St Peter's Church, Heswall

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St Peter's Church, Heswall
St Peter's Church, Heswall (Merseyside)
St Peter's Church, Heswall
Shown within Merseyside
Basic information
Location Heswall, Wirral,
Merseyside, England
Geographic coordinates 53°19′22″N 3°06′05″W / 53.3228, -3.1013Coordinates: 53°19′22″N 3°06′05″W / 53.3228, -3.1013
Religious affiliation Anglican
District Diocese of Chester
Ecclesiastical status Parish church
Leadership Revd Dr Jonathan Gibbs, Rector
Website Parish of Heswall
Architectural description
Architect(s) J. Francis Doyle
Architectural type Church
Architectural style Gothic, Gothic Revival
Year completed 1893
Specifications
Materials Sandstone, slate roof

St Peter's Church, Heswall is in the town of Heswall, Wirral, Merseyside, England (grid reference SJ266812). It is a Grade II* listed building.[1]

Contents

[edit] History

The oldest part of the church is the base of the tower which dates from 1306.[2] The upper parts were added in the late 15th century.[1] The rest of the church was rebuilt in 1739 in neoclassical style. In 1875 the church was struck by lightning and seriously damaged.[2] In 1879 the church, other than the tower, was completely rebuilt by J. Francis Doyle. In 1893 the south chancel chapel was built, also by Doyle.[3]

[edit] Structure

The church is built in sandstone with a slate roof.[4] Its plan consists of a nave with clerestory, north and south aisles, a tower at the southwest, and a chancel with a north vestry and a south chapel. The tower has diagonal west buttresses and a three-light west window. The bell stage has three-light louvred bell openings and is in Perpendicular style. Above this is a cornice and an embattled parapet. At the southeast is a square stair turret.[1]

[edit] Fittings and furniture

After the 19th century restoration, some of the memorials were moved to the base of the tower. These include a black marble tablet to John Glegg, who died in 1619, depicting his kneeling figure, a white and grey marble tablet in memory of Katherine Glegg who died in 1666, and an alabaster plaque with the seal of William de Hesele Wele who lived in the early 14th century.[3] The baluster font dates from the 18th century. The chandelier under the tower is from the late 17th century.[5]The reredos and much of the stained glass is by Kempe.[1] At the west end of the church are the Royal arms of George III. The church plate includes a flagon dated 1786, a chalice dated 1739 and a paten dated 1740. The ring is of five bells. The parish registers begin in 1539 and churchwardens' accounts in 1778.[2]

[edit] External features

In the churchyard is a stone sundial dated 1726 consisting of a baluster-shaped shaft on two circular steps. On the top of this is an octagonal plate and a gnomon.[6]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Images of England: Church of St Peter, Heswall. English Heritage. Retrieved on 2007-12-17.
  2. ^ a b c Richards, Raymond (1947). Old Cheshire Churches. London: Batsford, 184–186. 
  3. ^ a b Morant, Roland W. (1989). Cheshire Churches. Birkenhead: Countyvise, 141. ISBN 0 907768 18 0. 
  4. ^ Heritage Churches. Metropolitan Borough of Wirral. Retrieved on 2007-12-17.
  5. ^ Pevsner, Nikolaus; Edward Hubbard [1971] (2003). The Buildings of England: Cheshire. New Haven: Yale University Press, 237. ISBN 0 300 09588 0. 
  6. ^ Images of England: Sundial. English Heritage. Retrieved on 2007-12-17.