St Peter and St Leonard's Church, Horbury
Encyclopedia
St Peter and St Leonard's Church, Horbury is in Horbury
, West Yorkshire
, England. It is an active Church of England
parish church and part of the Wakefield deanery in the archdeaconry of Pontefract, diocese of Wakefield
and commonly known as St Peter's. It is on the site of a Norman
church built in about 1100 and probably an Anglo-Saxon
church before that. The present church, by local architect John Carr, was completed in 1794 It is a prominent local landmark and has been designated a Grade I Listed building by English Heritage
.
in Wakefield
and has probably had a chapel
since before the Norman Conquest
in 1066. Earl Warenne
, Lord of the Manor of Wakefield built a church in the Norman style in 1106. It had a tower, nave
and small chancel
.
In 1509 William Amyas of Horbury Hall left money to the "belles of Horbury Church". The "Devil's Knell" was tolled after midnight on Christmas morning, the tenor bell tolled for an hour, then four fours were struck followed by a strike for every year since the birth of Christ. This tradition was discontinued but survives in Dewsbury
.
The parish registers record the burial of two soldiers following the Battle of Wakefield
.
In the late 1780s John Carr, son of a Horbury stonemason
and former Lord Mayor of York
, offered to build a new church, at a cost of £8,000 (£ as of ). to himself, and his offer was accepted. The bells and organ cost a further £2,000 (£ as of ). The foundation stone for the new church was laid in 1790 and it was opened in 1794.
The vestry was built in 1884. The rotunda and spire rebuilt 1899 when more bells were added. A south chapel commemorating the First World War was added in 1920.
A mission church, now St John's Horbury Bridge, was started in a room in what is now the Post Office in 1864. The curate, Sabine Baring-Gould
wrote the hymn "Onward Christian Soldiers" in 1865 for the Whitsun
procession to Horbury Church. Another mission was set up at Horbury Junction in 1887 and replaced by St Mary's Church in 1893.
sandstone
with a grey slate roof in the Classical
style.
d rotunda
with a small fluted, conical spire
. The first stage is constructed of smooth ashlar stone with round-arched and square blind windows. The second stage is rusticated
with a clock to the four faces. A round-arched bell-chamber is on the third stage and the fourth stage is similar with columns.
The five-bay nave
has octagonal ends and three-bay north and south wings. The nave has tall, round-arched windows. The south wing has four Ionic
columns supporting a pediment
in the form of a portico
over a central double-door which also has a pediment. There are round-arched windows at ground-floor level and square windows above. The north wing is plain with central entrance with an architrave
and pediment. The vestry
is to the north-east and has a round-arched entrance and door flanked by tapering pilaster
s supporting a frieze
and cornice
. There is a chapel to south-east.
The pediment is inscribed: HANC AEDEM SACRAH PIETATIS IN DEUM ET AMORIS IN SOLUM NATALE MONIMENTUM PROPRIIS SUMPTIBUS EXTRUXIT JOANNES CARR ARCHITECTUS ANNO CHRISTI MDCCXC1 GLORIA DEO IN EXCELSIS
pilasters. A west gallery with a panelled front containing the organ is supported by Tuscan
columns. The shallow vaulted
ceiling has an elaborate frieze
terminating in shallow segmental coving.
.
The church is furnished with straight-backed panelled pews with rounded ends. The communion rail is made from green/brown marble. An octagonal panelled pulpit
dated 1917 was given in memory of Richard and Martha Ann Popplewell.
There are memorials to John Carr and his family in the chancel. Carr was buried in a vault
which had been forgotten until its discovery in 1950 when repairs were made to the vestry floor.
Horbury
-Demography:In 2008 Horbury had a largely white population compared with Yorkshire and the Humber.-Population change:The population of Horbury in 2001 was 10,002-Transport:...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England. It is an active Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
parish church and part of the Wakefield deanery in the archdeaconry of Pontefract, diocese of Wakefield
Diocese of Wakefield
The Diocese of Wakefield is a Church of England diocese based in Wakefield in West Yorkshire, covering Wakefield, Barnsley, Kirklees and Calderdale...
and commonly known as St Peter's. It is on the site of a Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
church built in about 1100 and probably an Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-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...
church before that. The present church, by local architect John Carr, was completed in 1794 It is a prominent local landmark and 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
Horbury was a chapelry of All Saints ChurchWakefield Cathedral
Wakefield Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of All Saints Wakefield is the cathedral for the Church of England's Diocese of Wakefield and is the seat of the Bishop of Wakefield. The cathedral has Anglo Saxon origins and the tallest cathedral spire in Yorkshire...
in Wakefield
Wakefield
Wakefield is the main settlement and administrative centre of the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district of West Yorkshire, England. Located by the River Calder on the eastern edge of the Pennines, the urban area is and had a population of 76,886 in 2001....
and has probably had a chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
since 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...
in 1066. Earl Warenne
William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey
William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey was the son of William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey and his first wife Gundred. He is more often referred to as Earl Warenne or Earl of Warenne than as Earl of Surrey....
, Lord of the Manor of Wakefield built a church in the Norman style in 1106. It had a tower, 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 small 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...
.
