Leicester's Church, Denbigh facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Leicester's Church |
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| Remains of St David's Church, Denbigh | |
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| Type | Church |
| Location | Denbigh, Denbighshire |
| Built | begun in 1578-9, abandoned in 1584 |
| Built for | Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester |
| Governing body | Cadw |
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Listed Building – Grade I
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| Official name: Leicester's Church (Remains) | |
| Designated | 1950 |
| Reference no. | 970 |
| Official name: Denbigh, Leicester's Church | |
| Reference no. | DE044 |
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Leicester's Church, also known as St David's Church, Denbigh, is a huge church ruin in North Wales. It stands near the old castle in Denbigh. A powerful man named Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester started building it in 1578. However, he ran out of money, and work stopped in 1584. When the Earl died in 1588, the project was completely abandoned.
This church was the only large one built in England or Wales during the time of Queen Elizabeth I. After Robert Dudley died without children, his lands went back to the Crown. Today, Leicester's Church is a protected historic site. It is cared for by Cadw, the Welsh government's historic environment service.
Contents
The Church Today
Leicester's Church has been an empty shell since building stopped in 1584. It is a large rectangular space, about 55 meters long and 23 meters wide. Some parts of the church, like the south wall, have lost many of their stones. But the north wall and the west end are still as tall as they were originally.
The church has 10 sections, called bays, with special Tudor arched windows. You can also see parts of what would have been Tuscan pillars. These features show the church was designed in a Renaissance style. This was very different from the older Gothic style churches built before the Reformation. Because very few new churches were built after the Reformation, Leicester's Church is a very important example. It shows what Protestant church building looked like in the Elizabethan period.
Lordship of Denbigh
The area around Denbigh was once a special kind of land called a Marcher Lordship. These were like small kingdoms given out by the King. Over time, the Lordship of Denbigh became part of the Crown's lands.
In 1563, Queen Elizabeth I gave this Lordship to Robert Dudley. He was a very important person and acted as if he owned the land completely. However, the people of Denbigh were not happy about this. They even showed some rebellious behavior.
Dudley, who also became the Earl of Leicester in 1564, tried to make things better. He built a town hall and a market hall in Denbigh. In 1579, he started building the new church. This was one of the first new churches built in England or Wales since the Reformation.
A New Kind of Church
The Earl of Leicester had big plans for his new church. He named it St David's and hoped it would become a major Protestant cathedral. He wanted it to replace St Asaph Cathedral. Robert Dudley was a supporter of the Puritan movement. This group wanted to focus on preaching during church services, not on the traditional Mass.
The church was designed to be wide and rectangular. This shape would allow people to be closer to the pulpit to hear sermons clearly. Before the Reformation, churches were often built in a Gothic style. They focused on the altar at the far east end. After the Reformation, church building almost stopped for 100 years. Leicester's Church is unique because it was the only major church built during this time. It would have looked very modern and international with its large Tudor windows and Renaissance features.
From Building to Ruin
Building work on the church stopped in 1584, just five years after it began. In the same year, Robert Dudley's three-year-old son died. This was a terrible loss for him. It meant he had no one to inherit his lands and titles.
The main reason work stopped was money. Building such a huge stone church was extremely expensive, even for a wealthy Earl. The next year, Dudley had to mortgage his Denbigh lands for £15,000 to pay his debts.
Three years later, in 1588, the Earl of Leicester died suddenly. Since he had no heir, all his estates and titles went back to the Crown. Queen Elizabeth I paid off the mortgage on Denbigh in 1592. But neither she nor anyone else was interested in finishing the church. It remained the property of the Crown. Over time, people took stones from the church to use for other buildings. This is why many of the windows are now just empty holes.
Protecting the Ruins
The church has been an open ruin ever since. It was even used for things like cockfights in the past. But it has had no official use for a long time. Today, it is a protected site, known as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed building.
The Ministry of Works first took responsibility for its care. Now, Cadw looks after it. Cadw also cares for other historic sites nearby. These include Denbigh Castle, which is about 150 meters south of the church. The old Town Walls are also very close. St Hilary's Chapel Tower is just 50 yards away, and the Carmelite Denbigh Friary is also in the area. Cadw makes sure these important places are preserved and open for people to visit.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in Denbighshire
- List of Cadw properties
- List of Scheduled Monuments in Denbighshire
