Holy Trinity, Skipton

Holy Trinity
Skipton
North Yorkshire

The steely grey church of Holy Trinity sits to the South of Skipton Castle, literally a stones throw from the Castle's walls and at the junction of Mill Bridge and The Bailey. The best place to park is in the main town car park, as there is little available parking near to the church.

There has been a church here, on this very site, since sometime in the 1100's, probably sited where the present day church's tower stands. It was rebuilt in the early 1300's, possibly of stone, replacing the earlier building.

Above. A view of the church looking North. If you look closely, you will see a knight clad in chain mail (to the right of the photo!!!)

In the latter part of the 1400's, the church was extended, possibly financed by a gift from Richard III. The building was extended to the East, making the nave longer, and probably adding a new, larger chancel.

Above. Royal arms.

The church was inevitably damaged during the Civil War, its close proximity to the castle its downfall. There were cannon batteries to the North West of the castle, high on the hill, and also to the South. The castle was besieged for several months, during which it came under intense fire from these positions around the town. The church was in the line of fire on many occasions and by the end of the siege was in a perilous state. By the time Lady Anne Clifford inherited her estates and castles, Skipton was still garrisoned by Royalist troops and still under siege. When the siege was finally lifted, the castle was in such a state of disrepair that it was uninhabitable. She was allowed to rebuild the castle from its semi-demolished state, on the condition that its roofs were not strong enough to mount cannon on.....a stipulation made by Oliver Cromwell directly to Lady Anne. At the same time that she rebuilt the castle, she also restored the church, furnishing it and providing it with a number of windows, some of which are shown below.

Above. Window depicting St Aiden (left) St Hilda (middle) and St Cuthbert (right) and dedicated to Thomas Stockdale, William Bell, Mary Ann Bell and Margaret Bell. It was gifted by Augusta Ada Stockdale in 1927.

Above. Window depicting St Michael, and dedicated to J.B. Rawson(?) master of Skiption School, who died in 1899.

Above. Window dedicated to George Kendall, and gifted by his brother and sister, Welbury and Elizabeth Kendall.

Above. The huge East window over the chancel.

Above and below. Some of the small Clifford windows.

It's likely that the repairs on the church were finished before the repairs on the castle...such was her devout religious faith. Lady Anne divided her time between Appleby, Brougham and the castle here at Skipton in her latter years....so the church would have been a special place for her. Indeed, as Skipton castle was her birthplace, her return there plus the work and money she endowed on the rebuilding, was probably no surprise to those around her.

The church is a celebration of the Clifford family, with tombs and windows from Lady Anne's period, and from that of her ancestors. Another visit is required to get some more internal photos of this church.

Skipton Web

Holy Trinity Skipton

There's some great information here, regarding both the castle and the church.

St Mary Magdalene, Broughton in Furness

St Mary Magdalene
Broughton In Furness
Cumbria

I know I know...not great external photos of the church....but it's one of those difficult buildings to photograph due to the trees surrounding it. St Mary's can be found to the West of Broughton in Furness, hidden at the end of a leafy lane off Church Street.

Check the links for photos of the church in the 1890's. Photo 1 Photo 2 A church, on or near this site, may have been established in the mid 1500's, though some elements of today's church may be 'late Norman'...namely the South doorway. The current look of the church is due to a period of expansion and rebuilding that took place in 1873, undertaken by Paley and Austin of Lancaster.

Above. View of the West tower.

Above. View of the clock on the East face of the tower.

Above. Spes, by Edward Burnes-Jones. To be found in the South aisle.

The window entitled Spes....was originally made by Morris and Company for Christ Church in Oxford in 1870. This particular window was installed in Home of the Good Samaritan in Redcar, and when the building was demolished, the window was brought to Broughton in 1948. The dedication reads "In memory of the Rev John Postlethwaite M.A. of (too faded to read) Broughton In Furness, Died 1886, and Isabella his wife, Died 1876........"

Above. A window with the dedication "Sacred to the memory of the Latham family, A.D. 1875" on a brass memorial below.

Above. Window with a latin inscription, mentioning the Rawlinson family.

This is a remarkable window. The amount of detail visible in the men's footwear, and the angels wings stood behind them is amazing.

Above. Window with the dedication "To the glory of god and in loving memory of Frederic Amadeus Malleson M.A. Vicar of Broughton in Furness from MDCCCXX to MDCCCXCVII Dedicated by his family and friends."

