St Mary's Church, Handbridge
Encyclopedia
St Mary's Church, Handbridge is in Handbridge
, an area south of the River Dee, in the city of Chester
, Cheshire
, England. It is also known as the Church of St Mary-without-the-Walls. 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 Chester and the deanery of Chester.
. A porch was added on the south face of the tower in 1914 which was designed by P. H. Lockwood.
Waverton
stone with dressings of Runcorn
sandstone
. It has Westmorland
green slate
roofs. The plan consists of a five-bay
nave
with a clerestory
, a three-bay chancel
, a chapel at the southeast, an organ chamber and a vestry
. There are two porches, on one the south and one on the north. At the west end is a three-stage tower with a recessed spire. It has clock faces to the north, west and south, paired louvred
bell-openings on each face, a machicolated parapet
, two pinnacle
s at each corner, lucarne
s to each cardinal face of the spire and a weathervane.
floor and a stone font
with an oak cover. The stained glass in the baptistry is dated 1887 and is by Edward Frampton. It depicts Christ's baptism
. In the baptistry is a portrait memorial dated 1900 to the first Duke of Westminster. The nave is floored with wood blocks. There are three steps up to the chancel with wrought iron
rails. The chancel has a mosaic
floor. The southeast chapel has a wrought iron
screen. The pulpit
and lectern
are in oak. To the north of the chancel is a sedilia
. The east window is probably also by Frampton. The reredos
was designed by Frederic Shields
and made in cloisonné
by Clement Heaton. The ring
consists of eight bells which were cast by Mears and Stainbank at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
in 1887.
Handbridge
Handbridge is a district of Chester, England on the south bank of the River Dee. A settlement has existed on the site since the Iron age , but the site saw major expansion during the collapse of the Roman occupation of Britain, as the city grew too large for its walls...
, an area south of the River Dee, in the city of Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
, 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 is also known as the Church of St Mary-without-the-Walls. The church 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. 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 Chester and the deanery of Chester.
History
The church was built between 1885 and 1887 to a design by F. B. Wade for the 1st Duke of WestminsterHugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster
Hugh Lupus Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster KG, PC, JP , styled Viscount Belgrave between 1831 and 1845 and Earl Grosvenor between 1845 and 1869 and known as the 3rd Marquess of Westminster between 1869 and 1874, was an English landowner, politician and racehorse owner.He inherited the estate of...
. A porch was added on the south face of the tower in 1914 which was designed by P. H. Lockwood.
Exterior
St Mary's is constructed 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...
Waverton
Waverton, Cheshire
Waverton is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies about 5 km south east of Chester...
stone with dressings of Runcorn
Runcorn
Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port within the borough of Halton in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. In 2009, its population was estimated to be 61,500. The town is on the southern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form Runcorn Gap. Directly to the north...
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,...
. It has Westmorland
Westmorland
Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
green 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. The plan consists of a 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...
with a clerestory
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...
, a three-bay 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...
, a chapel at the southeast, an organ chamber and 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....
. There are two porches, on one the south and one on the north. At the west end is a three-stage tower with a recessed spire. It has clock faces to the north, west and south, paired louvred
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
bell-openings on each face, a machicolated parapet
Machicolation
A machicolation is a floor opening between the supporting corbels of a battlement, through which stones, or other objects, could be dropped on attackers at the base of a defensive wall. The design was developed in the Middle Ages when the Norman crusaders returned. A machicolated battlement...
, two 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 at each corner, lucarne
Lucarne
A lucarne is a small dormer window that is built on a spire or roof during the Gothic and Romanesque time period....
s to each cardinal face of the spire and a weathervane.
Interior
The baptistry is in the tower and has an encaustic tiledEncaustic tile
Encaustic tiles are ceramic tiles in which the pattern or figure on the surface is not a product of the glaze but of different colors of clay. They are usually of two colors but a tile may be composed of as many as six. The pattern is inlaid into the body of the tile, so that the design remains as...
floor and a stone font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
with an oak cover. The stained glass in the baptistry is dated 1887 and is by Edward Frampton. It depicts Christ's baptism
Baptism of Jesus
The baptism of Jesus marks the beginning of Jesus Christ's public ministry. This event is recorded in the Canonical Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. In John 1:29-33 rather than a direct narrative, the Baptist bears witness to the episode...
. In the baptistry is a portrait memorial dated 1900 to the first Duke of Westminster. The nave is floored with wood blocks. There are three steps up to the chancel with wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
rails. The chancel has a mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
floor. The southeast chapel has a wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
screen. 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...
and lectern
Lectern
A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, usually placed on a stand or affixed to some other form of support, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon...
are in oak. To the north of the chancel is a sedilia
Sedilia
Sedilia , in ecclesiastical architecture, is the term used to describe stone seats, usually to be found on the south side of an altar, often in the chancel, for the use of the officiating priests...
. The east window is probably also by Frampton. 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....
was designed by Frederic Shields
Frederic Shields
Frederic James Shields , was a British artist, illustrator and designer closely associated with the Pre-Raphaelites through Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Ford Madox Brown.-Early years:...
and made in cloisonné
Cloisonné
Cloisonné is an ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects, in recent centuries using vitreous enamel, and in older periods also inlays of cut gemstones, glass, and other materials. The resulting objects can also be called cloisonné...
by Clement Heaton. The ring
Ring of bells
"Ring of bells" is a term most often applied to a set of bells hung in the English style, typically for change ringing...
consists of eight bells which were cast by Mears and Stainbank at the 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...
in 1887.