St Catherine's Church is in the village of
Boot
A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is cle ...
,
Cumbria, England. It is the
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 of
Eskdale, Cumbria, and is in the deanery of Calder, the
archdeaconry of West Cumberland, and the
diocese of Carlisle. Its
benefice
A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...
is united with those of Irton, St Paul,
Muncaster, St Michael, and
St John, Waberthwaite.
The church is recorded in the
National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II
listed building.
It stands by the side of the
River Esk.
[
]
History
A church has been on the site since the 6th century.[ Local legend says that a 7th-century hermit lived near the church and established a holy well on Arment Hill; the same well is still used to draw water for baptisms.][ It was restored in 1881 by the Lancaster architects Paley and Austin. They reseated the church, increasing its accommodation to 126, and added a vestry, at a cost of £750 (equivalent to £ in ).
In the churchyard is a gravestone commemorating Thomas Dobson (died 1910), who was master of the Eskdale and Ennerdale ]Foxhounds
A foxhound is a type of large hunting hound bred for strong hunting instincts, a keen sense of smell, and their bark, energy, drive, and speed. In fox hunting, the foxhound's namesake, packs of foxhounds track quarry, followed—usually on hor ...
for 53 years. Known as the "Huntsman's Grave", the stone is carved with Dobson's huntsman's horn and two projecting heads, one of a fox and one of a hunting dog.
Architecture
Exterior
St Catherine's is constructed in random rubble. It 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 with a stone ridge. The church has a simple plan, consisting of a single cell in four bays
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, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a narr ...
, and a south porch. At the west end is a gabled double bellcote, and there is a cross on the apex of the east end. The side windows are mainly 19th-century replacements of earlier windows, and are mullioned.[ The east window has three lights and contains Decorated-style tracery.]
Interior
Inside the church is an octagonal 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 ...
; its bowl has low- relief carving on each face. On the south wall of the church is a benefactors' board dated 1798.[ All the stained glass dates from between 1889 and 1896. The glass in the east and west windows is by Gibbs and Company, and that on the north and south sides is by A. Savell and Company.][ The glass in the east window depicts Saint Catherine, the Good Shepherd, and ]Saint Cecilia
Saint Cecilia ( la, Sancta Caecilia), also spelled Cecelia, was a Roman virgin martyr and is venerated in Catholic, Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox, Anglican Communion, Anglican, and some Lutheran churches, such as the Church of Sweden. She b ...
. Windows on the south side of the church depict the Annunciation
The Annunciation (from Latin '), also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the biblical tale of the announcement by the ange ...
, and on the north side the Last Supper.
See also
* Listed buildings in Eskdale, Cumbria
*List of ecclesiastical works by Paley and Austin
Paley and Austin was the title of a practice of architects in Lancaster, Lancashire, England, in the 19th century. The practice had been founded in 1836 by Edmund Sharpe. The architects during the period covered by this list are E. ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boot, St Catherine's Church
Diocese of Carlisle
Church of England church buildings in Cumbria
Grade II listed churches in Cumbria
Paley and Austin buildings
English Gothic architecture in Cumbria