St Mary's Church, Scarborough facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Scarborough |
|
|---|---|
St Mary's Church, Scarborough
|
|
| Location | Scarborough, North Yorkshire |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Open Evangelical / Traditional Anglican |
| Website | http://www.stmaryswithholyapostles.com/ |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade I listed |
| Groundbreaking | 12th century |
| Administration | |
| Parish | St Mary's with Holy Apostles |
| Deanery | Scarborough |
| Archdeaconry | East Riding |
| Diocese | York |
St Mary's Church is a historic church in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England. It belongs to the Church of England. The church stands high above the old part of town, right below the famous Scarborough Castle.
History of St Mary's Church
This church was first built in the 12th century. It was once much larger, with two towers. However, a big part of it was destroyed during a battle called the English Civil War. This happened when soldiers attacked Scarborough Castle.
The church was rebuilt in the late 1600s. It was also repaired and updated in the mid-1800s. Today, the church has a square tower at its east end. This tower replaced an older one that used to be in the middle of the church. Inside, many walls are covered with old memorials from the 1700s and 1800s. One of these was made by a famous sculptor named Roubiliac for a lady named Elizabeth Craven.
Around 1450, a part of the church called the chancel was rebuilt. But it was later destroyed during the Civil War. During that war, the churchyard was used by soldiers to fire cannons at the castle. The castle fired back! The church's tower fell down in 1645 but was rebuilt in 1670. After many repairs in the 19th century, the church is now about half the size it used to be.
The Graveyard and Anne Brontë's Grave
St Mary's Church has a very large graveyard. Most of the tombs here are from the 1700s and 1800s.
One of the most visited graves belongs to Anne Brontë. She was a famous writer and the sister of Charlotte Brontë. Anne died in Scarborough in 1849. Charlotte asked for a simple stone to be placed on her grave. It said: "Here lie the remains of Anne Brontë, daughter of the Revd P. Brontë, Incumbent of Haworth, Yorkshire. She died Aged 28 May 28th 1849".
When Charlotte visited the grave three years later, she found several mistakes on the headstone. So, it was recarved. However, it still said Anne was 28 when she died, but she was actually 29. In 2011, this mistake was finally fixed. A new stone was placed in front of the old, worn-out headstone by the Brontë Society.
