St Cuthbert's Church, Lytham
Encyclopedia
St Cuthbert's is an Anglican
church in Lytham, Lancashire
, England. It was built 1834–1835, replacing a previous church on the same site. It is an active parish church
in the Diocese of Blackburn
. It has been designated a Grade II* listed building by English Heritage
.
. The 1770 building was in turn replaced by the current structure, built in 1834–1835 to a design by W. H. Hobden. It was enlarged in 1872 by Paley and Austin, and in 1882 the same partnership added the north aisle. The church was further enlarged in 1909. A chapel was added in 1931 by Austin and Paley. On 13 January 1971 the church was designated a Grade II* listed building by English Heritage
. The Grade II* designation—the second highest of the three grades— is for "particularly important buildings of more than special interest".
St Cuthbert's is an active parish church in the Diocese of Blackburn
, the Archdeaconry of Lancaster, and the Deanery of Kirkham.
dressings
in the Perpendicular style. The roofs are slate
. The plan consists of a west tower, a nave
with aisle
s to the north and south, to the east, a chancel
and a vestry
north of the chancel. There is a small porch at the west end of the south aisle.
The tower has diagonal buttress
es and three stages. Its parapet
is crenellated
. It has two-light belfry
louvres
and a two-light west window. The aisles have three-light windows in the Perpendicular style and the nave clerestory
has smaller two-light windows. There are two-light windows in the chancel and the east window is a large three-light window in the Arts and Crafts
style. Like the tower, the aisle, nave, porch and chancel walls are crenellated.
, hung in a wooden frame. The church includes monuments to the local Clifton family.
St Cuthbert's stained glass includes a window designed in 1860 by Hardman & Co.
, an 1874 window depicting the Mount of Olives
by Morris & Co.
as well as work by Charles Eamer Kempe
, Jean-Baptiste Capronnier
and Clayton and Bell
.
, undated, but probably from the 18th century. It has a gadrooned
base with a fluted collar. The plate and gnomon
are coper and the plate is inscribed with "Dum spectes fugio". The sundial has been given a Grade II designation from English Heritage.
About 30 metres (98.4 ft) north of the church there is a monument to the crew of the St Annes-on-Sea lifeboat Laura Janet, who drowned in 1886 in an attempted rescue mission
of the Mexico
. The monument is constructed of red sandstone and, 4 metres (13.1 ft) high, sits on a square plinth of two steps. It is carved with an image of the lifeboat and inscribed with the names of the lost crew members. The monument has also been given a Grade II designation.
The vicarage to the west of St Chuthbert's may date from 1836, and may have been deisgned by W. H. Hobden. It is constructed of red brick in Flemish bond with ashlar
dressings in the Elizabethan style. Some features are Jacobean
. The vicarage has been designated a Grade II listed building by English Heritage.
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 Lytham, 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 was built 1834–1835, replacing a previous church on the same site. 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...
. It has been designated a Grade II* 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
The current church is the third to be built on the site. A church was built in 1770, replacing an older structure of cobblesCobblestone
Cobblestones are stones that were frequently used in the pavement of early streets. "Cobblestone" is derived from the very old English word "cob", which had a wide range of meanings, one of which was "rounded lump" with overtones of large size...
. The 1770 building was in turn replaced by the current structure, built in 1834–1835 to a design by W. H. Hobden. It was enlarged in 1872 by Paley and Austin, and in 1882 the same partnership added the north aisle. The church was further enlarged in 1909. A chapel was added in 1931 by Austin and Paley. On 13 January 1971 the church was designated a Grade II* 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...
. The Grade II* designation—the second highest of the three grades— is for "particularly important buildings of more than special interest".
St Cuthbert's is an active parish church 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...
, the Archdeaconry of Lancaster, and the Deanery of Kirkham.
Exterior
St Cuthbert's is constructed of dark red brick with 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,...
dressings
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
in the Perpendicular style. The roofs are slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
. The plan consists of a west tower, a 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...
with aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
s to the north and south, to the east, a 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...
and a vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
north of the chancel. There is a small porch at the west end of the south aisle.
The tower has diagonal 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 three stages. Its 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...
is 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...
