St Walburge's Church
Encyclopedia
St Walburge's Church is a Roman Catholic
church located in Preston, Lancashire
, England, northwest of the city centre on Weston Street. The church was built in the mid 19th century by the Gothic revival architect Joseph Hansom
, designer of the hansom cab
, and is famous as having the tallest spire of any parish church in England. St Walburge's is a Grade I listed building with English Heritage
.
St Walburge's, with several other churches in Preston, has been threatened with closure by the Catholic Diocese of Lancaster since 2007. This has aroused much interest because of the quality of its architecture, its significance to the parish and its landmark status in Preston. The closure has been given a stay of seven years from August 2008 and local fund-raising drives are underway to supplement grants towards the restoration of this important building.
David Garrard, the Historic Churches Adviser of the Victorian Society said:
, an English saint, born 710 AD., daughter of St. Richard, a Saxon King. With her two brothers St. Willibald and St. Winebald, she went to Germany as a missionary. She was renowned for her miraculous healing of illnesses. The church is part of the Catholic revival that transpired during the time of England's Catholic emancipation.
of which name the word "Maudlands" is a corruption. St Walburge's is located near the site of a 12th century leprosy hospital dedicated to St Mary Magdalene.
In 1847, at a time of great Roman Catholic revival in England, and prosperity brought by the textile mills of Lancashire, the architect was Joseph Hansom
was commissioned to build a large church. Work began on the construction of the church in May 1850, and it was ready for an opening ceremony on August 3, 1854. The church was further extended, with its polygonal sanctuary with central window 35 feet (10.7 m) high being added in 1873.
, giving the spire a red tint during sunset. The spire was the last to be worked upon by steeplejack and TV personality Fred Dibnah
. The tower contains a single bell
of 31 cwt
(1.5 tonnes) cast by Mears and Stainbank
of Whitechapel
which is the heaviest swinging bell in Lancashire. The use of the bell is restricted, due to protected birds nesting in the belfry, meaning it can only be rung in winter months.
The New Red Sandstone
facade presents as an unaisled church with a very steep gable. A strongly horizontal arcade, divides the facade into two zones, balanced by strongly projecting buttresses and corner pinnacles typical of many English Gothic cathedrals. The arcade is countered by the verticality of strongly projecting buttresses and corner pinnacles typical of many English Gothic cathedrals. The upper zone is dominated by a rose window 22 feet (7 m) in diameter occupying almost the full width of the nave.
and a crucifix with the shield of Preston and the motto "Princeps Pacis". St. Ignatius of Loyola is also prominently featured to the right in the sanctuary, echoing the influence of the Jesuit priests still active in the city. The patron saint
s of Great Britain are also featured.
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
church located in Preston, 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, northwest of the city centre on Weston Street. The church was built in the mid 19th century by the Gothic revival architect Joseph Hansom
Joseph Hansom
Joseph Aloysius Hansom was a prolific English architect working principally in the Gothic Revival style, who invented the Hansom cab and was one of the founders of the eminent architectural journal, The Builder, in 1843....
, designer of the hansom cab
Hansom cab
The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn cart designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safety cab, it was designed to combine speed with safety, with a low...
, and is famous as having the tallest spire of any parish church in England. St Walburge's is a Grade I listed building with 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...
.
St Walburge's, with several other churches in Preston, has been threatened with closure by the Catholic Diocese of Lancaster since 2007. This has aroused much interest because of the quality of its architecture, its significance to the parish and its landmark status in Preston. The closure has been given a stay of seven years from August 2008 and local fund-raising drives are underway to supplement grants towards the restoration of this important building.
David Garrard, the Historic Churches Adviser of the Victorian Society said:
An outstanding building by an ingenious and imaginative architect, St Walburge’s is one of Preston’s greatest historic buildings. It was built to express the pride and confidence of the Roman Catholic community after legal restrictions on religious observance were lifted in the nineteenth century. To close it now would cost local people access to some of Lancashire’s richest heritage.
Dedication
St Walburge's is dedicated to Saint WalpurgaSaint Walpurga
Saint Walpurga or Walburga , also spelled Valderburg or Guibor, was an English missionary to the Frankish Empire. She was canonized on 1 May ca. 870 by Pope Adrian II...
, an English saint, born 710 AD., daughter of St. Richard, a Saxon King. With her two brothers St. Willibald and St. Winebald, she went to Germany as a missionary. She was renowned for her miraculous healing of illnesses. The church is part of the Catholic revival that transpired during the time of England's Catholic emancipation.
