Church Of St Giles

NEWCASTLE UNDER LYME

SJ8446SE CHURCH STREET 644-1/8/6 (North West side) 21/10/49 Church of St Giles

GV II*

Parish Church. Medieval foundation, with refaced C13 tower and fragments of original masonry, largely as rebuilt by George Gilbert Scott in 1876. Coursed and squared sandstone with plain tiled roofs. West tower, nave with 2 aisles and clerestory, chancel. West tower is substantially C13, though refaced. 3 stages with clasping angle buttresses, stair turret to NW and embattled parapet. Moulded West door with 4 shafts. Bell chamber lights and clock over. 2-light Decorated windows to aisles, with foiled tracery. Gabled south porch with clustered shafts and foiled arch. Clerestory with alternating foiled 2-light Decorated windows and foiled circles with continuous hoodmould. Higher south aisle chapel with massive west pinnacle and gabletted buttresses. North porch and chapel similar to south. Angle buttresses with gablets to chancel which has 3-light windows to north and south and a massive 7-light East window with slender tracery. INTERIOR: nave arcade of 6 bays partially blocked at lower level in 2 western bays by the insertion of a parish room, but leaving the upper part of the arcade clear. Alternating octagonal and cylindrical shafts in a pale stone with contrasting red foliate capitals. Heavily raftered roof with collar and kingposts. Pews possibly date from the time of Scott's work, with poppy head bench ends to the north. Globe-like wrought-iron candelabra in aisles. Pulpit and font also probably from the time of Scott's rebuilding, but the pelican lectern was made from a carving which hung over the communion table in the earlier church, and is dated 1786. There is also a flat and worn effigy on a tomb slab in the south aisle which survives from the early church. Encaustic tiled floor to chancel, and reredos with traceried panels with pinnacles, containing gilded emblems and lettering of prayers and texts, and with a central painted figure. Altar piece and traceried rails date from Scott's rebuilding. Sedilia installed as memorial for World War II. North aisle chapel has oak reredos with high relief of Last Supper against a pale painted ground. Stained glass by Lavers and Barraud, and Westlake: east window (n.d.) represents Crucifixion in a landscape, east windows of chapels both by same artist, showing nativity and baptism of Christ. Series of windows in aisles depict miracles and Old Testament scenes. Many of these windows are dated earlier than Scott's work. (The Buildings of England: Pevsner N: Staffordshire).

Listing NGR: SJ8467846050