St Mary's Church, Knowsley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Knowsley |
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St Mary's Church, Knowsley, from the southwest
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| OS grid reference | SJ 435,958 |
| Location | Knowsley, Merseyside |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Website | St Mary, Knowsley |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Consecrated | 6 June 1844 |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade II* |
| Designated | 28 January 1971 |
| Architect(s) | Edmund Sharpe, Edward Paley Paley and Austin Paley, Austin and Paley |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Gothic revival |
| Groundbreaking | 1843 |
| Completed | 1893 |
| Administration | |
| Parish | St Mary, Knowsley |
| Deanery | Huyton |
| Archdeaconry | Liverpool |
| Diocese | Liverpool |
| Province | York |
St Mary's Church is a beautiful old church located in Knowsley Lane, Knowsley Village, Merseyside, England. It is a very important building, officially listed as a Grade II* listed building. This means it has special historical or architectural value and is protected. St Mary's is an active Anglican parish church, part of the Church of England, and is used for services today. People who study old buildings describe it as a "largish" church with a "cozy inside."
Contents
The Story of St Mary's Church
How the Church Was Built
St Mary's Church was built between 1843 and 1844. It was designed by an architect named Edmund Sharpe for the 13th Earl of Derby. Building the church cost about £20,000 back then, which was a very large sum of money! The church was officially opened and blessed on June 6, 1844, by Bishop John Bird Sumner.
Additions Over the Years
Over time, more parts were added to the church. In 1860, Edward Graham Paley, who took over Edmund Sharpe's architectural business, designed and added the side sections called transepts. Later, in 1871–72, a special chapel was built to remember the 14th Earl of Derby. This chapel was designed by Paley and Austin and cost £3,000. It included a statue of the Earl by Matthew Noble.
In 1892–93, a new room for the clergy (called a vestry) and a new main window at the east end were added by Paley, Austin and Paley. An organ was put into the Derby chapel in 1913. More recently, in 1981–82, the church was rearranged inside. A new altar was placed in the main part of the church, and spaces for meetings and services were created in the bottom of the tower.
What the Church Looks Like
Outside the Church
St Mary's Church is built from sandstone with special cut stone details. Its roof is made of stone tiles. The church mainly uses a style called Early English Gothic, which is a type of medieval architecture.
The church has a tall tower at the west end. It also has a long main hall (called a nave) with side aisles and high windows (a clerestory). There's a porch on the north side, and two side sections called transepts. At the east end is the chancel, where the altar is, with a chapel (the former Derby chapel) on its north side and a vestry on the south.
The tower has three levels and strong corner supports called buttresses. The bottom level has a doorway with tall, narrow windows above it. The middle level also has pointed-arch windows. The top level has openings for bells with decorative stone patterns. A pointed roof called a broach spire sits on top of the tower, with small windows called lucarnes.
The south side of the church has pairs of windows in each section. The transepts have strong supports and decorative stone edges. They have two-light windows in a style called Decorated Gothic. The chancel also has decorative stone edges. Its large east window has five sections with Perpendicular Gothic style patterns. The north chapel is also in the Decorated style and has a four-light window. Along the north side, there are three-light windows and a decorative band of four-leaf shapes called quatrefoils.
Inside the Church
Inside the church, the main hall (nave) has arches supported by columns with four-leaf shapes and carved leaf designs at the top. The arch leading to the chancel has carvings of Queen Victoria and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The floor of the nave has decorative tiles from the 1800s, and the chapel has special patterned tiles.
You can see an old, beautifully carved bench from Knowsley Hall inside the church, which dates back to 1646. There are also royal arms from 1567. The decorative screen behind the altar, called a reredos, was designed in 1866. In the Derby chapel, there is a lying-down alabaster statue of the 14th Earl of Derby by Matthew Noble. Along the chancel walls are memorial mosaics from the 1910s and 1920s.
The eight-sided baptismal font was made in 1890 by Stubbs and Sons from Liverpool. The pulpit, where sermons are given, is multi-sided and dates from around 1946. The church has beautiful stained glass windows. The east window from 1893 was made by Shrigley and Hunt. Each transept has a window by Lavers and Barraud, and a window in the south wall of the chancel from 1923 was made by Powell and Sons. The large organ, which has three keyboards, was made in 1913 by Rushworth and Dreaper of Liverpool.
Outside the Church Grounds
The churchyard, which is the area around the church, contains the graves of soldiers. These include one soldier from World War I and two soldiers from World War II.
See also
- Listed buildings in Knowsley, Merseyside
- List of architectural works by Edmund Sharpe
- List of ecclesiastical works by Paley and Austin