. It has two-light 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...
and a two-light west window. The aisles have three-light windows in the Perpendicular style and the nave clerestory
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...
has smaller two-light windows. There are two-light windows in the chancel and the east window is a large three-light window in the Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
style. Like the tower, the aisle, nave, porch and chancel walls are crenellated.
Interior and fittings
The tower houses a ring of eight bellsRing of bells
"Ring of bells" is a term most often applied to a set of bells hung in the English style, typically for change ringing...
, hung in a wooden frame. The church includes monuments to the local Clifton family.
St Cuthbert's stained glass includes a window designed in 1860 by Hardman & Co.
Hardman & Co.
Hardman & Co., otherwise John Hardman Trading Co., Ltd., founded 1838, began manufacturing stained glass in 1844 and became one of the world's leading manufacturers of stained glass and ecclesiastical fittings...
, an 1874 window depicting the Mount of Olives
Mount of Olives
The Mount of Olives is a mountain ridge in East Jerusalem with three peaks running from north to south. The highest, at-Tur, rises to 818 meters . It is named for the olive groves that once covered its slopes...
by Morris & Co.
Morris & Co.
Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. and its successor Morris & Co. were furnishings and decorative arts manufacturers and retailers founded by the Pre-Raphaelite artist and designer William Morris...
as well as work by Charles Eamer Kempe
Charles Eamer Kempe
Charles Eamer Kempe was a well-known Victorian stained glass designer. After attending Twyford School, he studied for the priesthood at Pembroke College, Oxford, but it became clear that his severe stammer would be an impediment to preaching...
, Jean-Baptiste Capronnier
Jean-Baptiste Capronnier
Jean-Baptiste Capronnier was a Belgian stained glass painter. Born in Brussels in 1814, he had much to do with the modern revival of glass-painting, and first made his reputation by his study of the old methods of workmanship, and his clever restorations of old examples, and copies made for the...
and Clayton and Bell
Clayton and Bell
Clayton and Bell was one of the most prolific and proficient workshops of English stained glass during the latter half of the 19th century. The partners were John Richard Clayton and Alfred Bell . The company was founded in 1855 and continued until 1993...
.
Churchyard and surroundings
Approximately 3 metres (9.8 ft) south-east of the church porch is a sandstone pedestal sundialSundial
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...
, undated, but probably from the 18th century. It has a gadrooned
Gadrooning
Gadrooning is any decorative motif consisting of convex curves in a series. In furniture and other interior accessories, the term is applied to, among other things an ornamental carved band of tapered, curving and alternating concave and convex sections, usually diverging obliquely either side of a...
base with a fluted collar. The plate and gnomon
Gnomon
The gnomon is the part of a sundial that casts the shadow. Gnomon is an ancient Greek word meaning "indicator", "one who discerns," or "that which reveals."It has come to be used for a variety of purposes in mathematics and other fields....
are coper and the plate is inscribed with "Dum spectes fugio". The sundial has been given a Grade II designation from English Heritage.
About 30 metres (98.4 ft) north of the church there is a monument to the crew of the St Annes-on-Sea lifeboat Laura Janet, who drowned in 1886 in an attempted rescue mission
Southport and St Anne's lifeboats disaster
On the 9 December 1886 the Mexico, a Hamburg-registered barque bound for Guayaquil from Liverpool went aground near Southport, in a full west north westerly gale....
of the Mexico
Mexico (barque)
Mexico was a barque that was wrecked off Southport on 9 December 1886. She was repaired only to be lost in Scottish waters in 1890.-Shipwreck:...
. The monument is constructed of red sandstone and, 4 metres (13.1 ft) high, sits on a square plinth of two steps. It is carved with an image of the lifeboat and inscribed with the names of the lost crew members. The monument has also been given a Grade II designation.
The vicarage to the west of St Chuthbert's may date from 1836, and may have been deisgned by W. H. Hobden. It is constructed of red brick in Flemish bond with ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
dressings in the Elizabethan style. Some features are Jacobean
Jacobean architecture
The Jacobean style is the second phase of Renaissance architecture in England, following the Elizabethan style. It is named after King James I of England, with whose reign it is associated.-Characteristics:...
. The vicarage has been designated a Grade II listed building by English Heritage.