Church Of St Editha, Tamworth
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The Church of St Editha is a
Church of England parish church A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within each Church of England parish (the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative unit; since the 19th century sometimes ...
and
Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
in Tamworth,
Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...
, England.


History

The church of St Editha is the largest parish church in Staffordshire. Most of the church is mid- to late-14th-century and 15th-century work with some 19th-century additions. The present building stands upon the ground where successive churches have stood since the 8th century. The first church was destroyed, along with the town, by the
Danes Danes (, ), or Danish people, are an ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. History Early history Denmark ...
in 874 and it was not until the time of
Æthelflæd Æthelflæd ( – 12 June 918) ruled as Lady of the Mercians in the English Midlands from 911 until her death in 918. She was the eldest child of Alfred the Great, king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex, and his wife Ealhswith. Æthelflæd ...
that a second church arose. The Danes ruined this church in 943 and it was King Edgar who re-founded it around 963. Editha was probably King Edgar's aunt who died in the 960s and was canonized shortly after for her life of devotion and piety and then made the patron saint of the now
collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons, a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, headed by a dignitary bearing ...
.G C Baugh et al (1970)
"Colleges: Tamworth, St Edith"
in ''A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 3'', ed. M W Greenslade and R B Pugh (London,
Victoria County History The Victoria History of the Counties of England, commonly known as the Victoria County History (VCH), is an English history project which began in 1899 with the aim of creating an encyclopaedic history of each of the historic counties of Englan ...
series), pp. 309–315. Accessed 1 February 2016.
In 1345 the town and church were destroyed by fire and so began a rebuilding, being the fourth (present) church. Begun in 1350 and completed in 1369, this edifice is a monument to the man whose task it became to rebuild and enlarge the church, Dean Baldwin de Witney. The College of Canons of St Editha was probably a royal foundation in the 10th century, although the date of foundation is unknown. Although the right to appoint canons was disputed, by the 12th century, all appointments were royal. There were a dean and six prebendaries. The college was dissolved in 1548 under the terms of the Dissolution of Colleges Act 1547 and the church became the parish church for the town of Tamworth. Samuel Parkes (c.1815–1864) was baptised here on 24 December 1815. He won the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...
in the
Charge of the Light Brigade The Charge of the Light Brigade was a military action undertaken by British light cavalry against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War, resulting in many casualties to the cavalry. On 25 October 1854, the Light Br ...
for saving the life of Trumpeter Hugh Crawford. His parents Thomas Park(e)s and Lydia Fearn are buried in the churchyard and commemorated by a tombstone. The church was extensively restored by
Benjamin Ferrey Benjamin Ferrey List of Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London, FSA Royal Institute of British Architects, FRIBA (1 April 1810 – 22 August 1880) was an English architect who worked mostly in the Gothic revival architecture, Gothic Re ...
and
George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), largely known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he ...
in the 1850s, and
William Butterfield William Butterfield (7 September 1814 – 23 February 1900) was a British Gothic Revival architect and associated with the Oxford Movement (or Tractarian Movement). He is noted for his use of polychromy. Biography William Butterfield was bo ...
, ca. 1871. There is a rare example of a
double spiral staircase Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps which enable passage ...
in the tower; others are at the
Château de Chambord The Château de Chambord () in Chambord, Centre-Val de Loire, France, is one of the most recognisable châteaux in the world because of its very distinctive French Renaissance architecture, which blends traditional French medieval forms with ...
, France and
All Saints' Church, Pontefract The Church of All Saints in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England is an active Church of England parish church in the archdeaconry of Pontefract and the Diocese of Leeds. The church consists of two structures, an outer church constructed in the 14 ...
.


