley.
The organ, dating from 1727, was originally built for Lancaster Priory
Lancaster Priory
Lancaster Priory, formerly St Mary's Church, Lancaster, is the parish church of the city of Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It is located near Lancaster Castle and has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican church in the deanery of...
. It was purchased in 1813 at a cost of three hundred guineas.
Churchyard
The churchyard has three Anglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
stone crosses, probably dating from the 10th or 11th century. There is a sundial
Sundial
A sundial is a device that measures time by the position of the Sun. In common designs such as the horizontal sundial, the sun casts a shadow from its style onto a surface marked with lines indicating the hours of the day. The style is the time-telling edge of the gnomon, often a thin rod or a...
east of the church which has been given a Grade II designation by English Heritage. It dates from 1757.
External links
- St Mary and All Saints at Ribble Valley Borough Council