St Oswald's Church, Malpas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St Oswald's Church, Malpas
St Oswald's Church, Malpas, from the southeast
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OS grid reference	SJ 485 472
Location	Malpas, Cheshire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	St Oswald, Malpas
History
Status	Parish church
Dedication	Saint Oswald
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade I
Designated	1 March 1967
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic
Specifications
Materials	Red sandstone
Administration
Parish	St. Oswald Malpas and St. John Threapwood
Deanery	Malpas
Archdeaconry	Chester
Diocese	Chester
Province	York

St Oswald's Church is a really old church located in the town of Malpas, Cheshire, England. It sits on the highest spot in town, possibly where a Norman castle once stood! This church is super important because it's listed as a Grade I building. This means it's one of the most special and protected buildings in England. People think it's one of the best examples of a church built in the late 1400s or early 1500s in Cheshire.

Today, St Oswald's is an active Anglican parish church. It is part of the diocese of Chester. It also works with two other churches nearby: St John, Threapwood, and Holy Trinity, Bickerton. A famous expert on churches, Alec Clifton-Taylor, even put it on his list of the 'best' English churches!

History of St Oswald's Church

The church is named after Saint Oswald. The church you see today was built in the second half of the 1300s. It was built on the same spot where an even older church used to be. However, there are no parts left of that first building.

Most of the church was rebuilt in the late 1400s. This included adding a clerestory, which is a row of windows high up on the walls. Around 1886, an architect named John Douglas worked on restoring the church. During this time, old box pews (like private seating areas) and plaster were removed from inside.

What Does the Church Look Like?

Outside the Church

St. Oswald's Church, Malpas from the southwest

St Oswald's Church is built from red sandstone and has lead roofs. The tall tower is from the 1300s and stands over 70 feet (21 meters) high. It has strong supports called buttresses and a round tower-like part called a turret on one corner.

The main part of the church, called the nave, and the area around the altar, called the chancel, have crenellated tops. This means they have battlements, like a castle wall. At the southwest corner, there's a porch that leads into the nave. The nave has six sections, with walkways called aisles on both sides.

At the end of each aisle, there's a special chapel. The one on the north side belonged to the Cholmondeley family. The one on the south side belonged to the Brereton family. East of the nave is the chancel, which has three sections. In the northeast corner, there's a vestry (a room for clergy) built in 1717. Above the south porch, there's a small room called a parvise. Above the door, you can see a sundial on the wall. The porch itself has battlements, pointed decorations called pinnacles, and gargoyles.

Inside the Church

Inside the church, you'll find many interesting things. There's an old oak chest from the late 1200s in the nave. The font, where baptisms take place, is octagonal and from the 1400s. Its oak cover was made in 1627. Most of the pews (church benches) are from the 1880s. However, some of the original box pews from the Brereton chapel are now at the back of the south aisle.

The ceiling of the nave has special camber beams. It is decorated with carved shapes called bosses and angels. Above the arch leading to the chancel, there's a painting called St Peter's Denial of Christ by Hayman. You can also see three pairs of hatchments. These are diamond-shaped boards with family coats of arms, remembering important families like the Dod, Tarleton, and Cholmondeley families.

Each chapel inside the church has a tomb. In the Brereton chapel, you'll find the tomb of Sir Randal Brereton and his wife, from 1522. In the Cholmondeley chapel, there's a monument from 1605 for Sir Hugh Cholmondeley and his second wife, Mary. This chapel also has a memorial to Lady Cholmondeley, who passed away in 1815. It was made by Westmacott.

In the chancel, there's a memorial tablet for Charles Wolley Dod, who died in 1904. In the nave, a stone slab marks the grave of Urian Davenport, who was a rector (church leader) of Malpas and died in 1495. The south aisle has tablets for John Stockton (died 1700) and Bridget Kynaston (died 1644). In the north aisle, there's a memorial for Lt. Col. Henry Tarleton, who died in 1820.

On the south side of the chancel, there's a triple sedilia (seats for clergy) and a piscina (a basin for washing sacred vessels). The altarpiece was given to the church in 1721. Against the south wall of the chancel, there are three 15th-century stalls with misericords. These are small ledges that allowed people to lean during long services.

The church has beautiful stained glass windows. One panel in the north chapel, from around 1500, shows the Presentation in the Temple. There are also several older panels and round windows from Europe, dating from the 1500s and 1600s. The large east window, from 1841, and the east windows in the aisles, from about 1845, were made by William Warrington. In the north aisle, a window from about 1928 is thought to be by Ballantyne. In the south aisle, there's a window from 1902 by Kempe. The east window is a special memorial to Bishop Heber, who was born in Malpas.

From the sanctuary (the area around the altar), a staircase goes down to a vaulted crypt (an underground room). This crypt is below the altar and used to be a treasury (a place to keep valuable items).

The church organ has two manuals (keyboards). It was built in 1897 by Lewis and Company. It was later worked on by Rushworth and Dreaper around 1962 and then restored by Peter Collins. The church's official records, called parish registers, go all the way back to 1561. The records of the churchwardens (people who manage the church's affairs) start in 1653.

The church has a ring of eight bells. Four of these bells were made by John Rudhall in 1802. The other four were made by John Taylor and Company, with two from 1908 and two from 1914.

Outside the Church Grounds

Parts of the churchyard wall are listed as Grade II, meaning they are also important historic structures. Inside the churchyard, there are several other Grade II listed items. These include:

• A table tomb for members of the Duncall family.
• The tomb of John Bassett.
• A headstone for the Hobley family.
• A sundial pedestal from the early 1700s.

Even more special are the gate piers and steps at the southwest corner of the churchyard, and the gates, gate piers, and steps at the southeast corner. These are listed at Grade II*. They were originally made for Oulton Park in the 1720s, when John Vanbrugh was working there. They were moved to Malpas churchyard around 1773. The gate piers and steps to the west gateway and a small gateway at the southeast corner are also listed at Grade II.

See also

• Grade I listed buildings in Cheshire West and Chester
• Grade I listed churches in Cheshire
• Listed buildings of Malpas, Cheshire
• List of church restorations, amendments and furniture by John Douglas