Cathedral Church Of St Mary The Virgin

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 02/10/2012

SD 6827 NW 2/1 28.11.51

CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN

(Formerly listed as The Cathedral Church of St Mary)

GV II*

Cathedral church (since 1926), formerly parish church. 1820-6 by John Palmer of Manchester; damaged by fire in 1831 and restored by Thomas Stones, clerk of works, in consultation with Thomas Rickman. Large-scale E extensions of 1926 by W A Forsythe; central (transeptal) corona by Lawrence King, 1961. C19 work in ashlar; C20 in snecked rubble; slate roofs. W tower flanked by rooms that contained the stairs to the galleries (now removed), nave and aisles. Shallow chancel removed and replaced by large transepts, choir and side chapels, all set over offices. C19 work in Decorated revival style. W tower, archaeologically careful and advanced for its date: 3 stages, the lower stage with ogee-headed superordinate arch containing W doorway under flat gabled portal, and 2-light window; 1st stage divided with paired windows under clocks; paired belfry openings under ogee hood moulds; angle buttresses gabled and finialed clasp polygonal pinnacles; pierced parapet. Aisles and nave battlemented, the former with tall 3- light windows with a heavy transom (to conceal galleries), buttresses between; the latter with paired windows. 1926 work (incomplete) in spare Decorated style; corona with 7-light square-headed windows to each of the eight facets, the window bays divided by mullions that rise above parapet level; taller angle pinnacles; all this in an economical Modern style, the whole surmounted by a tall spire. Interior: nave of 6 bays (the E bays altered when church extended). Cylindrical piers with attached shafts to cardinal points; deeply moulded arches with continuous hood-moulds; continuous formal foliage frieze below clere story windows; ribbed tierceron star vault with longitudinal rib. Aisles have flat ribbed ceiling with springers. Tripartite W arrangement of doorway flanked by ogee-headed recesses. Fittings: very few. 4 C14 seats with misericords. Some C19 glass includes (NE) Morris & Co; glass to N transept 5-light window formerly in E window of original church, mid-C19 Flemish. Palmer's design is an interesting early example of archaeologically-careful pre-Puginian Gothic Revival work, and the starred status of this building reflects the importance of this.

Listing NGR: SD6836027988