St Andrew's Church, Bebington facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Andrew's Church, Bebington |
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St Andrew's Church, Bebington, from the southeast
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| 53°20′53″N 3°00′12″W / 53.3480°N 3.0034°W | |
| OS grid reference | SJ 333 839 |
| Location | Bebington, Wirral, Merseyside |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Churchmanship | Conservative evangelical |
| Website | St Andrew, Bebington |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Dedication | Saint Andrew |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Designated | 27 December 1962 |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Gothic |
| Completed | 1847 |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Sandstone |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Bebington |
| Deanery | Wirral North |
| Archdeaconry | Chester |
| Diocese | Chester |
| Province | York |
St Andrew's Church is a beautiful old church in Bebington, a town on the Wirral Peninsula in England. It's a very important building, so it's listed as a Grade I building. This means it's one of the most special historic buildings in the country! Many people think it's the best old church on the Wirral.
Today, St Andrew's is an active Anglican church. It's part of the diocese of Chester, which is a large area managed by a bishop.
Contents
Church History
A church made from local sandstone was here even before the Norman Conquest in 1066. Some of these very old stones are still part of the church's south wall today. A priest in Bebington was even mentioned in the Domesday Book, a famous survey from 1086!
The first church was built in the Saxon style. Later, it was replaced by a Norman church. The church tower started being built around 1300 and was finished about 50 years later.
In the 14th century, the church was changed quite a bit. The south side was made wider, and a new chancel (the area around the altar) was added. In the 16th century, more building began at the east end in a style called Perpendicular Gothic. However, this work stopped because of the English Reformation, a big change in the church.
In 1847, the church was updated again. The north side was rebuilt to look like the older Norman style. More recently, the church has been made more modern. They moved the rood screen, took out some choir seats, and added a kitchen and toilets. They even made a special area for kids and a meeting room in the tower.
Church Design
Outside the Church
The church is built from sandstone. It has a main area called the nave, which gets wider towards the east. There are also side sections called aisles on the north and south. The chancel has chapels on both sides. A tall tower sticks out from the southwest corner.
You can see different building styles here. The chancel and chapels are in the Perpendicular style, while the nave is mostly Early Decorated style. Some parts of the south side are from the original Norman church. The north side was built to copy this older style.
The tower has strong supports called buttresses. On the north side, there's a small, rectangular tower for stairs, called a turret. The tower has a window with two sections and a narrow window called a lancet window. The openings for the bells have wooden slats called louvres. At the very top, there's a pointed roof called a spire with small windows called lucarnes.
From special marks left by the builders (called masons' marks), we know the lower parts of the tower are from the early 1300s. The upper part, where the bells are, is from the middle of that century. The tower was rebuilt in 1805 after lightning struck it. The last major work was done in 1905.
Inside the Church
The altar is a very important part of the church. It was made in 1911 by C. E. Deacon and carved by Harry Hems. They also made the wooden screens in 1898 and 1908. The decorated screen behind the altar, called a reredos, was made in 1951.
Some of the seats have special carvings underneath them called misericords. These show a dolphin, a bearded face, and a pelican. Four seats have decorative ends called poppy-heads. The font, where baptisms happen, is round, and we don't know exactly when it was made.
The beautiful stained glass in the east window was designed in 1953. Another stained glass window on the north side was made in 1859. On the south side, there are two more stained glass windows from 1881 and 1886.
The church has a large wooden chest, called a parish chest, from the early 1500s. The church's records, called parish registers, go all the way back to 1558! The records of the churchwardens (people who help manage the church) start in 1774.
The church has a set of eight bells. All of them were made at the famous Whitechapel Bell Foundry in London. Five bells were made in 1845, and the other three were made in 1907. The church also has a large organ with two keyboards, built by Henry Willis & Sons.
Outside the Church Grounds
In the churchyard, there's an old sandstone sundial that might be from 1764. It has a shaped pole with an eight-sided top. On top of that is a brass plate and a pointer called a gnomon, which tells the time by its shadow. This sundial is also a listed building, but at Grade II.
The churchyard is also home to the war graves of nineteen service members. Four of these are from World War I and fifteen are from World War II. These graves remind us of the brave people who served their country.
What Happens Today
St Andrew's Church holds traditional Anglican services every Sunday. They also have different events during the week and support various groups in the community. It's a busy and welcoming place!
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in Merseyside
- Grade I listed churches in Merseyside
- Listed buildings in Bebington
