St Michael on Greenhill, Lichfield
Encyclopedia
St Michael on Greenhill is a parish church in Lichfield
, Staffordshire
in the United Kingdom
, located on the high ground of Greenhill in the east of the city. A church has been on the present site since at least 1190 but the current building dates mainly from the restoration
of 1842-43. The churchyard is one of five ancient burial grounds in England
and is unique as it is one of the largest churchyards in the country at 9 acres (36,421.7 m²).
St. Michael's church at Greenhill is first recorded in 1190, but the area on which it stands has a much older history. Mesolithic
flint remains have been unearthed in the churchyard and may indicate the site of an early flint industry, these remains indicate the site on which St Michael’s churchyard now stands was one, if not the earliest settlement in Lichfield.
Before the church, the site was one of significant religious importance as a burial ground. It is one of five ancient burial grounds in England. Local lore relates that it was consecrated by Saint Augustine and that the presence of this ancient site in Mercia
drew Saint Chad to Lichfield and ensured that it became the centre of the new diocese. Evidence of its ancient roots can be found in the presence of crouched burials, a type of burial more common before the Norman Conquest
.
Speculation about the churchyard's large size of 7 acres (increased to 9 acres (36,421.7 m²) in the 20th century) suggested that it had been the burial place of early Christians, victims of a supposed massacre of the followers of the apocryphal Saint Amphibalus. Another suggestion made it a Mercian tribal necropolis. Its size may merely reflect its function as the principal graveyard for the city and the surrounding areas.
The west tower was constructed in the 15th century with local red sandstone. The tower is perpendicular in style and has a recessed spire. The spire was blown down in 1594 and in 1601 money was spent rebuilding the tower and topping it with a weathercock.
From the 16th century the churchyard at St Michael’s was used as pastureland for sheep and cattle owned by the parishioners of St Michaels. This practice continued into the 19th century when it stopped and allowed nature to reclaim the area.
in 1842-43 under the design of Thomas Johnson (a local Lichfield architect). The work included the re-roofing of the nave, the repair of the side aisles and the nave clerestory, the reintroduction of perpendicular windows in the north aisle, the rebuilding of the north porch, and the remodelling of the south aisle with new buttresses and a south door in place of a window. The mausoleum and the vestry room were replaced by a stokehold over which a clergy vestry was built with doors into the chancel and the south aisle and an organ loft was built over the vestry. A clock was installed onto the tower in 1814.
In 1845 and 1846 the chancel was restored to the design of Sydney Smirke
. The east window was turned into a three-light window, all the side windows became single lancets, and the clerestory was removed. In the late 1870s a stone pulpit was erected, and in the mid 1880's new seating was installed.
Extensive work was carried out in 1890-91 to the design of John Oldrid Scott
. The chancel was restored and refurbished. The tower was repaired and the internal lancet window unblocked. In 1906 the spire was restored and a new vane erected after being damaged by a storm. A new vestry in the south-east angle of the church was dedicated in 1923.
and St Michael’s were joined to form a single parish with St Michael’s as the parish church and St Mary’s designated as a Chapel of Ease. Together with St John’s at Wall
it forms a group of churches known as the United Benefice. Regular services take place on Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Weddings, baptisms and funerals also take place at the church as well as a regular Sunday school.
The churchyard is now preserved as a wildlife area.
The rectory
was built to the south west of the church in the 1970s on St Michael’s Road replacing one built in 1858. The new house remains the rectory house for the combined benefice.
Lichfield
Lichfield is a cathedral city, civil parish and district in Staffordshire, England. One of eight civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield is situated roughly north of Birmingham...
, Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, located on the high ground of Greenhill in the east of the city. A church has been on the present site since at least 1190 but the current building dates mainly from the restoration
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...
of 1842-43. The churchyard is one of five ancient burial grounds in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and is unique as it is one of the largest churchyards in the country at 9 acres (36,421.7 m²).
