Leeds Parish Church
Encyclopedia
Leeds Parish Church, or the Parish Church of Saint Peter
-at-Leeds, in Leeds
, West Yorkshire
is a large Church of England parish church
of major architectural and liturgical significance. It has been designated a grade I listed building by English Heritage
. Leeds does not have an Anglican cathedral
, but the parish church has close links with the Roman Catholic
Cathedral Church of St Anne
in Leeds.
of 1086. The church was rebuilt twice, after a fire in the 14th century, and again in the 19th century. Walter Farquhar Hook
, Vicar of Leeds
from 1837 until preferment as Dean of Chichester
in 1859 was responsible for the construction of the present building, and of the re-vitalising of the Anglican church throughout Leeds as a whole. The architect was Robert Dennis Chantrell
. At the time of its construction, it was the largest new church in England built since Sir Christopher Wren's St Paul's Cathedral
erected after the Great Fire of London
and consecrated in 1707. The new parish church was rebuilt by voluntary contributions from the townspeople at a cost of over £29,000 and consecrated on 2 September 1841. Florence Nightingale
and Dr Edward Bouverie Pusey
were among the congregation and Dr Samuel Sebastian Wesley
played the organ.
The east end was altered between 1870 and 1880.
stone with slate
roofs in the English Gothic style of the late 14th century, a transition from the Decorated to the Perpendicular, and is cruciform
in plan. The church is 180 feet 7 inches long and 86 feet wide, its tower rises to 139 feet. The chancel
and nave
each have four bays of equal length with clerestories
and tall aisle
s. The tower is situated at the centre of north aisle. Below the tower on the north side is the main entrance. The tower has four unequal stages with panelled sides and corner buttress
es terminating in crocket
ed turrets with openwork battlement
s and crocketted pinnacle
s. The clock was made by Potts of Leeds
.
and there is a five-light east window from 1846 containing glass collected on the continent. The east end the sanctuary has a marble arcade
with mosaics by Salviati of Venice
and the reredos
are made of coloured marble and alabaster
by George Edmund Street
.
A peal of 13 bells in the tower over the north door was cast by Mears and Sons of Whitechapel Bell Foundry
from designs by W. Gawk Roger of Leeds. The tenor bell weighs over 35 hundredweight and the entire peal is 162 hundredweight.
The organ
, parts of which date from 1841 and earlier, is essentially a Harrison and Harrison
of 1914 vintage, but incorporating significant amounts of pipework by Edmund Schulze
. It was restored in 1927 and 1949 by Harrison and Harrison; in 1965 by Wood, Wordsworth and in 1997 by Andrew Carter. The restoration of the blowing plant and refurbishment of the blower house were undertaken in 1997 by Allfab Engineering of Methley
. The Friends of the Music of Leeds Parish Church present free Organ Recitals each Friday at 12.30 pm except during the month of August and during the Christmas
Holiday
Fortnight and proceeds are devoted to the tuning and maintenance of the instrument.
Among many artefacts and memorials in the church are an Anglian cross on the altar and a brass commemorating Captain Oates
of Scott's Antarctic expedition
, who had Leeds connections. Flemish stained glass enhances the apse
of Chantrell's interior - he designed the windows to fit the glass - and of more recent date (1997) is Sally Scott's Angel Screen at the north tower porch entrance -an example of contemporary glass engraving
and gift from the family of Lord Marshall of Leeds.
(which has its cathedral
at Ripon
), in the Parish of Leeds City along with the Georgian
Church of Holy Trinity
, Boar Lane, St Mary's Lincoln Green
and the Chapel of the Holy Spirit in Centenary House
. The church is at the easternmost extremity of the city centre, within a precinct bordering two of the city's oldest thoroughfares - Kirkgate (now part of the Inner City Loop Road) to the north, and The Calls to the south. Another ancient pathway, High Court Ings, connects the western precinct with High Court.
The rector, the third since the establishment of the Parish of Leeds City in 1990, is the Reverend Canon Tony Bundock. Work with young people undertaken by the parish includes The Market Place drop-in centre. St Peter's Church of England Primary School, Burmantofts
where the chaplain is the lay minister to St Mary, Lincoln Green and Holy Trinity, Boar Lane, Canon Ann Nicholl. The Reverend Susan Wallace was licensed by the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds
in September 2010 to serve as Vicar Choral in the parish.
During choir terms there are at least seven choral services each week, four sung by the boy choristers with the choral scholars
and lay Clerk
s; the remainder sung by the boys, the men or by the girl choristers. Once each term, the boys, girls and men sing together.
Leeds Parish Church is a member of the Greater Churches Group
. Its mission
and vision for future service to the city, the diocese and the Church of England are a constant care and concern of those who seek to serve the church and parish. Sir John Betjeman in a BBC
Broadcast remarked that: "There's High Church
, Low Church
and Leeds Parish Church".
The church is illuminated at night by floodlights donated by Tetley's brewery
.
The building is open to visitors for at least seven hours each day. Parishioner volunteers serve refreshments and light meals in the refectory
in the City of Leeds Room constructed in the north-west aisle in 1975.
The church archives are held at the Leeds office of West Yorkshire Archive Service. The church has memorials to families who were prominent in the parish, including the Kitchingman, Fenton, Lodge, Milner, Cookson, and Ibbetsons.
, Ripon
and Wakefield
Cathedrals. The administration would remain the same, but the incumbent would be appointed a canon residentiary of the diocesan college.
