St Oswald's Church, Backford
Encyclopedia
St Oswald's Church, Backford, is a church in the village of Backford
, northwest of Chester
, Cheshire
, England, close to the A41 road
and adjoining Backford Hall
. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building. The church dates from the 14th century with later additions and restorations. It contains one of the few surviving aumbries
in Cheshire and a number of memorial boards painted by the Randle Holme
family. It is an active Anglican parish church
in the diocese of Chester
, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Wirral South. Its benefice
is combined with that of Holy Trinity Church, Capenhurst
.
to the Benedictine
Priory at Birkenhead
. At the dissolution of the monasteries
the advowson
was passed to the Diocese of Chester
. The chancel
dates from the 14th century, and the tower from the 15th century. The nave
was rebuilt in 1728–31 and it was remodelled in 1877–79 by Ewan Christian
. A reredos
designed by John Douglas
was added in 1892.
with a slate
roof. The tower is in Perpendicular style with a battlement
ed parapet
, crocket
ted finial
s and gargoyle
s. Its west front has a doorway with a three-light window above it. The belfry windows have two lights. The plan of the church consists of a three-bay
nave, a chancel, a north vestry
and a south porch. In the chancel there is some 14th-century masonry, and the east window dates from about 1375. The windows in the south wall are Perpendicular. The nave had been in the classical
style until it was replaced in the 19th century in Gothic revival
style. Over the chancel arch is a painting depicting the Creation. Elsewhere are older wall paintings, including some by Edward Frampton
.
in Cheshire. In the nave is a chained bible dated 1617, which has been in the church since the 17th century. An oak chest dating from the early 17th century is made of wood from Chester Cathedral
. In the church are six wooden memorial boards painted by members of the Randle Holme
family of Chester
. Some memorial boards painted by Randle Holme III hanging in this church and elsewhere were executed without the permission of the College of Arms
. Between 1667 and 1670 its head, Sir William Dugdale
, travelled to the north on at least three occasions to destroy them. However the boards hanging in this church were not located by him and they survive. The parish register
s begin in 1562. A monument to Samuel Griffiths who died in 1796 is by E. Spencer of Chester, and a memorial to Baskervyle Glegg, who died in 1843, is by Sanders of London. The two-manual
organ is by Franklin Lloyd, to which additions were made by Harry Moulding of Chester around 1970. The ring
is of six bells. Three of these were cast by Richard Sanders in 1714 and the other three by John Taylor and Company are dated 1887, 1889 and 1974.
dating possibly from the 18th century. It is a Grade II listed building. Also listed Grade II are the churchyard walls and the gateway to the church, and a table tomb. A doorway in the churchyard dating from Georgian
times gives access to the grounds of Backford Hall.
Backford
Backford is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is situated between Chester and Ellesmere Port on the A41 trunk road, to the north of the Shropshire Union Canal....
, northwest 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, close to the A41 road
A41 road
The A41 is a formerly-major trunk road in England that links London and Birkenhead, although it has now largely been superseded by motorways. It passes through or near various towns and cities including Watford, Hemel Hempstead, Aylesbury, Solihull, Birmingham, West Bromwich, Wolverhampton,...
and adjoining Backford Hall
Backford Hall
Backford Hall is a house in the village of Backford, Cheshire, England. It was built in 1863 on the site of earlier halls, and was designed by John Cunningham. Its style is described as "exuberant Elizabethan, Jacobean and Bohemian Rococo". The authors of the Buildings of England series describe...
. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building. The church dates from the 14th century with later additions and restorations. It contains one of the few surviving aumbries
Aumbry
In the Middle Ages an aumbry was a cabinet in the wall of a Christian church or in the sacristy which was used to store chalices and other vessels, as well as for the reserved sacrament, the consecrated elements from the Eucharist. This latter use was infrequent in pre-Reformation churches,...
in Cheshire and a number of memorial boards painted by the Randle Holme
Randle Holme
Randle Holme was a name shared by members of four successive generations of a family who lived in Chester, Cheshire, England from the late years of the 16th century to the early years of the 18th century. They were all herald painters and genealogists and were members of the Stationers' Company of...
family. It is an active Anglican 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 Wirral South. 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 that of Holy Trinity Church, Capenhurst
Holy Trinity Church, Capenhurst
Holy Trinity Church, Capenhurst is in the village of Capenhurst, Cheshire, England. The church is 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 Wirral South...
.
History
The first mention of a church on this site is in the 13th century. Soon after this it was given by the barons of Dunham MasseyDunham Massey
Dunham Massey is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The parish includes the villages of Sinderland Green, Dunham Woodhouse and Dunham Town, along with Dunham Massey Park, formerly the home of the last Earl of Stamford and owned by the National Trust...
to the Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
Priory at Birkenhead
Birkenhead Priory
Birkenhead Priory is in Priory Street, Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. It is the oldest standing building on Merseyside. The remains of the priory are a Grade I listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument...