In 1509 William Amyas of Horbury Hall left money to the "belles of Horbury Church". The "Devil's Knell" was tolled after midnight on Christmas morning, the tenor bell tolled for an hour, then four fours were struck followed by a strike for every year since the birth of Christ. This tradition was discontinued but survives in Dewsbury
Dewsbury
Dewsbury is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Huddersfield and south of Leeds...
.
The parish registers record the burial of two soldiers following the Battle of Wakefield
Battle of Wakefield
The Battle of Wakefield took place at Sandal Magna near Wakefield, in West Yorkshire in Northern England, on 30 December 1460. It was a major battle of the Wars of the Roses...
.
In the late 1780s John Carr, son of a Horbury stonemason
Stonemasonry
The craft of stonemasonry has existed since the dawn of civilization - creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone from the earth. These materials have been used to construct many of the long-lasting, ancient monuments, artifacts, cathedrals, and cities in a wide variety of cultures...
and former Lord Mayor of York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
, offered to build a new church, at a cost of £8,000 (£ as of ). to himself, and his offer was accepted. The bells and organ cost a further £2,000 (£ as of ). The foundation stone for the new church was laid in 1790 and it was opened in 1794.
The vestry was built in 1884. The rotunda and spire rebuilt 1899 when more bells were added. A south chapel commemorating the First World War was added in 1920.
A mission church, now St John's Horbury Bridge, was started in a room in what is now the Post Office in 1864. The curate, Sabine Baring-Gould
Sabine Baring-Gould
The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould was an English hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1240 publications, though this list continues to grow. His family home, Lew Trenchard Manor near Okehampton, Devon, has been preserved as he had it...
wrote the hymn "Onward Christian Soldiers" in 1865 for the Whitsun
Whitsun
Whitsun is the name used in the UK for the Christian festival of Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ's disciples...
procession to Horbury Church. Another mission was set up at Horbury Junction in 1887 and replaced by St Mary's Church in 1893.
Structure
The church is built in local ashlarAshlar
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...
sandstone
Sandstone
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,...
with a grey slate roof in the Classical
Classical architecture
Classical architecture is a mode of architecture employing vocabulary derived in part from the Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, enriched by classicizing architectural practice in Europe since the Renaissance...
style.
Exterior
The church has a square west tower in four reducing stages surmounted by a colonnadeColonnade
In classical architecture, a colonnade denotes a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building....
d rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...
with a small fluted, conical spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
. The first stage is constructed of smooth ashlar stone with round-arched and square blind windows. The second stage is rusticated
Rustication (architecture)
thumb|upright|Two different styles of rustication in the [[Palazzo Medici-Riccardi]] in [[Florence]].In classical architecture rustication is an architectural feature that contrasts in texture with the smoothly finished, squared block masonry surfaces called ashlar...
with a clock to the four faces. A round-arched bell-chamber is on the third stage and the fourth stage is similar with columns.
The five-bay 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...
has octagonal ends and three-bay north and south wings. The nave has tall, round-arched windows. The south wing has four Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
columns supporting a pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
in the form of a portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
over a central double-door which also has a pediment. There are round-arched windows at ground-floor level and square windows above. The north wing is plain with central entrance with an architrave
Architrave
An architrave is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of the columns. It is an architectural element in Classical architecture.-Classical architecture:...
and pediment. The 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....
is to the north-east and has a round-arched entrance and door flanked by tapering pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s supporting a frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
and cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
. There is a chapel to south-east.
The pediment is inscribed: HANC AEDEM SACRAH PIETATIS IN DEUM ET AMORIS IN SOLUM NATALE MONIMENTUM PROPRIIS SUMPTIBUS EXTRUXIT JOANNES CARR ARCHITECTUS ANNO CHRISTI MDCCXC1 GLORIA DEO IN EXCELSIS
Interior
Inside, the bay divisions are marked by fluted CorinthianCorinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
pilasters. A west gallery with a panelled front containing the organ is supported by Tuscan
Tuscan order
Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...
columns. The shallow vaulted
Vault (architecture)
A Vault is an architectural term for an arched form used to provide a space with a ceiling or roof. The parts of a vault exert lateral thrust that require a counter resistance. When vaults are built underground, the ground gives all the resistance required...
ceiling has an elaborate frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
terminating in shallow segmental coving.
Fixtures and fittings
The tower contains eight bells, five cast in 1792 by Thomas Mears, and three cast in 1899 by Mears & Stainbank at the Whitechapel Bell FoundryWhitechapel Bell Foundry
The Whitechapel Bell Foundry is a bell foundry in Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. The foundry is listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain...
.
The church is furnished with straight-backed panelled pews with rounded ends. The communion rail is made from green/brown marble. An octagonal panelled pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
dated 1917 was given in memory of Richard and Martha Ann Popplewell.
There are memorials to John Carr and his family in the chancel. Carr was buried in a vault
Burial vault (tomb)
A burial vault is a structural underground tomb.It is a stone or brick-lined underground space or 'burial' chamber for the interment of a dead body or bodies. They were originally and are still often vaulted and usually have stone slab entrances...
which had been forgotten until its discovery in 1950 when repairs were made to the vestry floor.