Edward David Murfet, later Minor Canon at Ripon Cathedral
was Priest-in-Charge prior to the establishment of the Parish of Leeds City in 1990
Rectors of Leeds from 1991
Organists from 1842 include Samuel Sebastian Wesley
1842-1849, Dr Edward Bairstow
1906-1913, Dr Alfred Melville Cook
1937-1956 and Dr Donald Hunt OBE 1957-1975. Organist and Master of the Music, in office since 1975, the ninth musical incumbent since Wesley's day, is Dr Simon Lindley
who came to Leeds after service at St Albans Cathedral
and churches in the City of London
; Lindley is the organist at Leeds Town Hall
. He is chairman of the Ecclesiastical Music Trust in his capacity as a director of the English Hymnal
Company and President of the Campaign for the Traditional Cathedral Choir. The sub-organist and director of the girls' choir is David Houlder, formerly of Liverpool Cathedral
and for a long period director of music at the Bluecoat School
.
In Autumn 2009, Ashley Francis Roy began work as animateur for Chorister Outreach in two primary schools near the church; the post was supported by the Church Urban Fund
. Boy choristers attend church each weekday except Thursday, Friday evenings, Saturday mornings and twice on Sundays. Boy choristers attend St Peter's C of E Primary School in Burmantofts, Abbey Grange C of E Academy, Cardinal Heenan Roman Catholic High School, Brudenell Primary School and Whingate Primary School.
The adult choir consists of lay clerks (including former boy choristers), choral scholars (undergraduates from the University of Leeds
and Leeds College of Music
) and supernumerary singers - altos, tenors and basses. During term time, Evensong is sung by the full choir on Wednesday and Friday evenings, by the boys on Monday and the men on Thursday. A semi-professional adult chamber choir, Saint Peter's Singers of Leeds
was founded in 1977 and meets for rehearsals on Sunday evening during term time and present regular concerts and sing at choral services each season including at the end of each summer term, a memorial Evensong
for John Barrie Hanson - a member of the singers and choir.
The choir has been associated with the Royal School of Church Music
since the early 1930s through links with Sir Sydney Nicholson
, RSCM founder and churchwarden, Herbert Bacon Smith. Simon Lindley is one of the RSCM's longest serving special commissioners and has directed RSCM courses on four continents. The girls' choir formed in 1997 by Jonathan Lilley, meet weekly on Saturdays (sometimes singing for morning worship) and participate in events involving the full choral foundation on special occasions.
on Sunday 4 July 2010 followed by a Gala Choral Recital. Worship on Sunday 15 August was broadcast on BBC Radio Four. Dr Lindley gave a commemorative recital of Wesley's organ music in the evening and a commemorative recital of music by Wesley at Leeds Town Hall on 13 September.
team from Leeds Parish Church joined the Northern Rugby Football Union (now Rugby Football League
) in 1896. Leeds Parish Church played for five seasons from 1896–97 to 1900–01 after which it withdrew.
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
-at-Leeds, in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, 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....
is a large Church of England 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:...
of major architectural and liturgical significance. It 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...
. Leeds does not have an Anglican cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
, but the parish church has close links with the Roman Catholic
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...
Cathedral Church of St Anne
Leeds Cathedral
Leeds Cathedral, formally The Cathedral Church of St Anne, commonly known as Saint Anne's Cathedral, is the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Diocese of Leeds, and is the seat of the Bishop of Leeds. It is in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
in Leeds.
History
An early 7th century church on this site was burned down in 633 AD. A church at Ledes is mentioned in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086. The church was rebuilt twice, after a fire in the 14th century, and again in the 19th century. Walter Farquhar Hook
Walter Farquhar Hook
Walter Farquhar Hook , was an eminent Victorian churchman.-Background:He was the Vicar of Leeds responsible for the construction of the current Leeds Parish Church and for many ecclesiastical and social improvements to the city in the mid-nineteenth century...
, Vicar of Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
from 1837 until preferment as Dean of Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
in 1859 was responsible for the construction of the present building, and of the re-vitalising of the Anglican church throughout Leeds as a whole. The architect was Robert Dennis Chantrell
Robert Dennis Chantrell
Robert Dennis Chantrell was an English church architect, best-known today for designing Leeds Parish Church.- Early career :Chantrell was born in Newington, Southwark, London...
. At the time of its construction, it was the largest new church in England built since Sir Christopher Wren's St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
erected after the Great Fire of London
Great Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
and consecrated in 1707. The new parish church was rebuilt by voluntary contributions from the townspeople at a cost of over £29,000 and consecrated on 2 September 1841. Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale OM, RRC was a celebrated English nurse, writer and statistician. She came to prominence for her pioneering work in nursing during the Crimean War, where she tended to wounded soldiers. She was dubbed "The Lady with the Lamp" after her habit of making rounds at night...
and Dr Edward Bouverie Pusey
Edward Bouverie Pusey
Edward Bouverie Pusey was an English churchman and Regius Professor of Hebrew at Christ Church, Oxford. He was one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement.-Early years:...
were among the congregation and Dr Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Samuel Sebastian Wesley was an English organist and composer.-Biography:Born in London, he was the eldest child in the composer Samuel Wesley's second family, which he formed with Sarah Suter having separated from his wife Charlotte. Samuel Sebastian was the grandson of Charles Wesley...
played the organ.
The east end was altered between 1870 and 1880.
