St Mary the Virgin's Church, Middleton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary the Virgin |
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| The Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin | |
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| 53°45′07″N 1°32′36″W / 53.7519°N 1.5433°W | |
| Location | Middleton, West Yorkshire |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Website | Parish of Middleton |
| History | |
| Status | Parish Church |
| Founded | 1846 |
| Dedication | St Mary the Virgin |
| Consecrated | 22 September 1846 |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade II listed building |
| Architect(s) | R. D. Chantrell |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Sandstone |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Middleton |
| Diocese | Leeds |
| Province | York |
The Church of St Mary the Virgin is a special church located in Middleton, West Yorkshire, England. It's an active Anglican church, meaning it's part of the Church of England. Both the church building and its unique entrance gate, called a lych gate, are considered 'Grade II listed buildings'. This means they are important historical structures that need to be protected.
Contents
The Church's Story
Early Beginnings
Way back in 1494, there was a small chapel in Middleton. It was a chantry chapel, a place for prayers, and was dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. This chapel was started by a person named Gilbert Leygh. However, it closed during the English Reformation, a big change in England's religious history.
For a long time, Middleton was part of a larger church area called Rothwell. But in 1845, a man named R.H. Brandling decided to help. He owned land on Town Street and gave it so a new church and a house for the priest (a parsonage) could be built.
Building the Church
The Brandling family was very important in Middleton. They owned the local coal mines, called Middleton Collieries. They also built the Middleton Railway, which was used to transport coal.
To help pay for the new church, a group called the Incorporated Society gave £350. They had one rule: all the seats in the church had to be free for everyone. People also donated a lot of money, raising over £1,000. There's a cool story that local miners even gave a week's wages or a week's work to help build the church!
The church was designed by Robert Dennis Chantrell, a famous architect. He also designed the big Leeds Parish Church. St Mary's was built in a style called Early English, which is a type of Gothic Revival architecture. It was finished in 1846. On September 22, 1846, the church was officially opened by Bishop Longley of Ripon. A well-known priest, W. F. Hook, gave the first sermon.
Changes Over Time
In 1917, the Middleton Estate and Colliery Company got permission to mine coal right under the church! This caused the ground to sink a bit, which damaged the church's tall spire. Because of this damage, the spire had to be taken down in 1939.
Looking at the Church Building
Outside the Church
The church is made from sandstone blocks and has slate roofs. It's built in the Early English Gothic Revival style, which looks a bit like old medieval churches.
The sides of the church, called the aisles, have tall, narrow windows with two sections. These windows are between strong supports called buttresses. The chancel, which is the part of the church near the altar, has single, narrow windows.
There's a three-story tower on the southwest side. It has a wall with a jagged top, called an embattled parapet. The tower also has corner buttresses and a porch with a pointed arch and a wooden door with fancy hinges. The belfry windows, where the bells are, have three sections, but the outer ones are blocked up.
Inside the Church
The large window at the east end of the church shows pictures of Christ. The window at the west end is about the evangelists, who wrote parts of the Bible. Some of the beautiful stained glass windows in the chancel were made by William Wailes of Newcastle between 1848 and 1852. There are also two windows from the late Victorian era made by Barnett of Newcastle. The rest of the church has clear glass windows with lead patterns.
In 1882, a room called the vestry was created. This was done by adding solid oak screens to separate the northwest corner of the church.
The tower holds one bell, which was made by C & G Mears in 1846. This company was from the famous Whitechapel Bell Foundry. The bell is set up to swing and chime. There's also a clock in the tower, made by Potts of Leeds in 1862.
The Lych Gate
The lych gate is a special covered entrance to the churchyard. It was also designed by R. D. Chantrell around 1846, in the same Gothic Revival style as the church. It's built from squared stone with a stone roof. The roof is very steep and has stone edges with crosses at the very top. The walls on either side of the gate have pointed tops and small pyramid shapes on the end posts. Both the walls and the lych gate itself are also 'Grade II listed', just like the church.
