Church Of St Mary The Virgin

Church of St Mary the Virgin

This parish church stands on a site first developed in the 13th century, with 14th-century alterations followed by substantial late 18th-century rebuilding by Thomas Johnson of Worcester. It was restored around 1860 by G E Street. The building combines Early English and Georgian styles.

The church is constructed of dressed and coursed sandstone rubble with sections of sandstone ashlar, with slate and plain-tiled roofs topped by parapets at the gable ends. The plan comprises a west tower, a four-bay nave with north and south aisles, a three-bay chancel with north and south transepts, a north vestry, and a south chapel.

The west tower was rebuilt in 1793 in three stages with three string courses and a chamfered plinth. Diagonal corner buttresses frame pointed-arched cusped panels. The lowest stage serves as a porch, with a heavily moulded ogee-arched west entrance topped by a tall finial. A large oculus sits in the side elevation, and a north pointed doorway opens from this stage. The second stage has pointed Y-traceried windows with sill strings and an oculus above. The belfry stage contains similar windows with louvred openings, topped by a panelled frieze and embattled parapet with crocketted corner pinnacles, restored in the mid-20th century.

The nave is 13th-century in origin. The north aisle dates to the 14th century and was rebuilt in the late 18th century, along with the south aisle. The four-bay structure shows different treatments: the north aisle has a separate roof, diagonal corner buttresses, and four large raking buttresses. Two of its pointed-arched windows incorporate some 14th-century stonework and lack tracery (the easternmost is blocked), while two further square-headed windows are also present. The west elevation contains a blocked pointed doorway. The south aisle has a single-pitch roof, diagonal corner buttresses, and buttresses at bay divisions. A blocked doorway and window occupy the west end, with a pointed traceryless window in the second bay from the east. The west elevation contains a pointed window reconstructed from 13th-century masonry with a hood mould. Two flat-roofed dormers project from the nave roof.

The chancel dates to around 1860 and was designed by Street. Its three bays have buttresses at the gable ends. The 3-light east window has a hood mould with foliated stops and a continuous sill string. Pointed windows without tracery sit at the north-east and south-east ends. The north transept gable has four cusped lancets beneath a rose window. The vestry projects from its east elevation and contains three cusped lancets with a north-facing door and a rose window in its east gable. The south transept has a parallel east wing housing the Vernon chapel. The transept gable features a central pointed doorway with nookshafts, outer dog-tooth moulding, and inner rosette moulding. Above it sits a 3-light window with hood mould and foliated stops. The adjacent gable end bears a gabled monument to Thomas Bowater Vernon (died 1859) at its base, with a rose window above featuring a hood mould that returns to form a string. The east elevation has a dog-tooth eaves moulding and a 3-light window.

Interior

The four-bay arcades are pointed-arched with two chamfered orders. The south arcade, dating to around 1210, features circular columns, one retaining its original trumpet-scalloped capital. The north arcade has octagonal columns and re-used 14th-century capitals. The blocked pointed tower arch has three chamfered orders and is flanked by semicircular-headed niches. The chancel arch is pointed with dog-tooth moulding, supported on short columns with foliated capitals; Street employed similar detailing throughout the chancel.

Wagon roofs extend throughout the church, plastered in the nave and aisles and ornately painted in the chancel and transepts. The chancel contains a piscina, sedilia, and aumbry, with the continuous east window sill string forming a hood above them. Fittings include a Last Supper reredos and cast-iron altar rails and parcloses. The Vernon Chapel houses a 17th-century oak altar table from St Helen's, Worcester. The north transept contains an elaborately painted organ case. The nave retains a 19th-century font, late 18th-century box pews now reduced in height, an elegant late 18th-century west gallery, and some 17th-century panelling. The north aisle displays the original artist's models of the Nativity and Resurrection panels for the reredos of Liverpool Cathedral, while the south aisle contains an early 16th-century relief and the parish chest. A late 18th-century bread dole cupboard and further 17th-century panelling are housed in the tower.

Memorials

The church contains numerous notable memorials. In the Vernon Chapel stands a large monument to Thomas Vernon (died 1721) by Stanton and Horsnaile, featuring a semi-reclining effigy flanked by figures of Justice and Learning, with Corinthian columns supporting an open pediment behind. A standing monument to Bowater Vernon (died 1835) by Roubiliac is also present, along with a large marble relief panel by Chantrey to Thomas Taylor Vernon (died 1837) and a late 17th-century memorial to Richard Vernon (died 1678). The chancel contains a wall memorial to Richard Vernon (died 1627) with two kneeling figures set within a recess, and the nave displays a large relief panel to Thomas Vernon (died 1771).

Stained glass

The church retains 19th-century glass in the east window, Vernon Chapel, and north transept.

The church's architectural history encompasses several major rebuildings, notably Street's elaborate east end. It contains significant sculptural works, including several large monuments, alongside interesting late 18th-century fittings.