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...
stone with 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...
roofs in the English Gothic style of the late 14th century, a transition from the Decorated to the Perpendicular, and is cruciform
Cruciform
Cruciform means having the shape of a cross or Christian cross.- Cruciform architectural plan :This is a common description of Christian churches. In Early Christian, Byzantine and other Eastern Orthodox forms of church architecture this is more likely to mean a tetraconch plan, a Greek cross,...
in plan. The church is 180 feet 7 inches long and 86 feet wide, its tower rises to 139 feet. The 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 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...
each have four bays of equal length with clerestories
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...
and tall 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. The tower is situated at the centre of north aisle. Below the tower on the north side is the main entrance. The tower has four unequal stages with panelled sides and corner buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es terminating in crocket
Crocket
A crocket is a hook-shaped decorative element common in Gothic architecture. It is in the form of a stylised carving of curled leaves, buds or flowers which is used at regular intervals to decorate the sloping edges of spires, finials, pinnacles, and wimpergs....
ed turrets with openwork battlement
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...
s and crocketted pinnacle
Pinnacle
A pinnacle is an architectural ornament originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire...
s. The clock was made by Potts of Leeds
Potts of Leeds
Potts of Leeds was a major British manufacturer of public clocks, based in Leeds, Yorkshire, UK.- Introduction :William Potts was born in December 1809 and was apprenticed to Samuel Thompson, a Darlington clockmaker. In 1833, at the age of 24, William moved to Pudsey near Leeds, to set up his own...
.
Furnishings, fittings, glass and treasures
The windows exhibit Perpendicular traceryTracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
and there is a five-light east window from 1846 containing glass collected on the continent. The east end the sanctuary has a marble arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
with mosaics by Salviati of Venice
Salviati (glassmakers)
A family called Salviati were glass makers and mosaicists in Murano, Venice and also in London, working as the firm Salviati, Jesurum & Co. of 213 Regent Street, London; also as Salviati and Co. and later as the Venice and Murano Glass and Mosaic Company...
and the reredos
Reredos
thumb|300px|right|An altar and reredos from [[St. Josaphat's Roman Catholic Church|St. Josaphat Catholic Church]] in [[Detroit]], [[Michigan]]. This would be called a [[retable]] in many other languages and countries....
are made of coloured marble and alabaster
Alabaster
Alabaster is a name applied to varieties of two distinct minerals, when used as a material: gypsum and calcite . The former is the alabaster of the present day; generally, the latter is the alabaster of the ancients...
by George Edmund Street
George Edmund Street
George Edmund Street was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex.- Life :Street was the third son of Thomas Street, solicitor, by his second wife, Mary Anne Millington. George went to school at Mitcham in about 1830, and later to the Camberwell collegiate school, which he left in 1839...
.
A peal of 13 bells in the tower over the north door was cast by Mears and Sons of Whitechapel Bell Foundry
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...
from designs by W. Gawk Roger of Leeds. The tenor bell weighs over 35 hundredweight and the entire peal is 162 hundredweight.
The organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, parts of which date from 1841 and earlier, is essentially a Harrison and Harrison
Harrison & Harrison
Harrison & Harrison Ltd are a British company that make and restore pipe organs, based in Durham and established in 1861. They are well known for their work on instruments such as King's College Cambridge, Westminster Abbey and the Royal Festival Hall....
of 1914 vintage, but incorporating significant amounts of pipework by Edmund Schulze
Edmund Schulze
Heinrich Edmund Schulze was a German organ builder. He was the last of five generations of the Shulze family to build organs, starting with Hans Elias Schulze , Edmund's great-great-grandfather...
. It was restored in 1927 and 1949 by Harrison and Harrison; in 1965 by Wood, Wordsworth and in 1997 by Andrew Carter. The restoration of the blowing plant and refurbishment of the blower house were undertaken in 1997 by Allfab Engineering of Methley
Methley
Methley is a dispersed village in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, south east of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is located near Rothwell, Oulton, Woodlesford, Mickletown and Allerton Bywater. It nestles in the triangle formed by Leeds, Castleford and Wakefield, and is between the...
. The Friends of the Music of Leeds Parish Church present free Organ Recitals each Friday at 12.30 pm except during the month of August and during the Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
Holiday
Holiday
A Holiday is a day designated as having special significance for which individuals, a government, or a religious group have deemed that observance is warranted. It is generally an official or unofficial observance of religious, national, or cultural significance, often accompanied by celebrations...
Fortnight and proceeds are devoted to the tuning and maintenance of the instrument.
Among many artefacts and memorials in the church are an Anglian cross on the altar and a brass commemorating Captain Oates
Lawrence Oates
Captain Lawrence Edward Grace Oates was an English Antarctic explorer, known for the manner of his death, when he walked from a tent into a blizzard, with the words "I am just going outside and may be some time"....
of Scott's Antarctic expedition
Terra Nova Expedition
The Terra Nova Expedition , officially the British Antarctic Expedition 1910, was led by Robert Falcon Scott with the objective of being the first to reach the geographical South Pole. Scott and four companions attained the pole on 17 January 1912, to find that a Norwegian team led by Roald...
, who had Leeds connections. Flemish stained glass enhances the apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
of Chantrell's interior - he designed the windows to fit the glass - and of more recent date (1997) is Sally Scott's Angel Screen at the north tower porch entrance -an example of contemporary glass engraving
Glass engraving
Glass engraving is a form of decorative glasswork that involves engraving a glass surface or object. It is distinct from glass art in the narrow sense, which refers to moulding and blowing glass....
and gift from the family of Lord Marshall of Leeds.
The church today
The parish church, Saint Peter-at-Leeds is in the Anglican Diocese of Ripon and LeedsDiocese of Ripon and Leeds
The Diocese of Ripon and Leeds is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers an area in western and northern Yorkshire as well as the south Teesdale area administered by County Durham which is traditionally part of Yorkshire...
