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The Church of St Mary is located in
CWGC Cemetery Report. Breakdown obtained from casualty record, accessed 27 January 2013.
The Church of St Mary is located in Bitterley
Bitterley is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 802, increasing to 902 at the 2011 Census. The village is about east of Ludlow on the western slopes of Titterstone Cle ...
, Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...
, England. Built in the 12th century and later, it is a Grade II* listed building.
History
The building was constructed in the 12th and 13th centuries. There were alterations in the 17th century.Littleton Powys
Sir Littleton Powys FRS (1647?– 16 March 1732) was a Justice of the King's Bench.
Early years
He was the eldest son of Thomas Powys of Henley Hall in Shropshire, serjeant-at-law, a Bencher of Lincoln's Inn, and the representative of one branc ...
was patron of the church, where, in 1707, he set up a gallery at the west end, and in which he was buried after his death in 1732. The church was restored during the later 19th century. On 12 November 1954, the church became a Grade II* listed building, while on the same day, the cross in the churchyard was listed as Grade I.
Architecture and fittings
It consists of a body, without side aisles. Thechancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse.
Ove ...
is divided from the body by an oak screen carved in open quatrefoil
A quatrefoil (anciently caterfoil) is a decorative element consisting of a symmetrical shape which forms the overall outline of four partially overlapping circles of the same diameter. It is found in art, architecture, heraldry and traditional ...
s. Foliage and ornaments are featured at the top. There is a gallery at the west end. The ceiling is coves without ornamentation. Opposite the south door, there is an ancient stone font
In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a typeface. Each font is a matched set of type, with a piece (a "sort") for each glyph. A typeface consists of a range of such fonts that shared an overall design.
In mod ...
. The pulpit
A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...
is constructed of carved oak. The length of the body of the church is , the width is . The length of the chancel is , and its width is . The church tower is , by ; it contains three bells.
The parish war memorials consist of a two-light stained glass window featuring two Roman soldiers, dedicated by John and Mary Burton in memory of men from the parish who died in the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
; those who died are listed on a stone plaque below, and those who died in the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
on another similar plaque. To the right of the window is a memorial plaque to Captain John Henry Walcot of the King's Shropshire Light Infantry
The King's Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in the Childers Reforms of 1881, but with antecedents dating back to 1755. It served in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. In 196 ...
who was killed near Dunkirk
Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Lancashire Fusiliers
The Lancashire Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that saw distinguished service through many years and wars, including the Second Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, and had many different titles throughout its 28 ...
, who was killed in France in 1918.
Grounds
left, 180px, Stone cross in churchyard In the churchyard, there is a stone cross, raised on steps, which support an hexagonal shaft. On the top, there are tabernacled niches. The one on the north side contains the Virgin and infant Christ, while the one on the west side contains the Crucifixion. The views on the east and south sides are nearly obliterated. The churchyard contains eight.jpg.html){kind=link}
war graves
War is an intense armed conflict between State (polity), states, governments, Society, societies, or paramilitary groups such as Mercenary, mercenaries, Insurgency, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violenc ...
of British servicemen, four from World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and four (including two brothers) from World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.CWGC Cemetery Report. Breakdown obtained from casualty record, accessed 27 January 2013.
See also
*Grade II* listed buildings in Shropshire Council (A–G)
There are over 20,000 Grade II* listed buildings in England. This article comprises a list of these buildings in the county of Shropshire Council.
List
...
*Listed buildings in Bitterley
Bitterley is a civil parish in Shropshire, England. It contains 42 listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, one is listed at Grade I, the highest of the three grades, ten are at Grade II ...
References
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bitterley, Saint Mary 12th-century church buildings in England Church of England church buildings in Shropshire Grade I listed churches in Shropshire