Parish Church Of St Peter

Parish Church of St Peter

Parish church built 1867-1871, designed by EG Paley, replacing an earlier church on the site. The building is faced in ashlar with slate roofs, originally Westmorland slate, and is executed in the Early 14th century style.

The plan comprises a west tower projecting from the north of the church to align with Deansgate, a nave with clerestory, two aisles, transepts, and a chancel with flanking chapels.

The exterior features a four-stage tower with a west door set in a moulded arch with polished granite shafts. The ironwork door furniture is ornate and hammered, part of the original design by Austin. Two-light Decorated windows occupy the upper stages, with blind arcading above, and paired bell chamber lights featuring ball flower moulding to the arch and engaged shafts. Clasping buttresses terminate in crocketted finials. The five-bay lean-to aisles are divided by gabletted buttresses and contain three-light Decorated traceried windows. A gabled south porch has fleurons in the arch moulding and traceried pinnacles either side. The clerestory features paired foiled windows in shallow panels with ball flower decoration and gargoyles. A five-light Decorated window lights the south transept, with a small arched doorway below. The north transept has a seven-light window. The Lady chapel to the east of the chancel has two two-light windows to the south and a three-light east window. Vestries are positioned to the north. The chancel has a seven-light east window and clerestory in which foiled lancet windows alternate with blind traceried panels divided by banded shafts. Fleurons ornament the cornice. Traceried pinnacles terminate the east end of the chancel and the west of the nave.

The interior displays a nave arcade of six bays with clustered shafts bearing ring capitals and carrying complex arches. Recessed paired clerestory lights are divided by banded shafts. Clustered wall shafts spring from corbels to support timber posts of a wagon vaulted boarded roof. The lean-to aisle roofs also have small wall posts to principal trusses. A complex moulded chancel arch springs from tapered corbels. A low stone chancel screen stands before the chancel. The chancel ceiling is rib-vaulted and decorated by Clayton and Bell with painted angels and other figures. The chancel features a three-bay arcade on each side, with heavy foliate capitals to clustered shafts and corbels supporting the vaulting. A trefoiled triforium arcade sits above. Wrought-iron screens occupy the arcade. The reredos appears to be part of the original scheme: it comprises rich traceried painted and gilded panelwork with a flat central triptych and canopy depicting the Last Supper and scenes from the life of Peter, flanked by panels inscribed with prayers.

Original fittings include the nave seating, canopied civic stalls against the west end, and choir stalls. An encaustic tiled floor by Minton survives in the chancel and at the west end of the nave. The pulpit wraps around the northern crossing pier, octagonal in form with wood panels carved with sunflowers and lilies, standing on a stone base with wrought-iron rail to the stairs.

Various wall memorial tablets are mounted throughout the church, including a memorial to John Taylor (died 1821) by Chantrey in the tower porch. Two war memorials, marble tablets commemorating the African War and the First World War, are mounted in the north and south aisles respectively.

The stained glass includes windows removed from the earlier church now positioned in the east wall of the north chancel aisle (to the rear of the organ) and in the east of the south chancel aisle (Lady chapel), which date to the mid-19th century. The east and west windows, depicting scenes from the life of St Peter and scenes from the Old Testament respectively, are by Hardman, as is the south window in the south transept. Other windows, also removed from the earlier church and dating to the mid-19th century, include the north-west window (dated 1842). The chancel clerestory windows contain stained glass figures of saints dating to around 1880, and both aisles contain late 19th and early 20th century glass.

The organ was rebuilt in 1882, originally installed in the earlier church in 1795. Its case was designed by AG Hill and is painted with angels and stylised flowers.