(which has its cathedral
Ripon Cathedral
Ripon Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds and the mother church of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds, situated in the small North Yorkshire city of Ripon, England.-Background:...
at Ripon
Ripon
Ripon is a cathedral city, market town and successor parish in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England, located at the confluence of two streams of the River Ure in the form of the Laver and Skell. The city is noted for its main feature the Ripon Cathedral which is architecturally...
), in the Parish of Leeds City along with the Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
Church of Holy Trinity
Holy Trinity Church, Leeds
Holy Trinity Church , in Leeds, West Yorkshire, is a Church of England Parish Church in the Parish of Leeds City in the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds. It was built in 1722–7, but the steeple dates from 1839...
, Boar Lane, St Mary's Lincoln Green
Lincoln Green
Lincoln Green is an area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The area is mainly residential with a small local shopping centre. The area also has public houses and a working men's club . Most housing in Lincoln Green is council owned high rise flats, these are in a significantly worse condition then...
and the Chapel of the Holy Spirit in Centenary House
Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People
Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People is a charity based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England that provides practical services to deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, blind and partially sighted people in the region...
. The church is at the easternmost extremity of the city centre, within a precinct bordering two of the city's oldest thoroughfares - Kirkgate (now part of the Inner City Loop Road) to the north, and The Calls to the south. Another ancient pathway, High Court Ings, connects the western precinct with High Court.
The rector, the third since the establishment of the Parish of Leeds City in 1990, is the Reverend Canon Tony Bundock. Work with young people undertaken by the parish includes The Market Place drop-in centre. St Peter's Church of England Primary School, Burmantofts
Burmantofts
Burmantofts is an area of 1960s high-rise housing blocks in inner-city east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England adjacent to the city centre and St. James's Hospital. It is a racially diverse area, with sizable Afro-Caribbean and Irish communities, but suffers the social problems typical of similar areas...
where the chaplain is the lay minister to St Mary, Lincoln Green and Holy Trinity, Boar Lane, Canon Ann Nicholl. The Reverend Susan Wallace was licensed by the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds
Bishop of Ripon and Leeds
The Bishop of Ripon and Leeds is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ripon and Leeds in the Province of York.Though one ancient Bishop of Ripon is known, the modern diocese dates from 1836...
in September 2010 to serve as Vicar Choral in the parish.
During choir terms there are at least seven choral services each week, four sung by the boy choristers with the choral scholars
Choral scholar
A choral scholar is a student either at a university or private school who receives a scholarship in exchange for singing in the school or university's choir...
and lay Clerk
Lay clerk
A lay clerk, also known as a lay vicar, song man or a vicar choral, is a professional adult singer in a Cathedral or collegiate choir in the United Kingdom. The Vicars Choral were substitutes for the Canons...
s; the remainder sung by the boys, the men or by the girl choristers. Once each term, the boys, girls and men sing together.
Leeds Parish Church is a member of the Greater Churches Group
Greater Churches Group
The Greater Churches Network is a self-help organisation within the Church of England. There are currently 32 churches within the Greater Churches Network....
. Its mission
Mission (Christian)
Christian missionary activities often involve sending individuals and groups , to foreign countries and to places in their own homeland. This has frequently involved not only evangelization , but also humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged...
and vision for future service to the city, the diocese and the Church of England are a constant care and concern of those who seek to serve the church and parish. Sir John Betjeman in a BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Broadcast remarked that: "There's High Church
High church
The term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
, Low Church
Low church
Low church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups...
and Leeds Parish Church".
The church is illuminated at night by floodlights donated by Tetley's brewery
Tetley's Brewery
Tetley's Brewery was a large brewery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The main product was Tetley's Bitter, although Skol and other beers were also made there.-History:...
.
The building is open to visitors for at least seven hours each day. Parishioner volunteers serve refreshments and light meals in the refectory
Refectory
A refectory is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries...
in the City of Leeds Room constructed in the north-west aisle in 1975.
The church archives are held at the Leeds office of West Yorkshire Archive Service. The church has memorials to families who were prominent in the parish, including the Kitchingman, Fenton, Lodge, Milner, Cookson, and Ibbetsons.
Future
Under the Dioceses Commission's Draft Reorganisation Scheme, a new Anglican Diocese of Leeds would be created, and the diocesan Bishop of Leeds would have the option to designate Leeds Parish Church as Pro-Cathedral and become a seat, with BradfordBradford Cathedral
Bradford Cathedral , full name Cathedral Church of St Peter, is situated in the heart of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England, on a site used for Christian worship since the 8th century when missionaries based in Dewsbury evangelised the region...
, Ripon
Ripon Cathedral
Ripon Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds and the mother church of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds, situated in the small North Yorkshire city of Ripon, England.-Background:...
and Wakefield
Wakefield 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...
Cathedrals. The administration would remain the same, but the incumbent would be appointed a canon residentiary of the diocesan college.
