St Edith's Church, Eaton-under-Heywood facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Edith's Church, Eaton-under-Heywood |
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St Edith's Church, Eaton-under-Heywood, from the southeast
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| OS grid reference | SO 500 900 |
| Location | Eaton-under-Heywood, Shropshire |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Website | St Edith, Eaton-under-Heywood |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Dedication | Saint Edith |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Designated | 12 November 1954 |
| Architect(s) | W. J. Hopkins (restoration) |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Norman, Gothic |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Stone, tiled roofs |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Eaton under Heywood |
| Deanery | Condover |
| Archdeaconry | Ludlow |
| Diocese | Hereford |
| Province | Canterbury |
St Edith's Church is a beautiful old church located in the small village of Eaton-under-Heywood, in Shropshire, England. It sits on the lower part of Wenlock Edge, a famous hill. This church is named after Saint Edith. It is an active Anglican church, meaning it's part of the Church of England. It's also a very important building, listed as Grade I, which means it has special historical interest.
Contents
History of St Edith's Church
The main part of the church, called the nave, was built a very long time ago, in the 12th century. The tower and the chancel (the area around the altar) were added a bit later, in the early 13th century. Over the years, some changes were made to the church in the 14th and 15th centuries. In 1869, the church was carefully repaired and updated by an architect named W. J. Hopkins. This type of repair is often called a Victorian restoration.
Exploring the Church's Design
Outside the Church
The church is built from stone, with a tiled roof that has pretty decorative tiles and a cross at the very top. The church has a main hall (the nave) and a chancel, which are joined together. There is also a porch on the south side and a tower in the middle of the south side. Because the church is on a slope, the floor inside the nave gently rises from west to east.
The tower has three levels. It has an arched doorway on its south side. Above this, on the middle level, there is a tall, narrow window with a rounded top. On the top level, there are two-light bell openings, which are places for bells, also under rounded arches. The very top of the tower has a battlemented parapet, which looks like the top of a castle wall. Each of the eight points on the parapet has a small tower-like shape called a pinnacle. The tower is topped with a pyramid-shaped roof.
You can see some very old Norman windows, two on the north wall and one on the south. Other windows include a flat-topped window with four sections and a window with a pointed arch on the north wall. There is also a two-light window on the south wall. The large east window has three tall, narrow windows that were added during the 1869 restoration. The west wall has a window with a gently pointed arch and a round design above it. The south porch has stone walls and a wooden frame at the top.
Inside the Church
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The roof of the nave dates back to the 15th century. The chancel roof is from around 1600. It is lower and flatter than the nave roof, and it is much more decorated. It has large carved decorations called bosses that look like plants and funny creatures. Between the chancel and nave roofs, there are painted coats of arms.
The font, which is used for baptisms, is from the Norman period and is shaped like a tub. Its cover is dated 1872. The pulpit, where sermons are given, is carved with beautiful patterns and has a backplate from 1670.
The colorful stained glass in the east window was made in 1869 by Frederick Preedy. It shows scenes related to Saint Edith. In the nave, there are windows by Done and Davies from 1859 and 1869. On the north side of the chancel, there is a four-light window that was put in place in 1938. It remembers Alan Bertram Hanbury-Sparrow and his son Brian, who was killed in World War I. This window features figures of St George and St Francis, along with Brian's military badge and medal. It was made by the A. K. Nicholson workshops.
On the south wall, there is a special plaque put up by Revd C.G.N. Friedrichs to remember his mother and his brother, Captain Duncan Alexander Friedrichs. His brother died in a military campaign in Somaliland in 1901. In the north chancel wall, there is a special space for a tomb under a decorated archway. This space holds a stone statue, called an effigy, of a civilian from the early 14th century.
The church has a ring of three bells. The two oldest bells were made in 1615 and 1622 by William Clibury. The third bell was made by Mears and Stainbank of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in 1869.
Features Outside the Churchyard
In the churchyard, there are two other important historical items. To the south of the church, there is a flat slab tomb from the mid-18th century. To the east of the church, you can find a sundial. This sundial is from the early 18th century and has a brass dial dated 1721. It sits on a shaped stone top, which is supported by a square base on three round steps. The churchyard also has the war grave of a Royal Artillery soldier who died in World War II.
See also