History
St Walburge's Church is situated in the Maudlands district of Preston, so called because of its association with St Mary MagdaleneMary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
of which name the word "Maudlands" is a corruption. St Walburge's is located near the site of a 12th century leprosy hospital dedicated to St Mary Magdalene.
In 1847, at a time of great Roman Catholic revival in England, and prosperity brought by the textile mills of Lancashire, the architect was Joseph Hansom
Joseph Hansom
Joseph Aloysius Hansom was a prolific English architect working principally in the Gothic Revival style, who invented the Hansom cab and was one of the founders of the eminent architectural journal, The Builder, in 1843....
was commissioned to build a large church. Work began on the construction of the church in May 1850, and it was ready for an opening ceremony on August 3, 1854. The church was further extended, with its polygonal sanctuary with central window 35 feet (10.7 m) high being added in 1873.
Spire
Externally, St Walburge's spire, rising to 309 feet (94 m) is the dominant landmark in Preston and is one of the tallest structures of any sort in Lancashire. After Salisbury and Norwich Cathedrals, it is third tallest spire in England, and is the tallest on a parish church. The steeple is constructed from limestone sleepers which originally carried the nearby Preston and Longridge RailwayPreston and Longridge Railway
The Preston and Longridge Railway was a branch line in Lancashire, England. Originally designed to carry quarried stone in horse-drawn wagons, it became part of an ambitious plan to link the Lancashire coast to the heart of Yorkshire...
, giving the spire a red tint during sunset. The spire was the last to be worked upon by steeplejack and TV personality Fred Dibnah
Fred Dibnah
Frederick "Fred" Dibnah MBE , born in Bolton, was an English steeplejack and eccentric with a keen interest in mechanical engineering who became a cult television personality....
. The tower contains a single bell
Bell (instrument)
A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
of 31 cwt
Hundredweight
The hundredweight or centum weight is a unit of mass defined in terms of the pound . The definition used in Britain differs from that used in North America. The two are distinguished by the terms long hundredweight and short hundredweight:* The long hundredweight is defined as 112 lb, which...
(1.5 tonnes) cast by Mears and Stainbank
Whitechapel 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...
of Whitechapel
Whitechapel
Whitechapel is a built-up inner city district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, London, England. It is located east of Charing Cross and roughly bounded by the Bishopsgate thoroughfare on the west, Fashion Street on the north, Brady Street and Cavell Street on the east and The Highway on the...
which is the heaviest swinging bell in Lancashire. The use of the bell is restricted, due to protected birds nesting in the belfry, meaning it can only be rung in winter months.
Exterior
St Walburge's is renowned not just for its height but also for the inventive quality of its architecture, in which the architect has looked to Gothic models, employing the traditional features in a creative and harmonious way. The Open Churches Trust says of St Walburge's that it "undoubtedly an architectural gem of the north west of England."The New Red Sandstone
New Red Sandstone
The New Red Sandstone is a chiefly British geological term for the beds of red sandstone and associated rocks laid down throughout the Permian to the beginning of the Triassic that underlie the Jurassic Lias; the term distinguishes it from the Old Red Sandstone which is largely Devonian in...
facade presents as an unaisled church with a very steep gable. A strongly horizontal arcade, divides the facade into two zones, balanced by strongly projecting buttresses and corner pinnacles typical of many English Gothic cathedrals. The arcade is countered by the verticality of strongly projecting buttresses and corner pinnacles typical of many English Gothic cathedrals. The upper zone is dominated by a rose window 22 feet (7 m) in diameter occupying almost the full width of the nave.
Interior
The interior, which seats about 1,000 persons, is 165 feet (50 m) and 55 feet (17 m) wide. The open wooden roof of 83 feet (25 m) is supported of fourteen hammerbeams, on the ends of which stand lifesized carved the figures of saints. The church contains an organ by William Hill of London, 1855. Other significant features include a wooden triptychTriptych
A triptych , from tri-= "three" + ptysso= "to fold") is a work of art which is divided into three sections, or three carved panels which are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works...
and a crucifix with the shield of Preston and the motto "Princeps Pacis". St. Ignatius of Loyola is also prominently featured to the right in the sanctuary, echoing the influence of the Jesuit priests still active in the city. The patron saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
s of Great Britain are also featured.