Vicars of Leeds from 1220 and Rectors of Leeds from 1991
This list is incomplete- Hugo 1220
- Alanus de Shirburn 1242
- Johannes de Feversham 1250
- Galfridus de Sponden 1281
- Gilbertus Gaudibus 1316
- Alanus de Berewick 1320
- William Brunby
- William Mirfield 1392
- Johannes Snagtall 1391
- Robert Presselew 1408
- Robert Newton
- William Saxton 1418
- Johannes Herbert 1424
- Jacobus Baguley
- Thomas Clarel 1430
- William Evre B.D. 1470
- Johannes Frazer (Bishop of Ross) 1482
- Matrinus Collins 1499
- Robert Wranwash B.A. 1500
- William Evre 1508
- Johannes Thompson
- Johannes Thornton
- Christopher Bradley 1556
- Alexander Fawvett 1559
- Robert Cooke B.D. 1590
- Alex Cooke B.D. 1614
- Unknown 1615
- Henry Robinson B.C. 1632
- Peter Saxton M.A. 1646
- William Styles M.A. 1652
- Johannes LakeJohn Lake (bishop)John Lake was a 17th century Bishop of Sodor and Man, Bishop of Bristol and Bishop of Chichester in the British Isles.-Life:He was born in Halifax in the West Riding of Yorkshire and educated at St John's College, Cambridge...
D.D. 1661 - Marmaduke Cooke D.D. 1663
- Johannes MilnerJohn Milner (nonjuror)John Milner was an English clergyman, known as a nonjuring minister, scholar and opponent of John Locke.-Life:Milner was second son of John Milner and Mary, daughter of Gilbert Ramsden, born at Skircoat, in the parish of Halifax, and was baptised 10 February 1628. He was educated at the Halifax...
B.D. 1677
- Johan. Killingbeck B. D. 1690
- Josephus Cookson M.A. 1715
- Samuel Kirshaw D.D. 1746
- Peter Haddon M.A. 1786
- Richard Fawcett M.A. 1815 - founder of The Choir of Leeds Parish ChurchChoir of Leeds Parish ChurchThe Choir of Leeds Parish Church was founded by Vicar Richard Fawcett probably as early as 1815, and was certainly in existence by 1818 . The Choir of Leeds Parish Church - Boys and Men - was, from its origins, a charge on the Church Rate; and, in what was then a largely Non-conformist town, a...
- Walter Farquhar HookWalter Farquhar HookWalter Farquhar Hook , was an eminent Victorian churchman.-Background:He was the Vicar of Leeds responsible for the construction of the current Leeds Parish Church and for many ecclesiastical and social improvements to the city in the mid-nineteenth century...
D.D. 1837 (formerly vicar of Holy Trinity Church, CoventryHoly Trinity Church, CoventryHoly Trinity Church, Coventry is a parish church in the Church of England located in Coventry City Centre, West Midlands, England.Above the chancel arch is probably the most impressive Doom wall-painting now remaining in an English church.-History:...
, later Dean of Chichester CathedralChichester CathedralThe Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, otherwise called Chichester Cathedral, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in Sussex, England...
) - James AtlayJames AtlayJames Atlay was the 98th Anglican Bishop of Hereford, from 1868 to 1894.James Atlay was the son of Rev Henry Atlay and Elizabeth Rayner Hovell. Educated at Oakham School, he entered St John's College, Cambridge, where he held a fellowship from 1846 to 1859...
D. D. 1859 (later Bishop of HerefordBishop of HerefordThe Bishop of Hereford is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Hereford in the Province of Canterbury.The see is in the City of Hereford where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary and Saint Ethelbert which was founded as a cathedral in 676.The Bishop's residence is...
) - Canon James Russell WoodfordJames Russell WoodfordJames Russell Woodford was an English churchman, Bishop of Ely from 1873.-Life:Born on 30 April 1820 at Henley-on-Thames, he was the only son of James Russell Woodford, a hop-merchant in Southwark, and Frances, daughter of Robert Appleton of Henley...
D.D. 1868 - 1873 (later Bishop of ElyBishop of ElyThe Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire , together with a section of north-west Norfolk and has its see in the City of Ely, Cambridgeshire, where the seat is located at the...
) - John Gott 1873 (later Chaplain to the Bishop of Ripon; Dean of Worcester CathedralWorcester CathedralWorcester Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, England; situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is The Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Mary the Virgin of Worcester...
, 1885) - Edward Stuart TalbotEdward Stuart TalbotEdward Stuart Talbot was an Anglican bishop in the Church of England and the first Warden of Keble College, Oxford.-Education:...
1888 - 1895 (later Bishop of RochesterBishop of RochesterThe Bishop of Rochester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the west of the county of Kent and is centred in the city of Rochester where the bishop's seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
then Bishop of Southwark and, finally Bishop of WinchesterBishop of WinchesterThe Bishop of Winchester is the head of the Church of England diocese of Winchester, with his cathedra at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire.The bishop is one of five Church of England bishops to be among the Lords Spiritual regardless of their length of service. His diocese is one of the oldest and... - Edgar Charles Sumner GibsonEdgar Charles Sumner GibsonEdgar Charles Sumner Gibson was the 31st Bishop of Gloucester . He was born into a clerical family and educated at Charterhouse and Trinity College, Oxford . Ordained in 1872, his first post was as Chaplain at Wells Theological College, rising to Vice Principal in 1875...
1895 - 1905 (later Bishop of GloucesterBishop of GloucesterThe Bishop of Gloucester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Gloucester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the County of Gloucestershire and part of the County of Worcestershire and has its see in the City of Gloucester where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church...
) - Samuel Bickersteth 1905 - 1916 then Canon and later Librarian of Canterbury CathedralCanterbury CathedralCanterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
- Bernard Oliver Francis HeywoodBernard Oliver Francis HeywoodBernard Oliver Francis Heywood was a bishop in the Church of England.-Family:Heywood was born into a distinguished ecclesiastical family, the sixth son of the Reverend Henry Robinson Haywood, an honorary canon of Manchester Cathedral.He married Marion Maude and had five sons and two...