. At the dissolution of the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
the advowson
Advowson
Advowson is the right in English law of a patron to present or appoint a nominee to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a process known as presentation. In effect this means the right to nominate a person to hold a church office in a parish...
was passed to 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 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...
dates from the 14th century, and the tower from the 15th century. The 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...
was rebuilt in 1728–31 and it was remodelled in 1877–79 by Ewan Christian
Ewan Christian
Ewan Christian was a British architect. He is most notable for the restoration of Carlisle Cathedral, the alterations to Christ Church, Spitalfields in 1866, and the extension to the National Gallery that created the National Portrait Gallery. He was architect to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners...
. A 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....
designed by John Douglas
John Douglas (architect)
John Douglas was an English architect who designed about 500 buildings in Cheshire, North Wales, and northwest England, in particular in the estate of Eaton Hall. He was trained in Lancaster and practised throughout his career from an office in Chester, Cheshire...
was added in 1892.
Exterior
The church is built in sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
with a slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roof. The tower is in Perpendicular style with a 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...
ed parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
, 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....
ted finial
Finial
The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed decoratively to emphasize the apex of a gable or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods...
s and gargoyle
Gargoyle
In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque, usually made of granite, with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between...
s. Its west front has a doorway with a three-light window above it. The belfry windows have two lights. The plan 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, a chancel, a north 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....
and a south porch. In the chancel there is some 14th-century masonry, and the east window dates from about 1375. The windows in the south wall are Perpendicular. The nave had been in the classical
Classical architecture
Classical architecture is a mode of architecture employing vocabulary derived in part from the Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, enriched by classicizing architectural practice in Europe since the Renaissance...
style until it was replaced in the 19th century in Gothic revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
style. Over the chancel arch is a painting depicting the Creation. Elsewhere are older wall paintings, including some by Edward Frampton
Edward Reginald Frampton
Edward Reginald Frampton was an English painter who specialized in murals, specifically war memorials at churches. He painted in a flat, stately style, and was influenced by French Symbolism. He also worked in stained glass, most probably learning from his father, Edward Frampton, who was a...
.
Interior
The church contains one of the few surviving aumbriesAumbry
In the Middle Ages an aumbry was a cabinet in the wall of a Christian church or in the sacristy which was used to store chalices and other vessels, as well as for the reserved sacrament, the consecrated elements from the Eucharist. This latter use was infrequent in pre-Reformation churches,...
in Cheshire. In the nave is a chained bible dated 1617, which has been in the church since the 17th century. An oak chest dating from the early 17th century is made of wood from Chester Cathedral
Chester Cathedral
Chester Cathedral is the mother church of the Church of England Diocese of Chester, and is located in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. The cathedral, formerly St Werburgh's abbey church of a Benedictine monastery, is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
. In the church are six wooden memorial boards painted by members of the Randle Holme
Randle Holme
Randle Holme was a name shared by members of four successive generations of a family who lived in Chester, Cheshire, England from the late years of the 16th century to the early years of the 18th century. They were all herald painters and genealogists and were members of the Stationers' Company of...
family 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...
. Some memorial boards painted by Randle Holme III hanging in this church and elsewhere were executed without the permission of the College of Arms
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
. Between 1667 and 1670 its head, Sir William Dugdale
William Dugdale
Sir William Dugdale was an English antiquary and herald. As a scholar he was influential in the development of medieval history as an academic subject.-Life:...
, travelled to the north on at least three occasions to destroy them. However the boards hanging in this church were not located by him and they survive. 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 1562. A monument to Samuel Griffiths who died in 1796 is by E. Spencer of Chester, and a memorial to Baskervyle Glegg, who died in 1843, is by Sanders of London. The two-manual
Manual (music)
A manual is a keyboard designed to be played with the hands on a pipe organ, harpsichord, clavichord, electronic organ, or synthesizer. The term "manual" is used with regard to any hand keyboard on these instruments to distinguish it from the pedalboard, which is a keyboard that the organist plays...
organ is by Franklin Lloyd, to which additions were made by Harry Moulding of Chester around 1970. 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...
is of six bells. Three of these were cast by Richard Sanders in 1714 and the other three by John Taylor and Company are dated 1887, 1889 and 1974.
External features
In the churchyard is a sandstone sundialSundial
A sundial is a device that measures time by the position of the Sun. In common designs such as the horizontal sundial, the sun casts a shadow from its style onto a surface marked with lines indicating the hours of the day. The style is the time-telling edge of the gnomon, often a thin rod or a...
dating possibly from the 18th century. It is a Grade II listed building. Also listed Grade II are the churchyard walls and the gateway to the church, and a table tomb. A doorway in the churchyard dating from 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...
times gives access to the grounds of Backford Hall.