All Saints Church, Harthill
Encyclopedia
All Saints Church, Harthill is a redundant
Anglican
church in the village of Harthill
, Cheshire
, England
. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building. As of 2010 the church is being converted into a community facility for the village and locality.
. The present church was built in 1609. Restoration
was carried out in 1862–63, and at this time a vestry
was added to the north side and a larger belfry
was erected.
red and buff sandstone
with a Welsh slate
roof and a stone ridge. The five-bay
nave
and chancel
are in one range, and there is a south porch and a north vestry. Inside the church is a hammerbeam roof
. The windows are square-headed, those on the sides having four lights, while the east window has six lights with a transom
. The porch contains churchwarden
s' inscriptions date 1611 and 1775. Inside the church is the framework of a screen bearing the date 1609. The stained glass includes the east window dating from 1885–87, which was designed by Carl Almquist and made by Shrigley and Hunt
. A north window in the chancel, dated 1908, is by Mary Lowndes
.
dated 1885 which is constructed in ashlar
buff sandstone with granite
dressings. It is rectangular in plan with a stepped hipped cap surmounted by a slab with a cross upon it. On the long sides are six short pilaster
s and on the short sides four pilasters. The side panels are inscribed with memorials to members of the Barbour family of Bolesworth Castle
. Also in the churchyard is a sandstone cross from the 11th or 12th century, and a sundial
dated 1778 consisting of a sandstone column on an old millstone. All these structures are listed Grade II.
Redundant church
A redundant church is a church building that is no longer required for regular public worship. The phrase is particularly used to refer to former Anglican buildings in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world...
Anglican
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 Harthill
Harthill, Cheshire
Harthill is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.All Saints Church, Harthill is a Grade II* listed building.-External links:...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, 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...
. It has been designated 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...
as a Grade II* listed building. As of 2010 the church is being converted into a community facility for the village and locality.
History
A chapel on this site is first mentioned in 1280. It is likely that this earlier church was timber-framedTimber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
. The present church was built in 1609. 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...
was carried out in 1862–63, and at this time 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....
was added to the north side and a larger 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...
was erected.
Architecture
The church is built in 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...
red and buff 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 Welsh 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...
roof and a stone ridge. The five-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:...
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...
are in one range, and there is a south porch and a north vestry. Inside the church is a hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof, in architecture, is the name given to an open timber roof, typical of English Gothic architecture, using short beams projecting from the wall.- Design :...
. The windows are square-headed, those on the sides having four lights, while the east window has six lights with a transom
Transom (architectural)
In architecture, a transom is the term given to a transverse beam or bar in a frame, or to the crosspiece separating a door or the like from a window or fanlight above it. Transom is also the customary U.S. word used for a transom light, the window over this crosspiece...
. The porch contains 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' inscriptions date 1611 and 1775. Inside the church is the framework of a screen bearing the date 1609. The stained glass includes the east window dating from 1885–87, which was designed by Carl Almquist and made by Shrigley and Hunt
Shrigley and Hunt
Shrigley and Hunt was the name of an English firm which produced stained glass windows and art tiles.The business began in the 1750s when Shrigley's was a painting, carving and gilding firm in Lancaster, Lancashire....
. A north window in the chancel, dated 1908, is by Mary Lowndes
Mary Lowndes
Mary Lowndes was an important British stained-glass and poster artist, and an active member of the Suffragette movement. She was a leading light in the Arts and Crafts Movement and Chair of the Artists Suffrage League .-Work:...
.
External features
In the churchyard to the east of the former church is a mausoleumMausoleum
A 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...
dated 1885 which is constructed in 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...
buff sandstone with granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
dressings. It is rectangular in plan with a stepped hipped cap surmounted by a slab with a cross upon it. On the long sides are six short 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 and on the short sides four pilasters. The side panels are inscribed with memorials to members of the Barbour family of Bolesworth Castle
Bolesworth Castle
Bolesworth Castle is a country house south of the village of Tattenhall, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building.-History:...
. Also in the churchyard is a sandstone cross from the 11th or 12th century, and 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...
dated 1778 consisting of a sandstone column on an old millstone. All these structures are listed Grade II.