1916 - 1928 (later Bishop of Southwell, then Bishop of HullBishop of HullThe Bishop of Hull is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of York, England. The suffragan bishop, along with the Bishop of Selby and the Bishop of Whitby, assists the Archbishop of York in overseeing the diocese....
and finally Bishop of ElyBishop of ElyThe Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire , together with a section of north-west Norfolk and has its see in the City of Ely, Cambridgeshire, where the seat is located at the...
) - Canon William Thompson Elliott 1928 - 1938 (later Canon of Westminster)
- Canon Wilfred Marcus AskwithWilfred Marcus AskwithWilfred Marcus Askwith, KCMG, DD was the 2nd Bishop of Blackburn who was later translated to Gloucester. Educated at Bedford School and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge he was ordained in 1914. His first post was as Curate at St Helens Parish Church. After this he was a Master and Assistant...
1938 - 1942 (later Bishop of BlackburnBishop of BlackburnThe Bishop of Blackburn is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Blackburn in the Province of York.The diocese covers much of the county of Lancashire and has its see in the town of Blackburn, where the seat of the diocese is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary...
, then Bishop of GloucesterBishop of GloucesterThe Bishop of Gloucester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Gloucester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the County of Gloucestershire and part of the County of Worcestershire and has its see in the City of Gloucester where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church... - Canon Arthur Stretton ReeveArthur Stretton ReeveStretton Reeve was Bishop of Lichfield from 1953 until 1974.Born into an ecclesiastical family, he was educated at Brighton College and Selwyn College, Cambridge. His first post after ordination was as a curate in Putney after which he was Domestic Chaplain to the Bishop of Winchester then Vicar...
MA 1943 - 1953 (later Bishop of LichfieldBishop of LichfieldThe Bishop of Lichfield is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 4,516 km² of the counties of Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire and West Midlands. The bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of the Blessed...
) - Canon C B Sampson 1953 - 1961 (formerly vicar of MaidstoneMaidstoneMaidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...
, later Canon Residentiary of Ripon CathedralRipon CathedralRipon Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds and the mother church of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds, situated in the small North Yorkshire city of Ripon, England.-Background:...
) - Canon William Fenton Morley 1961 - 1971 (later Dean of SalisburyDean of SalisburyThe Dean of Salisbury is the Head of the Chapter of Salisbury Cathedral in the Church of England. The current Dean is The Very Revd June Osborne, who was installed in 2004.-Selected office-holders:*Walter 1102*Osbert 1105*Robert 1111*Serlo 1122...
) - Canon Ronald Graham Gregory Foley 1972 - 1982 (later Bishop of ReadingBishop of ReadingThe Bishop of Reading is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford, which is within the Province of Canterbury, England. The current Bishop is the Rt Revd Andrew Proud....
and Assistant Bishop in the Diocese of YorkDiocese of YorkThe Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire....
) - Canon James John Richardson OBE 1982 - 1988 (subsequently Secretary of the Council of Christians and Jews, Rector of BournemouthBournemouthBournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. According to the 2001 Census the town has a population of 163,444, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is also the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...
and, currently - in retirement - Canon Pastor of Sherborne AbbeySherborne AbbeyThe Abbey Church of St Mary the Virgin at Sherborne in the English county of Dorset, is usually called Sherborne Abbey. It has been a Saxon cathedral , a Benedictine abbey and is now a parish church.- Cathedral :...
, DorsetDorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
.
Edward David Murfet, later Minor Canon at Ripon Cathedral
Ripon Cathedral
Ripon Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds and the mother church of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds, situated in the small North Yorkshire city of Ripon, England.-Background:...
was Priest-in-Charge prior to the establishment of the Parish of Leeds City in 1990
Rectors of Leeds from 1991
- Canon Stephen John Oliver (born 1947) 1991 - 1997 (later Precentor of St Paul's CathedralSt Paul's CathedralSt Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
, then Bishop of StepneyBishop of StepneyThe Bishop of Stepney is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of London, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after Stepney, an inner-city district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets...
until 2010) - Canon Graham Charles Morell SmithGraham Charles Morell SmithGraham Charles Morell Smith is the current Dean of Norwich.Smith was educated at Whitgift School and Durham University. He was ordained in 1977 and began his ministry as a curate at All Saints' Tooting Graveney. Following this he was Vicar of St Paul's Thamesmead...
1997 - 2005 (later Dean of NorwichDean of NorwichThe Dean of Norwich is the head of the Chapter of Norwich Cathedral in Norwich, England. The current Dean is the Very Revd Graham Charles Morell Smith.*1538-1539 William Castleton, first dean*1539-1554 John Salisbury*1554-1557 John Christopherson...
) - Canon Anthony Francis Bundock from 2005. Canon Bundock is a Governor of St Peter's (Leeds Parish Church) Church of EnglandChurch of EnglandThe 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...
Primary School and of Gateways SchoolGateways SchoolGateways School is an independent school in Harewood, West Yorkshire, England.The school is situated just north of Leeds and sees itself as part of the wider Harewood community.-Academic:...
HarewoodHarewoodHarewood is a village and civil parish in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, West Yorkshire, England. The A61 runs through the village, from Leeds city centre in the south to Harrogate in the north...
.
Music
St Peter's is the only parish church in England without a resident choir school to have a programme of weekday choral services additional to Sunday liturgies.Organists from 1842 include Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Samuel Sebastian Wesley was an English organist and composer.-Biography:Born in London, he was the eldest child in the composer Samuel Wesley's second family, which he formed with Sarah Suter having separated from his wife Charlotte. Samuel Sebastian was the grandson of Charles Wesley...
