St Mary Magdalene is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

Campsall Campsall is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Norton, in the Doncaster district, in the county of South Yorkshire, England. It lies to the north-west of Doncaster, at an elevation of around 50 feet above sea level. The ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

. It is Grade I listed. There is a service every Sunday at 11:00.

History

The present church, dedicated to

St Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to his crucifixion and resurre ...

, was established towards the end of the eleventh century and contains features of almost every style of architecture since that time. Originally the Norman church was planned to be

cruciform A cruciform is a physical manifestation resembling a common cross or Christian cross. These include architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly described as having a cruciform ...

but it was changed to feature the western tower and included a chancel, transepts and a nave to which aisles were later added. The church was supported for many years by its principal benefactors, the Yarbrough family of Campsmount. Several of the monuments in the chancel are dedicated to the Yarbrough family including an 1803 memorial commemorating Thomas Yarbrough by renowned sculptor,

John Flaxman John Flaxman (6 July 1755 – 7 December 1826) was a British sculptor and draughtsman, and a leading figure in British and European Neoclassicism. Early in his career, he worked as a modeller for Josiah Wedgwood's pottery. He spent several yea ...

. In 1879, when the Rev. Edwin Castle was vicar, eight bells (three new and five re-cast) were installed along with a new clock. The vicarage had been restored the previous year.

Robin Hood

It is locally reputed that legendary

outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them. ...

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...

was married to

Maid Marian Maid Marian is the heroine of the Robin Hood legend in English folklore, often taken to be his lover. She is not mentioned in the early, medieval versions of the legend, but was the subject of at least two plays by 1600. Her history and circums ...

at this church. Based upon a

Child Ballad The Child Ballads are List of the Child Ballads, 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies ...

, the theory is founded on the premise that St Mary Magdalene is the only possible church in the area to fit the description, but no firm evidence exists for this supposition. In 2013, when the

National Churches Trust The National Churches Trust, formerly the Historic Churches Preservation Trust, is a British Charitable organization#United Kingdom, registered charity whose aim is to "promote and support church buildings of historic, architectural and community ...

were compiling a list of the nation's favourite places of worship, the local MP

Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...

nominated St Mary Magdalene because of its association with the Robin Hood legend.

References

External links

Campsall St Mary Magdalene
A Church Near You {{DEFAULTSORT:Campsall, Mary Magdalene Church of England church buildings in South Yorkshire Grade I listed churches in South Yorkshire 11th-century church buildings in England

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...

History

Robin Hood

See also

References

External links