The Corpus of ROMANESQUE SCULPTURE in Britain & Ireland
Lancashire (pre-1974 traditional (England and Wales))
Parish church
The site is medieval but there are no architectural remains of the old church. The nave was rebuilt in 1743, the chancel in 1810, and the impressive W tower by John Broadbent in 1829-32. Broadbent's tower is essentially the oldest part of the building to remain intact, the N side of the church being remodelled 1840, and the chancel rebuilt again in 1843. A S chapel, ambulatory and vestry was added in 1911. The church was gutted by incendiary bombs and the interior now consists of concrete vaults on a steel frame rising from the floor. The church retains an Anglo-Saxon cross shaft, and a Romanesque font.
Parish church
The church has a long 13thc chancel, a tall chancel arch, two arcades, and a large 15thc W tower. The impressive medieval choir stalls inside come from the nearby Cistercian abbey, founded in 1296. The S door has what appears to be reused Romanesque material.
Parish church
The Perpendicular W tower is the oldest part of the exterior, most of which was rebuilt 1815-22. On the N side is the strikingly rusticated classical of the Case mausoleum of c.1681. The chancel has been crudely converted into an Early English lancet style but was originally Perpendicular. Inside, the S arcade is 14thc, and the N arcade is a facsimile from the early 19thc revamp. The church has two fonts, one of which is Perpenidcular, and stands by the S door, and the other, at the E end of the S aisle, is Romanesque.
Parish church
The church of St Mary is built with a long nave, chancel and W tower. Much of the church was rebuilt in 1804, with aisle walls rebuilt in 1864-6. The E bay of the chancel, which extends out from the E wall, was built in 1903-4. The W tower appears to be the result of rebuilding in 1540. All that remains from the Romanesque period is the S nave doorway, which has been rebuilt from an arch whose original location is unknown.
Parish church
On approaching Ormskirk it would appear the town centre has two churches. This is not the case, instead the medieval parish church of the town has the unique attribute of having a separate tower and spire. The spire is based upon a smaller tower built into the S aisle, probably 14thc. The enormously wide W tower was built after 1542. The church was heavily classified in the 18thc and the current arcades of the interior are 19thc, replacing classical columns. The arcade of the chancel is partly 13thc, and the N wall of the chancel contains a Romanesque window.
Parish church
Overton sits rather isolated at the end of the peninsula of Morecombe. The church is confusing, for a relatively enormous N 'transept' of 1830 (added to provide extra seating), disorientates the perception of the building. An apse (discovered in 1902 during restoration by Austin and Paley) and the original Norman fenstration were destroyed in 1771. The only Romanesque, and indeed medieval, fabric remaining is the impressive S doorway.
Parish church
Kirkby Ireleth is sited on the peninsula of Furness, in southern Cumbria. The site of the church is listed variously by modern authors as ‘Kirkby Ireleth’, ‘Kirkby-in-Furness’ and ‘Beckside’. It has been dedicated to St Cuthbert since at least the 15thc., but there is some evidence that in the 14thc. it was dedicated to St Mary. The church consists of a nave with S porch, chancel, large north aisle and west tower, the latter built in 1829. Restorations were carried out in 1881, 1884 and 1904. The only surviving Romanesque carving is found on the S doorway of the nave, although the western part of the chancel, with its restored N window and blocked S window, as well as some walling of the nave are also believed to date from the 12thc.
Parish church
Middleton has, after the collegiate church in Manchester which later became the cathedral, the most significant survival of a medieval church in Greater Manchester. It consists of a pair of through arcades with clerestory, and a W tower heightened by a curious wooden bellcote probably around 1667, when new bells are recorded as being hung. The church's main interest is its heraldic rood screen, and stained glass commemorating archers of the Battle of Flodden Field, but also contains significant Romanesque fragments built into the late medieval structure.
Parish church
Now in the suburbs of Merseyside, Childwall is the only medieval church in the Liverpool metropolitan area. It is essentially late medieval, with 14thc and later masonry all of new red sandstone, typical of Cheshire. The exterior is extremely restored, and the W steeple is Gothick of 1810-11. The arcades are of standard Perp-type, with one pillar removed on each side to allow for a round super-arch to allow visibility from the galleriesd. The church was restored 1851-6, then greatly expanded N with an outer N aisle in 1905-6. There is a single Romanesque capital N of the sanctuary, in an oblong niche.
Parish church, formerly chapel
Caton church, in the settlement of Brookhouse, is typical for North Lancashire in that the only medieval part of its structure is the Perpendicular west tower; the rest is by E. G. Paley, 1865-7. Formerly in the porch door, the remants of a Romanesque portal have been built into the exterior west wall of the north aisle.