1842-1849, Dr Edward Bairstow
Edward Bairstow
Sir Edward Cuthbert Bairstow was born in Huddersfield on 22 August 1874 and died in York on 1 May 1946. He was an English organist and composer in the Anglican church music tradition....
1906-1913, Dr Alfred Melville Cook
Melville Cook
Melville Cook was a British organist, conductor, composer and teacher.- Biography :Alfred Melville Cook was born in Gloucester. He was a chorister at Gloucester Cathedral and articled pupil there under Herbert Sumsion . He also studied with Herbert Brewer and Edward Bairstow...
1937-1956 and Dr Donald Hunt OBE 1957-1975. Organist and Master of the Music, in office since 1975, the ninth musical incumbent since Wesley's day, is Dr Simon Lindley
Simon Lindley
Simon Lindley is a British organist, choirmaster, conductor and composer. He has been organist at Leeds Town Hall since 1976 and Master of the Music and organist of Leeds Parish Church since 1975. Senior Lecturer in Music at Leeds Polytechnic from 1976 to 1987, Lindley held the post of Senior...
who came to Leeds after service at St Albans Cathedral
St Albans Cathedral
St Albans Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral church at St Albans, England. At , its nave is the longest of any cathedral in England...
and churches in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
; Lindley is the organist at Leeds Town Hall
Leeds Town Hall
Leeds Town Hall was built between 1853 and 1858 on Park Lane , Leeds, West Yorkshire, England to a design by architect Cuthbert Brodrick.-Background:...
. He is chairman of the Ecclesiastical Music Trust in his capacity as a director of the English Hymnal
English Hymnal
The English Hymnal was published in 1906 for the Church of England under the editorship of Percy Dearmer and Ralph Vaughan Williams. The preface to the hymnal began with the statement, "A collection of the best hymns in the English language." Much of the contents was used for the first time at St...
Company and President of the Campaign for the Traditional Cathedral Choir. The sub-organist and director of the girls' choir is David Houlder, formerly of Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral
Liverpool Cathedral is the Church of England cathedral of the Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool and is the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool but it is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
and for a long period director of music at the Bluecoat School
Liverpool Blue Coat School
The Liverpool Blue Coat School is a voluntary aided secondary school located in Wavertree, Liverpool and is Liverpool's only Grammar School. The school was for many years a boys' school but as of September 2002 it has reverted to its original coeducational remit.The Blue Coat School holds a...
.
In Autumn 2009, Ashley Francis Roy began work as animateur for Chorister Outreach in two primary schools near the church; the post was supported by the Church Urban Fund
Church Urban Fund
The Church Urban Fund is a charitable organisation set up by the Church of England in 1987 designed to assist in deprived and impoverished areas of the country...
. Boy choristers attend church each weekday except Thursday, Friday evenings, Saturday mornings and twice on Sundays. Boy choristers attend St Peter's C of E Primary School in Burmantofts, Abbey Grange C of E Academy, Cardinal Heenan Roman Catholic High School, Brudenell Primary School and Whingate Primary School.
The adult choir consists of lay clerks (including former boy choristers), choral scholars (undergraduates from the University of Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
and Leeds College of Music
Leeds College of Music
Leeds College of Music, located in Leeds’ Quarry Hill cultural quarter, is the largest music college in the United Kingdom, with over 1,000 full-time and 1,000 part-time students. The college is best known for its leading role in jazz education and started one of the first jazz degrees in Europe...
) and supernumerary singers - altos, tenors and basses. During term time, Evensong is sung by the full choir on Wednesday and Friday evenings, by the boys on Monday and the men on Thursday. A semi-professional adult chamber choir, Saint Peter's Singers of Leeds
Saint Peter's Singers of Leeds
Saint Peter's Singers is a chamber choir associated with Leeds Parish Church, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.-Background:Saint Peter's Singers is a choir of approximately forty mixed voices...
was founded in 1977 and meets for rehearsals on Sunday evening during term time and present regular concerts and sing at choral services each season including at the end of each summer term, a memorial Evensong
Evensong
The term evensong can refer to the following:* Evening Prayer , the Anglican liturgy of Evening Prayer, especially so called when it is sung...
for John Barrie Hanson - a member of the singers and choir.
The choir has been associated with the Royal School of Church Music
Royal School of Church Music
The largest church music organisation in Britain, the Royal School of Church Music was founded in 1927 by Sir Sydney Nicholson and has 11,000 members worldwide; it was originally named the School of English Church Music. It seeks to enable church music in the present and invest in its future,...
since the early 1930s through links with Sir Sydney Nicholson
Sydney Nicholson
Sir Sydney Hugo Nicholson was an English choir director, organist and composer, now chiefly remembered as the founder of the Royal School of Church Music . He was born in London and educated at Rugby School, New College, Oxford and the Royal College of Music...
, RSCM founder and churchwarden, Herbert Bacon Smith. Simon Lindley is one of the RSCM's longest serving special commissioners and has directed RSCM courses on four continents. The girls' choir formed in 1997 by Jonathan Lilley, meet weekly on Saturdays (sometimes singing for morning worship) and participate in events involving the full choral foundation on special occasions.
