 |
The Parish Church of St. Oswald, Winwick
The Parish Church of St. Oswald, Winwick
A Brief History
St. Oswald was born in 605 A.D. When he was a young man, he was sent out of the country, and went to a small island off the coast of Scotland, called IONA. Here he lived with monks, who converted him to Christianity, and taught him to read and write. When he came back to England, in 634 A.D., he was made King of Northumbria.
After he had been King for a year, he sent a messenger to Iona, to bring back one of the monks to be his Bishop. The Monk who the messenger brought back was called Aiden. Oswald gave Aiden a small island called Lindesfarne, on which to live and work. On this island, Aiden built a Church, a monastery and a school.
King Penda the Pagan was due to have a battle against King Oswald. This battle took place in a field in Winwick, (just off Golborne Road). Oswald was killed in this battle on August 5th 642 A.D.
As he was dying, it is said that Oswald was scratching at the earth in pain. At this spot, a well sprung, (still there today), which had powers to heal the sick.
The first recorded Church in Winwick is mentioned in the Doomsday Book, in 1086. The pillars in the Church on the North side have heads on the bases. These heads are either the heads of Bishops, or of St. Oswald. This is the oldest stonework in the Church, dating between 1094 and 1150. The pillars on the bases were erected in 1580.
The Gerard Chapel
This chapel at one time was not connected to the Church, and was named after the Roman Catholic Gerard Family. It contains a very large brass memorial on the floor to Peter Gerard, who died in 1495, and whose remains, along with the other members of the family are beneath the Chapel floor. There is a very old font (on a modern pedestal), which is over 600 years old, and was found buried in the Church grounds.
The Altar was made in 1725, and on the top has the initials of the four Churchwardens of the time and the Rector. Back in 1725, it cost £4.00 to be made!
Behind the Altar is part of a large cross. It is made of stone, with elaborate (and quite gruesome and graphic) carvings. On one side is a man carrying water, and on the other is Oswald, turned upside down, ready to be chopped into pieces! The arm of the cross is the only part to have been found, and dates from about 1090. It would have stood on the hill, and would have been used by the local monks and friars for preaching.
The Legh Chapel
The Protestant Legh family, of Lyme Hall in Cheshire owned this Chapel. The roof in this Chapel is particularly significant. It is a Tudor roof, and very highly decorated, with gold paint, and gold leaves. All around the Chapel roof are statues of the Angels.
Adorning the walls of this Chapel are several very fine monuments, and statues, dedicated to members of the Legh family, made of the very best Italian marble. An unusual feature is the brass monument showing Peter Legh wearing his Priests robes, and battle armour!
Like the Gerard Chapel, many members of the family are buried beneath the floor.
The Chancel
The Chancel was (re)-built between 1847 and 1849. The Architect for this major project was A. Welby Pugin, who was most famous for the Houses of Parliament, in London. Winwick was his first project after the Houses of Parliament, and it is recorded that he intended it to be on an equally grand scale.
Unusually, the Chancel has a higher roof than the Nave, and is nearly half the length of the nave.
The elaborate roof is made up of 112 squares, each one highly decorated, with gold leaves separating each square. The floor tiles are even more elaborate, and are of gold, red, green, and (in the sanctuary), blue. The reredos is made of stone and again is very ornate.
The large Chandelier was given to the Church by the Quakers, and is on a pulley system with the eagle in the roof. The six windows are all original Pugin, and the colours are very intense. The small window above the south door shows all the shields of the Patrons of the Church.
The rood screen, again by Pugin was a controversial point in 1847. Pugin wanted a rood screen, but the Priest at the time wanted an altar rail. Pugin was not prepared to put both into the plans, and was prepared to abandon the job altogether if he didn’t get his own way! Eventually, the solution was to have the screen, but he also made a removable rail! So, everyone was happy!
The Nave
The nave is again on a very grand scale, with a high roof. The present roof was made in 1729, and replaced the previous vaulted roof. The marks of the old roof are still visible at the West End.
The pillars on the South side were built in 1836, to replace the ones from 1580 that collapsed! The North side still has the 1580 pillars, but one can see that they are not straight at all!
The pulpit was originally directly in front of the screen, and the pews went right to the front. The pulpit was moved to its current position, and the front pews removed in 1929. Then the opportunity was take to add the current choir stalls, which were dedicated on Palm Sunday, 1929. This move brought the choir out of the Chancel, and nearer to the congregation and organ.
The tower was built in 1358, and is immense. The bells are unique in the fact that they are rung anti-clockwise, rather than clockwise.
The Organ
The Hymn ‘Angel Voices ever singing’ was written for the dedication of the organ in Winwick Church, in 1840. The original organ came from Powys Castle, in Wales, in the mid 1800’s, and was considerably enlarged in about 1900. The façade pipes are highly decorated and are of German origin, and are over 300 years old.
Over the years the organ suffered much damage, and at one point was under several feet of water. All these problems, mixed with old age, led to it being virtually unplayable in 1997. At the time, a complete rebuild and total restoration was not financially viable, and would have done little to improve the instrument. A new instrument was however.
The current organ is now by Makin organs, has 5 departments and 60 stops, and was opened by Alexander Fiseisky of the Moscow Conservertoire on July 7th, 1997.
The Choir
The choir sing each week, and regularly perform in concert, both in Winwick, and away. Past venues have included Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, (with another trip there this summer) Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, and Chester Cathedral.
The Choir is made up of about 35 singers who come from all walks of life – from professional people, to students, school children, and retired – who rehearse under the director of music,
Mrs. Anne Wynne G.R.N.C.M., L.M.I.C., A.R.N.C.M., CertED., ACertCM
Rector
Canon R G Lewis
Assistant Priests
Rev J Bent
Rev A Litton
Wednesday lunchtime recital series
Monthly music lists
Special events
Evening recitals
Winwick Church and Chancel
Pipe organ register
Send E-Mail to: michael@zatek.co.uk
Copyright © 2005 Michael Wynne. All Rights Reserved