St Chad's Church, Stafford facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Church of St Chad, Stafford |
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| 52°48.3237′N 2°7.0287′W / 52.8053950°N 2.1171450°W | |
| OS grid reference | SJ 922 231 |
| Location | Stafford |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Website | http://www.stchadsstafford.co.uk/ |
| History | |
| Dedication | Saint Chad |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade II* |
| Designated | 16 Jan 1951 |
| Style | Norman architecture |
| Administration | |
| Deanery | Stafford Deanery |
| Diocese | Diocese of Lichfield |
St Chad's Church is a very old church located on Greengate Street in the center of Stafford. It is a Grade II* listed Anglican church, which means it is a special historic building. The church is named after Saint Chad, who was the first Bishop of Lichfield and died in the year 672.
This church was built in the 12th century, making it the oldest building in Stafford. For a long time, in the 17th and 18th centuries, the church was not well cared for. Many of its original Norman architecture features were hidden. However, in the mid-19th century, a lot of work was done to restore it, especially by a famous architect named George Gilbert Scott.
Contents
Discovering the Original Building
The church building has a shape like a cross, which is called cruciform. It also has a tower where the main parts of the church meet, known as a crossing tower.
Inside the church, there is an old Latin message carved on a stone block. It says: "ORM VOCATUR QUI ME CONDIDIT." This means "He who built me is called Orm." People believe "Orm" was Orm le Guidon, an important landowner from the 11th or 12th century.
The main part of the church, called the nave, has huge stone columns. These columns have special tops called capitals that look like scallop shells. The columns support a series of arches, known as arcades. Some of these arches have zigzag patterns called chevron decorations. The large arch at the front of the nave also has chevron patterns and unique "beak-heads" carved on its columns. All these designs are original features from the Norman period.
On either side of the chancel (the area near the altar), you can see intersecting arches. These were also original features that were uncovered during the restoration work in the 1850s. The only original window features in the entire building are the insides of two windows in the north wall of the chancel.
The church's tower was rebuilt in the 14th century. After this, the church was not looked after very well. In the 17th century, the original side aisles were destroyed. The arches were filled in with bricks, and the transepts (the parts that stick out like the arms of a cross) were removed.
Restoration Work Through the Years
Some restoration work was done in the 1740s by Richard Trubshaw. This happened after the west end of the nave collapsed. He rebuilt the top edges of the tower and added a new front made of brick at the west end.
In the 1850s, Henry Ward of Stafford worked on restoring the chancel. More restoration continued in the 1870s by George Gilbert Scott. He built a new stone front for the west end, designed in the Romanesque style. He also opened up the south arcade and built a new aisle on that side.
After Scott passed away in 1878, Robert Griffiths of Stafford continued the work using Scott's plans. From 1880 to 1886, he opened up the north arcade and built a new north aisle. He also restored the tower and the north transept. The south transept was built later, in the 1950s.
Inside the Church: Furnishings
The church's organ was built in 1888 by J. Kirkland of London. It was made larger in 1909 by J. J. Binns of Leeds. In 1995, Peter Collins of Melton Mowbray restored the organ.
The font, which is used for baptisms, was built in 1856 in the Norman style. The altarpiece, which is a work of art behind the altar, was created in 1910 by Sir Walter Tapper.
The inner porch, the rood-beam (a beam above the entrance to the chancel), and the special cover for the font were all designed in the early 20th century by Sir Charles Nicholson, 2nd Baronet.
See also
- Grade II* listed buildings in Stafford (borough)
- Listed buildings in Stafford (Central Area)