Deans of Tamworth


Stained glass

There are medieval fragments in the vestry east window. The chancel east window dates from 1870, by
William Wailes William Wailes (1808–1881) was the proprietor of one of England's largest and most prolific stained glass workshops. Life and career Wailes was born and grew up in Newcastle on Tyne, England's centre of domestic glass and bottle manufacturing. ...
. There are south
clerestory A clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French ''cler estor'') is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, a ''clerestory' ...
windows of 1873, by
Ford Madox Brown Ford Madox Brown (16 April 1821 â€“ 6 October 1893) was a British painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often William Hogarth, Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style. Arguably, his mos ...
for
Morris & Co Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. (1861–1875) was a furniture, furnishings and decorative arts manufacturer and retailer founded by the artist and designer William Morris with friends from the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Pre-Raphaelites. With ...
. The chapel east window of 1874 is by
Edward Burne-Jones Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, 1st Baronet, (; 28 August 183317 June 1898) was an English painter and designer associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's style and subject matter. Burne-Jones worked with William Morris as a founding part ...
also for Morris & Co.


Organ

The church has an historic pipe organ dating from 1766. The first instrument was installed by Nathaniel Dudley. Samuel Green built a new organ in 1792, taking the Dudley organ to Isleworth in South West London. Alexander Buckingham added a chair/choir division in 1809 and a pedal division was added by William Hill in 1841. Further work was carried out by
George Holdich George Maydwell Holdich (14 August 1816 – 30 July 1896) was a British organist and organ builder based in London. Early life Holdich was born on 14 August 1816, the third son of the Revd. Thomas Holdich (Vicar of St Mary the Virgin's Church ...
, Brycesons Bros and finally Nicholsons of Worcester. A new organ was built in 1927 by Harrison and Harrison incorporating much of the old pipework. A comprehensive restoration took place in 2016/17. A specification from 1929 can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.


Organists

* John Alcock 1766 – 1790 * William Birch 1790 – 1815 * John Valentine 1815 – 1816 * Thomas Valentine 1816 – 1818 * John Twelch Greaves 1818 – 1828 *
John Hewitt John Hewitt may refer to: * John Hewitt (priest) (died 1588), English Roman Catholic priest and Catholic martyr, beatified in 1929 * John Hewitt (antiquary) (1807–1878), English official * John Hill Hewitt (1801–1890), newspaper editor * John ...
1828 – 1829 * James J. Greaves 1829 – 1832 * John Twelch Greaves 1832 – 1867 * T. H. Reade 1867 – 1868 * J. Smith Creswell 1868 – 1874 *George Herbert Gregory 1874 – 1876 (afterwards organist of
St Botolph's Church, Boston St Botolph's Church is the Anglican parish church of Boston, Lincolnshire, England. It has been referred to as "Boston Stump" since it was constructed in the 16th century. Its tower is tall, and was long used as a landmark for the Boston fish ...
) * William Edward Wadely 1876 – 1877 * R. Matthews 1877 – 1886 * Henry Rose 1886 – 1950 * W. Darling 1950 – 1965 * W. H. Hughes 1965 – 1972 * Kenneth Edwards 1973 – In 1929, Henry Rose appointed the then 13-year-old Ernest Titterton as assistant organist. Titterton later went on to help develop the
atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear expl ...
. The organ was recently complemented with the purchase of a Steinway Grand Piano, the only one in Tamworth.


See also

The church is depicted in this brick mural in the pavement of nearby Colehill *
Edith of Polesworth Saint Edith of Polesworth (also known as Editha or Eadgyth; d. ?c.960s) is an Anglo-Saxon abbess associated with Polesworth (Warwickshire) and Tamworth (Staffordshire) in Mercia. Her historical identity and floruit are uncertain. Some late so ...
* Dissolution of the Monasteries *
Grade I listed buildings in Staffordshire There are over 9000 Grade I listed buildings in England. This page is a list of these buildings in the county of Staffordshire, by district. City of Stoke-on-Trent East Staffordshire Lichfield District Newc ...
* Grade I listed churches in Staffordshire *
Listed buildings in Tamworth, Staffordshire Tamworth, Staffordshire, Tamworth is a market town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Staffordshire, England. It contains 138 Listed building#England and Wales, listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List fo ...


References


External links


St Editha's homepage
{{Authority control Former collegiate churches in England Grade I listed churches in Staffordshire Tamworth Double spiral staircases Buildings and structures in Tamworth, Staffordshire