Organ Concerts
Friday lunchtime organ recitals are held weekly between September and July featuring David Houlder, Dr Christopher Newton and Simon Lindley, Sunday evening concerts by Dr Lindley have taken place weekly in August since the restoration of the instrument was completed.Organists
- 1842 Dr Samuel Sebastian WesleySamuel Sebastian WesleySamuel Sebastian Wesley was an English organist and composer.-Biography:Born in London, he was the eldest child in the composer Samuel Wesley's second family, which he formed with Sarah Suter having separated from his wife Charlotte. Samuel Sebastian was the grandson of Charles Wesley...
(afterwards organist at Winchester CathedralWinchester CathedralWinchester Cathedral at Winchester in Hampshire is one of the largest cathedrals in England, with the longest nave and overall length of any Gothic cathedral in Europe...
and Gloucester CathedralGloucester CathedralGloucester Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity, in Gloucester, England, stands in the north of the city near the river. It originated in 678 or 679 with the foundation of an abbey dedicated to Saint Peter .-Foundations:The foundations of the present...
) - 1849 Robert Senior Burton (afterwards organist at St. Peter's Church, HarrogateSt. Peter's Church, HarrogateSt. Peter's Church, Harrogate is a parish church in the Church of England located in Harrogate.-History:The church was formed out of the parish of Christ Church, High Harrogate....
) - 1880 Dr William Creser (afterwards organist of Her Majesty's Chapel Royal St James's Palace
- 1891 Alfred Benton (afterwards organist of Covington Roman Catholic Cathedral, KentuckyKentuckyThe Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
USA) - 1906 Dr Edward BairstowEdward BairstowSir Edward Cuthbert Bairstow was born in Huddersfield on 22 August 1874 and died in York on 1 May 1946. He was an English organist and composer in the Anglican church music tradition....
(from Wigan Parish ChurchWigan Parish ChurchAll Saints' Church, Wigan is the Church of England parish church in Wigan, Greater Manchester.It is a Grade II* listed building.-History:The church is medieval but most of the present building was erected between 1845 and 1850 by the Lancaster partnership of Sharpe and Paley, when it was almost...
, afterwards organist and master of the choristers of York MinsterYork MinsterYork Minster is a Gothic cathedral in York, England and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe alongside Cologne Cathedral. The minster is the seat of the Archbishop of York, the second-highest office of the Church of England, and is the cathedral for the Diocese of York; it is run by...
) - 1913 Willoughby Williams (afterwards organist of St Peter's Episcopal Church, Oakland, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, USA) - 1920 Dr Albert Charles Tysoe (afterwards organist of St Albans CathedralSt Albans CathedralSt Albans Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral church at St Albans, England. At , its nave is the longest of any cathedral in England...
) - 1937 Dr (Alfred) Melville CookMelville CookMelville Cook was a British organist, conductor, composer and teacher.- Biography :Alfred Melville Cook was born in Gloucester. He was a chorister at Gloucester Cathedral and articled pupil there under Herbert Sumsion . He also studied with Herbert Brewer and Edward Bairstow...
(afterwards organist and master of the choristers of Hereford CathedralHereford CathedralThe current Hereford Cathedral, located at Hereford in England, dates from 1079. Its most famous treasure is Mappa Mundi, a mediæval map of the world dating from the 13th century. The cathedral is a Grade I listed building.-Origins:...
and conductor of the Three Choirs FestivalThree Choirs FestivalThe Three Choirs Festival is a music festival held each August alternately at the cathedrals of the Three Counties and originally featuring their three choirs, which remain central to the week-long programme...
) - 1957 Dr Donald Frederick Hunt OBE (afterwards master of the choristers and organist of Worcester CathedralWorcester CathedralWorcester Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, England; situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is The Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Mary the Virgin of Worcester...
and conductor of the Three Choirs FestivalThree Choirs FestivalThe Three Choirs Festival is a music festival held each August alternately at the cathedrals of the Three Counties and originally featuring their three choirs, which remain central to the week-long programme...
) - 1975 Dr Simon Geoffrey LindleySimon LindleySimon Lindley is a British organist, choirmaster, conductor and composer. He has been organist at Leeds Town Hall since 1976 and Master of the Music and organist of Leeds Parish Church since 1975. Senior Lecturer in Music at Leeds Polytechnic from 1976 to 1987, Lindley held the post of Senior...
(from St Albans CathedralSt Albans CathedralSt Albans Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral church at St Albans, England. At , its nave is the longest of any cathedral in England...
) - President of the Royal College of OrganistsRoyal College of OrganistsThe Royal College of Organists or RCO, is a charity and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, but with members around the world...
, 2000–2002 - Vice-President, from 2003; President of the Incorporated Association of Organists, 2003–2005.
Samuel Sebastian Wesley 200th Anniversary Celebrations
The 200th anniversary celebrations for Samuel Sebastian Wesley, born 14 August 1810, began with Festal EvensongEvening Prayer (Anglican)
Evening Prayer is a liturgy in use in the Anglican Communion and celebrated in the late afternoon or evening...
on Sunday 4 July 2010 followed by a Gala Choral Recital. Worship on Sunday 15 August was broadcast on BBC Radio Four. Dr Lindley gave a commemorative recital of Wesley's organ music in the evening and a commemorative recital of music by Wesley at Leeds Town Hall on 13 September.
Rugby league
A rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
team from Leeds Parish Church joined the Northern Rugby Football Union (now Rugby Football League
Rugby Football League
The Rugby Football League is the governing body for professional rugby league football in England. Based at Red Hall in Leeds, it administers the England national rugby league team, the Challenge Cup, Super League and the Rugby League Championships...
) in 1896. Leeds Parish Church played for five seasons from 1896–97 to 1900–01 after which it withdrew.