Church Of St Peter

The Church of St Peter is a parish church dating back to the mid-13th century. It is located in East Tytherley and has undergone substantial restoration, particularly in 1862-3 when transepts, a vestry, and a porch were added. A north transeptal tower was constructed in 1898. The church is built of rubble flint with stone dressings and has an old plain tile roof.

The plan incorporates a 13th-century chancel and nave, with a 19th-century north vestry, a 19th-century south transept, and a north transeptal tower with a north porch set against the west side. The east end of the chancel features three 13th-century lancet windows, the central one being wider. The south wall includes two similar lancets and a central, offset, sloping buttress, likely from the 19th century. A low-set, blocked 13th-century priest’s door is present, along with a similar lancet to the north, below which are steps leading down to an 18th-century brick vault beneath a lean-to 19th-century vestry, featuring an Early English style door to the east and paired trefoiled windows to the north. The nave has a 19th-century gable wall and a tall offset sloping buttress to the east. It also has restored 13th-century lancets along the south wall, one to the east and three west of the centre, each with a buttress between. A gabled south transept features a stepped three-lancet window. A blocked 13th-century doorway, with a keel roll hood, is partly hidden by a buttress. The north wall has similarly arranged lancets and buttresses, leading to the tower, which has a three-lancet window. A reset 13th-century lancet is situated to the east, with a small lancet to the middle stage. The top stage has tiled offsets with paired louvred bell openings, an overhanging bell-lip roof, and a weathervane. A gabled porch incorporates a wide pointed doorway and two trefoiled lights to the west. A large 13th-century lancet is set to the west, with offset sloping buttresses on the corners and a gable wall containing a sanctus bellcote.

Inside the chancel, windows have wide splays and chamfered round arches. Stained glass figures are present in the south and northeast lancets; the east windows are also glazed with 19th-century stained glass. A 19th-century stone and marble reredos and other fittings are also present, along with a new roof. The 13th-century chancel arch has a two-order label on the nave side with mask stops, and responds that are half-octagonal with moulded capitals. The nave windows have wide splays, pointed chamfered arches, and are restored. The south transept arch is a copy of the chancel arch, while the north tower arch replicates the outer order, which is not carried down but is walled in. A reset doorway, originally from the south chancel wall, features a monument dated 1568 dedicated to Richard Gifford and his family. This monument comprises a panel displaying kneeling figures of a man, three bays to the left, and a woman and her daughters to the right, all facing to the right, with the male’s heads turned. Above the figures is an inscription, flanked by tapering pilasters supporting a cornice and a gable with an achievement. Good 18th-century panelling is on each side, alongside the altar rail, said to be from East Tytherley Manor, which previously stood beside the church. Further 19th-century fittings include a stone northeast pulpit, a southeast organ, a corona lucis, and a new roof. A 13th-century font is also present, having a large octagonal bowl on a round column with an octagonal base.