St James' and St Paul's Church, Marton
Encyclopedia
The Church of St James and St Paul, Marton is situated to the south of the village of Marton
, Cheshire
, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican
parish church
in the diocese of Chester
, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield and the deanery of Macclesfield. Its benefice
is combined with those of Holy Trinity, Capesthorne, and All Saints, Siddington
.
The church differs from the majority of churches in Cheshire
in that its body is timber framed
. It is one of the oldest timber framed churches in Europe. Only a handful of churches of this type remain in England; other surviving examples include churches at Lower Peover
and Baddiley
(Cheshire), Melverley
(Shropshire
), Besford
(Worcestershire
) and Hartley Wespall
(Hampshire
).
in 1343 by Sir John de Davenport and his son Vivian. Further land was donated by the family in 1370. The belfry
was added subsequently; it dates from around 1540. The roof was lowered in 1804.
Restorations
were carried out by J. M. Derick in 1850 and William Butterfield
in 1871. Derick replaced two-light windows with windows of three lights. Butterfield tidied some of the timbers in the tower. At that time, the existing entrance at the west end was also added. Further restoration was carried out in 1930–31, including renewal of some wall panels, rafters and belfry shingles. A brick extension to the chancel
was constructed in the 20th century.
with a middle rail. It rests on a stone plinth
, the infill is rendered
brick and the roof is of slate
. At the west end is a shingled
square tower with a shingled broach spire
ending in a weather cock
. This is surrounded by lean-to roofed aisle
s on the north, west and south sides. The tower has a western arched door with a 20th-century door which incorporates 17th-century iron strap hinges. The body of the church consists of a three-bay
nave
with north and south aisles, a two-bay chancel and north and south chapels at the ends of the aisles, and a south porch.
are octagonal in shape. Two damaged stone effigies
of 14th-century knight
s are in the belfry; the heads rest on the Davenport crest, suggesting the figures might depict the church's founders, John and Vivian de Davenport. The pulpit
carries a coat of arms
and dates from 1620. There are three surviving bells, the oldest being inscribed 'God Save the Queen and Realme 1598'. Other features include an Elizabethan
parish chest
and an ancient handmade wooden ladder accessing the bell-ringing platform. The organ was built in 1894 by A. Worral. The ring consists of three bells which are dated 1598, 1663 and 1758. The parish register
s begin in 1563.
Inside the church are traces of some early medieval
paintings on the west wall, which were discovered under plaster in 1930. The triangular painting, which possibly represents the Last Judgement (a common subject of medieval church paintings), is divided into sections by the timbering. A haloed male figure with long yellow hair at the top right possibly represents Christ
, and a haloed kneeling female figure opposite might represent the Virgin Mary
. The bottom left panel contains figures with raised hands mainly looking towards the viewer; these possibly represent souls under judgement. Other figures carry items, perhaps instruments of the Passion
. Also in the church is an 18th-century oil painting by Edward Penney of Moses
and Aaron
holding the Ten Commandments
.
In the churchyard is a cross dating from the 14th or 15th century which has been subsequently restored. It is listed Grade II.
Marton, Cheshire
Marton, Cheshire is a small village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England on the A34 road 3 miles north of Congleton ....
, 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. 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 I listed building. It is an active 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...
parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
in the diocese of Chester
Diocese of Chester
The Diocese of Chester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York based in Chester, covering the county of Cheshire in its pre-1974 boundaries...
, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield and the deanery of Macclesfield. Its benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...
is combined with those of Holy Trinity, Capesthorne, and All Saints, Siddington
All Saints Church, Siddington
All Saints Church, Siddington is in the village of Siddington, Cheshire, England. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield and the deanery of...
.
The church differs from the majority of churches in 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...
in that its body is timber framed
Timber 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...
. It is one of the oldest timber framed churches in Europe. Only a handful of churches of this type remain in England; other surviving examples include churches at Lower Peover
St Oswald's Church, Lower Peover
St Oswald's Church, Lower Peover, is in the village of Lower Peover, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield and the deanery of Knutsford...
and Baddiley
St Michael's Church, Baddiley
St Michael's Church, Baddiley is in the civil parish of Baddiley, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. The church lies at the end of a lane near to Baddiley Hall, formerly the home of the Mainwaring family. It dates from the early...
(Cheshire), Melverley
Melverley
Melverley is a village in Shropshire, England, situated on the River Severn and the River Vyrnwy, near the Powys hills and the border with Wales...
(Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
), Besford
Besford
Besford is a village and civil parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 147. The village is near Pershore, off the road from Upton-upon-Severn. A historic house, Besford Court , is located in the village...
(Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
) and Hartley Wespall
Hartley Wespall
Hartley Wespall is a civil parish in the Basingstoke & Deane district of Hampshire, England. Its nearest town is Hook, which lies approximately 2.5 miles south-west from the hamlet....
(Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
).
History
The church was founded and endowedFinancial endowment
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution. The total value of an institution's investments is often referred to as the institution's endowment and is typically organized as a public charity, private foundation, or trust....
in 1343 by Sir John de Davenport and his son Vivian. Further land was donated by the family in 1370. The 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 added subsequently; it dates from around 1540. The roof was lowered in 1804.
Restorations
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...
were carried out by J. M. Derick in 1850 and William Butterfield
William Butterfield
William Butterfield was a Gothic Revival architect and associated with the Oxford Movement . He is noted for his use of polychromy-Biography:...
in 1871. Derick replaced two-light windows with windows of three lights. Butterfield tidied some of the timbers in the tower. At that time, the existing entrance at the west end was also added. Further restoration was carried out in 1930–31, including renewal of some wall panels, rafters and belfry shingles. A brick extension to 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...
was constructed in the 20th century.
Exterior
The timber frame features close studdingClose studding
Close studding is a form of timber work used in timber-framed buildings in which vertical timbers are set close together, dividing the wall into narrow panels...
with a middle rail. It rests on a stone plinth
Plinth
In architecture, a plinth is the base or platform upon which a column, pedestal, statue, monument or structure rests. Gottfried Semper's The Four Elements of Architecture posited that the plinth, the hearth, the roof, and the wall make up all of architectural theory. The plinth usually rests...
, the infill is rendered
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
brick and the roof is of 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...
. At the west end is a shingled
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
square tower with a shingled broach spire
Broach spire
A broach spire is a type of spire, a tall pyramidal or conical structure usually on the top of a tower or a turret. A broach spire starts on a square base and is carried up to a tapering octagonal spire by means of triangular faces....
ending in a weather cock
Weather vane
A weather vane is an instrument for showing the direction of the wind. They are typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building....
. This is surrounded by lean-to roofed 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 on the north, west and south sides. The tower has a western arched door with a 20th-century door which incorporates 17th-century iron strap hinges. The body of the church consists of a three-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...
with north and south aisles, a two-bay chancel and north and south chapels at the ends of the aisles, and a south porch.
Interior
The timber piersPier (architecture)
In architecture, a pier is an upright support for a superstructure, such as an arch or bridge. Sections of wall between openings function as piers. The simplest cross section of the pier is square, or rectangular, although other shapes are also common, such as the richly articulated piers of Donato...
are octagonal in shape. Two damaged stone effigies
Effigy
An effigy is a representation of a person, especially in the form of sculpture or some other three-dimensional form.The term is usually associated with full-length figures of a deceased person depicted in stone or wood on church monuments. These most often lie supine with hands together in prayer,...
of 14th-century knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
s are in the belfry; the heads rest on the Davenport crest, suggesting the figures might depict the church's founders, John and Vivian de Davenport. The 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...
carries a coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
and dates from 1620. There are three surviving bells, the oldest being inscribed 'God Save the Queen and Realme 1598'. Other features include an Elizabethan
Elizabethan era
The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign . Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history...
parish chest
Chest (furniture)
A chest is one of the oldest forms of furniture. It is typically a rectangular structure with four walls and a liftable lid, for storage. The interior space may be subdivided...
and an ancient handmade wooden ladder accessing the bell-ringing platform. The organ was built in 1894 by A. Worral. The ring consists of three bells which are dated 1598, 1663 and 1758. The parish register
Parish register
A parish register is a handwritten volume, normally kept in a parish church or deposited within a county record office or alternative archive repository, in which details of baptisms, marriages and burials are recorded.-History:...
s begin in 1563.
Inside the church are traces of some early medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
paintings on the west wall, which were discovered under plaster in 1930. The triangular painting, which possibly represents the Last Judgement (a common subject of medieval church paintings), is divided into sections by the timbering. A haloed male figure with long yellow hair at the top right possibly represents Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
, and a haloed kneeling female figure opposite might represent the Virgin Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
. The bottom left panel contains figures with raised hands mainly looking towards the viewer; these possibly represent souls under judgement. Other figures carry items, perhaps instruments of the Passion
Passion (Christianity)
The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...
. Also in the church is an 18th-century oil painting by Edward Penney of Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
and Aaron
Aaron
In the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, Aaron : Ααρών ), who is often called "'Aaron the Priest"' and once Aaron the Levite , was the older brother of Moses, and a prophet of God. He represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Israelites...
holding the Ten Commandments
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
.
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