St Mary's Church, Tutbury, is a Grade I listed

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the 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 community activities, ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

Tutbury Tutbury is a village and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. It is north of Burton upon Trent and south of the Peak District. The village has a population of about 3,076 residents. It adjoins Hatton to the north on the Staffordshire–Derby ...

, Staffordshire.

History

The West front of the church, the oldest surviving part of the building, is dated from around 1160 - 1170. For centuries the church was used by the monks of

Tutbury Priory Tutbury Priory was a Benedictine monastery in Tutbury, Staffordshire, England, founded in 1080 by Henry de Ferrers as a dependency of the abbey of Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives in Normandy and completed in 1089, in memory of King William the Conqueror ...

, as well as the being the parish church of Tutbury. However, the monastery appears to have been founded slightly later than the church. Most of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

was rebuilt in the 13th century. At the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

the eastern part of the church, which served the monastic community, was demolished along with the priory buildings. The South tower appears to be a 16th-century addition. The north aisle is an addition of 1820-2 by Joseph B H Bennett. The chancel and sanctuary were replaced in 1866 by

George Edmund Street George Edmund Street (20 June 1824 – 18 December 1881), also known as G. E. Street, was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex. Stylistically, Street was a leading practitioner of the Victorian Gothic Revival. Though mainly an eccl ...

funded by

Sir Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...

(4th baronet and grandfather of the fascist politician).

Memorials

Indoors, the church has a memorial to George Robinson (d. 1837) by Joseph Hall of

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

. The churchyard contains the war graves of seven Commonwealth service personnel, five 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 two 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 opposing ...

Bells

The tower contains a ring of eight bells, with four dating from 1699. The tenor weighs a little over 10 cwt.

Organ

The church has an organ by Charles Lloyd, which was rebuilt in the 1930s. A specification of the organ can be found on the

National Pipe Organ Register The British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS) is a British organisation and registered charity which aims to promote study and appreciation of all aspects of the pipe organ. Further, it acts as a lobbying body to raise awareness of organ issue ...

Picture Gallery

West_doorway,_Tutbury_Church_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1223992.jpg, The Norman West Doorway, Tutbury Church The_arch_of_the_south_doorway,_St_Mary%27s_Church,_Tutbury_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1581612.jpg, Arch of South Doorway, showing a boar hunt on the lintel

References