Above. Window with the inscription "He was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary".

If any more information comes to light regarding any of these beautiful windows, I'll post the information here. The church appears to be open for inspection, though parking is scarce so you'll probably need to leave your car in the village.

St Oswald, Burneside

St Oswald
Burneside
Nr Kendal
Cumbria

The large village of Burneside lays about a mile to the North of Kendal. The church of St Oswalds sits at the centre of the village....an imposing late 19th century building.

Above. View of the church from the road side, looking South East.

Built to plans by 'Ferguson', it was finished in 1881. It would appear that there was an earlier church here, possibly built by George Webster of Kendal. Check the links to see plans. Ground Plan and Gallery 1828. Ground Plan 1828. The 'Ferguson' church probably consisted of considerable extensions and rebuilding of the original Webster building.

Above. View of the church tower, looking North East.

Above. A rather obscured view of the rear of the church, looking North West.

The church has a fine collection of stained glass windows. More information regarding their ages and who produced them will follow.

Above. Window depicting St Peter (left) St James (middle) and St John (right) and dedicated to local industrialist, James Cropper. The window was gifted by his friends and neighbours in 1901.

Above. Window with the simple phrase "they found him in the temple."

Above. Window with an unreadable memoriam, but erected in 1896.

Above. Window depicting St Oswald (left) St Mary (second left) Jesus (centre) St John (second right) and St Kentigern (right)

Above. Window dedicated to the memory of Sarah, wife of John Steele of Ivy Cottage, Burneside, who died in 1880.

Above. Looking down the nave towards the North East end of the church.

Above. Looking towards the chancel, at the South West of the church.

Above. An armorial plaque of the de Burneshead family. This family once owned nearby Burneside Hall (up until the 16th century)

Follow the link for some aerial photos of the church.

St Cuthbert, Carlisle

St Cuthbert
Carlisle
Cumbria

St Cuthberts can be found at the West end of Blackfriars Street, to the East of the city walls. This rather bleak, almost industrial looking church, is somewhat overlooked in many respects, by its nearby neighbour, the Cathedral. This church, the fourth on this site, dates from 1778, but contains some 14th and 15th century stained glass windows.

St Cuthberts has a West tower that is strangely out of proportion to the nave, which is built to look as if it is of two storeys. There are no monuments within the church, that predate the 1800's. Check the link for more information.

Gargoyles at Holy Trinity Church, Kendal

Gargoyles at Holy Trinty Church

Kendal

Cumbria

Gargoyles are a common enough sight at many churches, but the number and variety of these otherworldy creatures, carved in stone and peering at you from the walls of the Parish church in Kendal makes this building special. Most of the multitude of gargoyles are of Victorian 'invention', with beasts of all kinds to look for. Gargoyles were usually designed to hide spouts that took water away from the roof and drains of a building. The word Gargoyle is derived from the French word gargouille, meaning throat or gullet, a passage down which water could travel. Many gargoyles, and this is true of those at Holy Trinity in Kendal, are no longer used to hid water spouts, but are just for decoration. Gargoyles were also used to frighten off evil spirits, and it's easy to see why this was the case. Shown below is a selection of the gargoyles that can be seen on the external walls of the church.

Above. Two serpent headed, winged creatures battle it out, high up on the church wall.

Above. A strange winged 'cow' like creature stares out from the wall. A small green man can be seen to its right.

Above. A gryphon type creature holds its tail in its jaws.

Above. A demon looks out from the church walls. This is one of the largest gargoyles at Holy Trinity.

Above. A tiny green man.

Above. A laughing 'cat' like gargoyle.

Above. One of the larger gargoyles guards the corner of the church.

Above. A squirrel. With those teeth?

Above. His partner in crime.

This is where the squirrels live...above a niche in the East wall.

Above. Another view of one of the larger gargoyles guarding the corner of the building.

Above. Is this a laughing pig?

Above. A view of one of the corners of the church. Gargloyles look out in all directions.

Above. A hooded man.

Above. A larger gargoyle on the corner of the church, seems to defy gravity.

Above. This gargoyle looks out over the grave yard at the East of the church.

Above. A strange winged bull.

Above. A tiny elf like gargoyle. Note his pointed ears. A Vulcan perhaps?