Church of St Mary, Ecclesfield facts for kids

The Church of St Mary, Ecclesfield is a very old and important church. You can find it on Church Street in the village of Ecclesfield, which is part of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It's about 4 miles north of the city centre.

This church is a Grade I listed building. This means it's one of the most important historic buildings in England! There are only five buildings like it in all of Sheffield. Long ago, it was the main church for Hallamshire, which was one of the biggest church areas (parishes) in England. In the 1600s, people called it the "Minster of the Moors" because it was in a very rural, open area back then.

History of the Church

We don't know the exact year a church first stood here. The name Ecclesfield might mean "Church in the Field" in Old English language. This name was mentioned in the Domesday Book, a famous survey from 1086. So, there might have been a place of worship here even before the Norman conquest of England in 1066. Some historians think that the Anglo-Saxons built a church on this spot between the years 625 and 650.

After the Norman Conquest, the lands around Ecclesfield were given to William de Lovetot in the early 1100s. He built the first big church on this site. Some people say it was built in 1111, but we don't have old papers to prove that date.

The church was later given to monks from Fontenelle Abbey in France. A small group of French monks came to live here, making it an "alien priory" (a small monastery connected to a foreign one). In 1386, King Richard II closed these foreign priories. He gave the church to the Carthusian Monks of Coventry. They looked after it until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the late 1530s. This was when King Henry VIII closed many monasteries in England. After that, the church was given to the Lords of Hallamshire.

The church's parish was huge, covering 82 square miles! Because it was so big, Ecclesfield had four churchwardens instead of the usual two. This tradition is still kept today.

The church you see now started being built in 1478 and was finished around 1500. It was built in the Perpendicular style, which was popular for churches at that time. However, some parts of the church, like the main pillars and parts of the nave (the main body of the church), are from the older 1100s building.

In the 1640s, during a time of Puritan influence, many of the church's decorations and all its stained glass windows were broken. This happened after a law in 1643 said that all pictures of angels or saints in churches should be removed or destroyed. Some of the broken glass was later put back together in windows in the north aisle and vestry. In the 1700s and 1800s, the church had a lot of changes, especially to the nave and chancel.

In 1878, a football team representing Ecclesfield Church joined the Sheffield Football Association.

The Church Today

Today, the church is still very active. It has some modern updates like a kitchen, a toilet, and new heating and lighting. In 2019, it was officially recognized as a Major Parish Church. In 2021, a new entrance was finished at the West End. It has level access and electric doors, making it easy for everyone to enter.

The church is built from local stone. Inside, you'll find an octagonal (eight-sided) font, which is used for baptisms. The pulpit, where sermons are given, was added in 1876. It has four carved pictures showing parts of St Paul's life. The lectern, where readings are done, was put in at the same time. Since the Second World War, both the chancel (the area around the altar) and the nave have been given new roofs.

The church tower holds ten bells that can be rung together. Two of these bells are very old, dating back to the 1600s! Music in the church is played on a large pipe organ.

Outside in the churchyard, there is a war memorial made of light-coloured limestone. It was designed by R. B. Brook-Greaves. This memorial has the names of 54 local people who died in the First World War, 36 who died in the Second World War, and one person who died in the Falklands War. This memorial is also a Grade II listed building.

Inside the church, there's a special and rare Anglo-Saxon cross shaft. It's about five feet tall and was found buried outside the west door in 1892. It has been put back together inside the church. In 2020, pieces of a second cross were found in the same spot! You can also see a sundial in the churchyard, which sits on a base that might be very ancient.

Many interesting people are buried in the churchyard. One is Joseph Hunter, a famous historian who wrote an important book about the local area called Hallamshire (1819).

Also buried here are Alexander John Scott, who was a chaplain (a priest for the military) to Horatio Nelson. He was with Nelson when he died at the Battle of Trafalgar. His daughter, Margaret Gatty, a writer and botanist, is also buried nearby. You can also find the grave of Parkin Jeffcock, an English mining engineer. He died trying to rescue miners during a terrible mining accident called the Oaks mining disaster.

The current vicar (the main priest) of the church is Revd. Dr. Tim Gill. He started his role on July 28, 2016.

Images for kids

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  St Mary's Church, Ecclesfield

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  The war memorial outside the church