St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel

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St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel

Holmes Chapel showing St Luke's Church

St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel (Cheshire)
St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel
Shown within Cheshire
Basic information
Location Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, England
Geographic coordinates 53°12′09″N 2°21′26″W / 53.2024, -2.3571Coordinates: 53°12′09″N 2°21′26″W / 53.2024, -2.3571
Religious affiliation Anglican
District Diocese of Chester
Year consecrated 1430[1]
Ecclesiastical status Parish church
Website St Luke's, Holmes Chapel
Architectural description
Architectural type Church
Architectural style Gothic
Year completed 1705
Specifications
Materials Tower sandstone
Nave and chancel timber framed, now enclosed in brick
Welsh slate roof

St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel is in the village of Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, England on the A50 road at its junction with the A535 road (grid reference SJ761673). It is a Grade I listed building,[2] and is still in use as a parish church.[3]

Contents

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[edit] History

There has been a church on the site since the 12th century.[1] The present church originated about 1430 as a timber framed building with a perpendicular style sandstone west tower. The nave and chancel were encased in brick in the early 18th century.[2] Shortly afterwards a west gallery was installed as a gift from Thomas Hall. Renovations have taken place in 1839, 1931 and 1950.[1]

[edit] Structure

The tower is of sandstone and the nave and chancel are in brick, with a Welsh slate roof.[2] The plan of the church consists of a four-bay nave with north and south aisles. The one-bay chancel has a lower roof and there is a vestry to its north.[4] The tower has a west doorway above which is a two-light window. Above this is a small square ringers' window and belfry windows of two lights. The summit of the tower is embattled with gargoyles at each corner.[5] On the north and south faces of the tower are diamond-shaped clock faces. The aisle windows are in two tiers with semicircular heads.[2]

[edit] Fittings and furniture

The timber roof was revealed when a later plaster ceiling was removed.[5] This dates from the 15th century and is a combination of arch braced trusses with cambered tie beams. Oak panelled galleries dating from around 1705 are over the west end and the south aisle, the former containing the organ and the latter box pews. A carved oak crest dated 1622 is near the communion rail. The stone font is dated 1890 and the oak pulpit is also from the 19th century.[2] On the walls are numerous wall memorials. The brass candelabrum, dated 1708, is the oldest in any church in Cheshire. The silver communion plate includes a paten dated 1700. The ring is of six bells, five of which date from 1709. The parish registers begin in 1613 and the churchwardens' accounts from 1812.[5]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b c Cheshire: Holmes Chapel: St Luke's. West Gallery Churches. Retrieved on 2007-09-10.
  2. ^ a b c d e Images of England: Church of St Luke, Holmes Chapel. English Heritage. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.
  3. ^ St Luke's at Holmes Chapel. St Luke's, Holmes Chapel. Retrieved on 2008-04-23.
  4. ^ Salter, Mark (1995). The Old Parish Churches of Cheshire. Malvern: Folly Publications, 42-43. ISBN 1871731232. 
  5. ^ a b c Richards, Raymond (1947). Old Cheshire Churches. London: Batsford, 186-190. 

[edit] External links