St Andrew's Church is in the village of Great Ness, Shropshire, England. It is an active

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

parish church in the deanery of Ellesmere, the archdeaconry of Salop, and the diocese of Lichfield. Its

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is united with those of St Martin, Little Ness, and St John the Baptist, Ruyton-XI-Towns. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

History

The church originated as a collegiate church in the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

era, and is recorded in the Domesday Book. The nave and the tower of the present church date from the 13th century, and the chancel from the early part of the following century. The upper part of the tower was either added or rebuilt during the 17th century. The south porch was described as being "nearly new" in 1824. In 1852 the chancel was re-roofed, and the church was partly

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in 1880. The vestry was added in the late 19th century.

Architecture

Exterior

The nave and tower are constructed in red sandstone, the nave having a tiled roof. The chancel is in pinkish-grey sandstone, and has a

slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

roof. The plan of the church consists of a three-

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

nave with a south porch, a two-bay chancel with a north vestry, and a west tower. The tower is in three stages, with

lancet window A lancet window is a tall, narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural element are typical of Gothic church edifices of the earliest period. Lancet wi ...

s in the lower two stages, and diagonal buttresses. In the top stage are two-light louvred bell openings. The tower has a battlemented parapet, and a pyramidal cap with a weathervane. The nave is in Early English style, its windows being paired lancets. The chancel is in Decorated style. On the south side of the chancel is a priest's door. The east window has three lights.

Interior

Inside the south wall of the nave are the arches of a two-bay arcade of an aisle that has been removed. The south wall of the chancel contains an ogee-headed piscina, and a small aumbry. The chancel roof dates from 1852, and the nave roof is medieval. The altar rail dates from the 17th century, and incorporates turned

baluster A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its cons ...

s. The chancel is floored with encaustic tiles, and in the west end of the nave are re-set medieval tiles. The

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is dated 1850 and 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 ...

1885; both are polygonal and in stone. At the west end of the church is a gallery of 1765, carried on two square posts, and containing the organ. On its front are painted boards, one containing the

Royal arms The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, or the royal arms for short, is the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. These arms are used by the King in his official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom. Varian ...

. To the right of the chancel arch is a hatchment. Some of the windows contain 19th-century stained glass. Also in the church are memorial tablets dating from the late 18th and the early 19th centuries. There is a

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of six bells. The oldest, cast by Thomas Clibury, is dated 1634. Four bells were cast in 1932 by Gillett & Johnston, and the sixth bell is undated.

External features

In the churchyard are memorials listed at Grade II. To the southeast of the church is a pair of memorials known as the Wingfield Memorials. These are two chest tombs of unusual design dating from the mid to late 18th century. To the northeast of the church is the Edwards Memorial. This is a sandstone pedestal tomb dated 1820 surmounted by a large urn. Also in the churchyard is a sandstone churchyard cross dating from the 14th or 15th century. It has an octagonal plan with four steps, and a truncated shaft. The cross is also listed at Grade II, and is a scheduled monument. Near the path to the south side of the church is a

Commonwealth war grave The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mi ...

of a King's Liverpool Regiment soldier of World War I.
CWGC Casualty record, date accessed 20 July 2014.

References