Ancient Burial Ground
The church lies on a sandstone ridge at 104m above sea level, it overlooks the city to the west. The land on which the church is located owes much of its ancient history to its unique hilltop location.St. Michael's church at Greenhill is first recorded in 1190, but the area on which it stands has a much older history. Mesolithic
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic is an archaeological concept used to refer to certain groups of archaeological cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic....
flint remains have been unearthed in the churchyard and may indicate the site of an early flint industry, these remains indicate the site on which St Michael’s churchyard now stands was one, if not the earliest settlement in Lichfield.
Before the church, the site was one of significant religious importance as a burial ground. It is one of five ancient burial grounds in England. Local lore relates that it was consecrated by Saint Augustine and that the presence of this ancient site in Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
drew Saint Chad to Lichfield and ensured that it became the centre of the new diocese. Evidence of its ancient roots can be found in the presence of crouched burials, a type of burial more common before the Norman Conquest
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
.
Speculation about the churchyard's large size of 7 acres (increased to 9 acres (36,421.7 m²) in the 20th century) suggested that it had been the burial place of early Christians, victims of a supposed massacre of the followers of the apocryphal Saint Amphibalus. Another suggestion made it a Mercian tribal necropolis. Its size may merely reflect its function as the principal graveyard for the city and the surrounding areas.
Medieval Church
The earliest church on the site was first recorded in 1190 and may have been a small cemetery chapel. But the oldest remaining parts of the current church date from the 13th century in the form of some masonry in the chancel. The church register dates from 1574.The west tower was constructed in the 15th century with local red sandstone. The tower is perpendicular in style and has a recessed spire. The spire was blown down in 1594 and in 1601 money was spent rebuilding the tower and topping it with a weathercock.
From the 16th century the churchyard at St Michael’s was used as pastureland for sheep and cattle owned by the parishioners of St Michaels. This practice continued into the 19th century when it stopped and allowed nature to reclaim the area.
Current Building
Much of the medieval fabric of the church was lost when the church was restoredVictorian 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...
in 1842-43 under the design of Thomas Johnson (a local Lichfield architect). The work included the re-roofing of the nave, the repair of the side aisles and the nave clerestory, the reintroduction of perpendicular windows in the north aisle, the rebuilding of the north porch, and the remodelling of the south aisle with new buttresses and a south door in place of a window. The mausoleum and the vestry room were replaced by a stokehold over which a clergy vestry was built with doors into the chancel and the south aisle and an organ loft was built over the vestry. A clock was installed onto the tower in 1814.
In 1845 and 1846 the chancel was restored to the design of Sydney Smirke
Sydney Smirke
Sydney Smirke, architect, was born in London, England, the younger brother of Sir Robert Smirke, also an architect. Their father, also Robert Smirke, had been a well-known 18th Century painter.Sydney Smirke's works include:...
. The east window was turned into a three-light window, all the side windows became single lancets, and the clerestory was removed. In the late 1870s a stone pulpit was erected, and in the mid 1880's new seating was installed.
Extensive work was carried out in 1890-91 to the design of John Oldrid Scott
John Oldrid Scott
John Oldrid Scott was an English architect.He was the son of Sir George Gilbert Scott and Caroline née Oldrid. His brother George Gilbert Scott Junior and nephew Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, were also prominent architects. He married Mary Ann Stevens in 1868, eldest daughter of the Reverend Thomas...
. The chancel was restored and refurbished. The tower was repaired and the internal lancet window unblocked. In 1906 the spire was restored and a new vane erected after being damaged by a storm. A new vestry in the south-east angle of the church was dedicated in 1923.
Notable Features
- In the centre of the nave is a floor slab commemorating Samuel Johnson'sSamuel JohnsonSamuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
father Michael (d. 1731), his mother Sarah (d. 1759), and his brother Nathaniel (d. 1737), all of whom were buried in the church. It was placed there in 1884 to mark the centenary of Johnson's own death. The inscription on it is that composed by Johnson for an earlier stone which he ordered a few days before he died That original stone was removed when the church was repaved in the late 1790s. Richard Greene a relation of Dr Johnson’s and senior bailiff in Lichfield did a lot to contribute to the city’s history. It was him at Dr Johnson’s request who supervised the erection of the monument to Johnson’s parents and brother in the church.
- Over the chancel arch are the royal coats of arms of Queen AnneAnne of Great BritainAnne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
(1702–14). After the Restoration it was compulsory for each church to display heraldic witness to their loyalty to the crown.
- The font dates from 1669 and is octagonal with stylised fleur-de-lisFleur-de-lisThe fleur-de-lis or fleur-de-lys is a stylized lily or iris that is used as a decorative design or symbol. It may be "at one and the same time, political, dynastic, artistic, emblematic, and symbolic", especially in heraldry...
and Tudor roseTudor roseThe Tudor Rose is the traditional floral heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the Tudor dynasty.-Origins:...
s. - In a recess in the north wall of the chancel under the pointed arch is the tomb of William de Walton, who in 1344 was the first recorded benefactor of St Michael's.
- In the chancel is an effigy of a man in civilian dress, said to be a 14th century lawyer.
- There were three bells in 1552. A peal of six was cast by Abraham Rudhall of Gloucester in 1722 or 1723. The third and fourth bells were recast in 1919 by James Barwell Ltd. of Birmingham.
- In the churchyard is the unmarked grave of Trumpeter John Brown, who blew at the Charge of the Light BrigadeCharge of the Light BrigadeThe Charge of the Light Brigade was a charge of British cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. The charge was the result of a miscommunication in such a way that the brigade attempted a much more difficult objective...
.
- The gravestone of John Neve, William Wightman and James Jackson is in the churchyard. These men were found guilty of forgery and were hanged at the gallowsGallowsA gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...
at the Junction of Tamworth Road and London Road. This was to be the last public hanging in Lichfield. The gravestone only denotes the initials of the three men and the date reads June 1st 1810. It was recently restored after being found fallen over and covered in moss.
- The MausoleumMausoleumA mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
of James Thomas Law (1790–1876) chancellor of the Lichfield diocese is built at the northern edge of the churchyard. Initially built for his wife who died in 1864, it resembles a canopied medieval tomb. The structure was surmounted by a clock with two dials which were illuminated at night by gas and shows something of an obsession with good timekeeping in mid-Victorian Lichfield. Built on the side of the Trent Valley Road it served as a reminder of the time to travellers on their way to the stationLichfield Trent Valley railway stationLichfield Trent Valley is a split-level railway station on the outskirts of the city of Lichfield in Staffordshire, England. It is one of two stations in Lichfield, the other being in the city-centre.-History:...
. The clock is now missing and the mausoleum is overgrown with vegetation. The Mausoleum is a Grade II Listed Building.
- There are two other Grade II listed monuments and one listed headstone in the churchyard.
Present
The church is still an active parish church within the local community. The former parishes of St Mary'sSt Mary's Church, Lichfield
St Mary's Church is a city centre church in Lichfield, Staffordshire in the United Kingdom, located on the south side the market square. A church is reputed to have been on the present site since at least 1150 but the current building dates from 1870...
and St Michael’s were joined to form a single parish with St Michael’s as the parish church and St Mary’s designated as a Chapel of Ease. Together with St John’s at Wall
Wall, Staffordshire
Wall is a small village and civil parish in Staffordshire, England, just south of Lichfield. It lies on the site of the Roman settlement of Letocetum.The nearby junction of the A5 and A5127 roads and the M6 Toll motorway is often referred to as Wall junction....
it forms a group of churches known as the United Benefice. Regular services take place on Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Weddings, baptisms and funerals also take place at the church as well as a regular Sunday school.
The churchyard is now preserved as a wildlife area.
The rectory
Rectory
A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...
was built to the south west of the church in the 1970s on St Michael’s Road replacing one built in 1858. The new house remains the rectory house for the combined benefice.