St Mary's Church is an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

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 ...

Mold, Flintshire Mold ( ) is a town and community in Flintshire, Wales, on the River Alyn. It is the historic county town and was the administrative seat of Flintshire County Council from 1996 to 2025, as it was of Clwyd from 1974 to 1996. According to the 2011 ...

, Wales, and a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. It belongs to the Deanery of Mold, the Archdeaconry of

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

and the

Diocese of St Asaph The Diocese of Saint Asaph is a diocese of the Church in Wales in north-east Wales, named after Saint Asaph, its second bishop. Geography The Anglican Diocese of St Asaph in the north-east corner of Wales stretches from the borders of Cheste ...

of the

Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...

. It has historical associations with the Stanley family,

Earls of Derby Earl of Derby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the en ...

and displays

heraldic Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...

symbols of this, including an Eagle and Child assumed by the family in the 15th century, and the Three Legs of Man, derived from a time when the Stanleys were Lords of Mann. Under Father Rex Matthias, the previous incumbent, the church took on an Anglo-Catholic style of liturgy.

History

St Mary's Church () stands on the site of a Norman church, which fell into disrepair in the 14th century. This was replaced by a larger one in the 15th century, which in turn deteriorated. It was demolished except for its tower. Construction of the present church began about 1490. The first patron of this was

Lady Margaret Beaufort Lady Margaret Beaufort ( ; 31 May 1443 – 29 June 1509) was a major figure in the Wars of the Roses of the late 15th century, and mother of King Henry VII of England, the first House of Tudor, Tudor monarch. She was also a second cousin o ...

, Countess of Richmond and Derby and mother of Henry VII. She died in 1509, but the nave and aisles were not complete until about 1550. After the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

, two Bishops of St Asaph made financial contributions: Robert Wharton and William Hughes. About this time the

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

of Mold passed to

Bisham Priory Bisham Abbey is a Grade I listed manor house at Bisham in the English county of Berkshire. The name is taken from the now lost monastery which once stood alongside. This original Bisham Abbey was previously named Bisham Priory, and was the tr ...

, which was to be responsible for building a chancel, but this never occurred. The completed chancel arch was instead blocked up and a seven-light window inserted. In 1674 a clock was bought and the roof was re-leaded, in 1678 and 1733 new bells were added, in 1729 restoration work took place, and a gallery was added in 1751–1752. The west tower was replaced in 1768–1773 to a design by the architect Joseph Turner. Hubbard comments that despite its proportions it is "a creditable 18th-century attempt" at reproducing Perpendicular architecture. It is possible that the

clerestory A clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French ''cler estor'') is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, a ''clerestory' ...

was added at this time. A major restoration carried out in 1853–1856 by Sir

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), largely known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he ...

involved adding a chancel with a three-sided

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

. The west gallery was removed, the pews replaced by carved benches, and a

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, accesse ...

, lectern and choir stalls installed. A new roof was built over the nave, the organ was moved to the east end of the north aisle and a north porch was added. In 1885 repairs to the stonework were made. Further restoration in 1911 was supervised by the architects Prothero, Phillott and Barnard of

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

. This included rebuilding the south porch. The

Lady Chapel A Lady chapel or lady chapel is a traditional British English, British term for a chapel dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus, particularly those inside a cathedral or other large church (building), church. The chapels are also known as a Mary chape ...

was restored in 1921 by Sir Thomas G. Jackson. Still more restoration work was carried out in the 1950s and in 1998–2001.

Architecture

Structure

The main body is built in local Cefn

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

. Most of the church is

Perpendicular In geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at right angles, i.e. at an angle of 90 degrees or π/2 radians. The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the '' perpendicular symbol'', � ...

in style, although the inner doorway of the south porch is

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The Roman symbol of Britannia (a female per ...

. Its plan consists of a seven-bay nave with a clerestory, a one-bay chancel with a three-sided apse, north and south aisles, a west tower, a north vestry and a south porch. There is much carving on the stonework, including processions of animals. The tower has three stages and a

battlement A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...

ed top with

crocket A crocket (or croquet) is a small, independent decorative element common in Gothic architecture. The name derives from the diminutive of the Old French ''croc'', meaning "hook", due to the resemblance of a crocket to a bishop's Shepherd's crook, ...

pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

s at the corner and in the middle of each side. There are stepped corner

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient (typically Gothic) buildings, as a means of providing support to act ...

es and a clock face on the south wall. The aisles also have battlemented parapets with crocketed pinnacles at the tops of the stepped buttresses between the bays. Each bay has a four-light window under a

chamfer A chamfer ( ) is a transitional edge between two faces of an object. Sometimes defined as a form of bevel, it is often created at a 45° angle between two adjoining right-angled faces. Chamfers are frequently used in machining, carpentry, fur ...

ed arch.

Fittings and furniture

The

font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a ''typeface'', defined as the set of fonts that share an overall design. For instance, the typeface Bauer Bodoni (shown in the figure) includes fonts " Roman" (or "regul ...

is dated 1847 and is Perpendicular in style; its cover was made from the material of an 18th-century

chandelier A chandelier () is an ornamental lighting device, typically with spreading branched supports for multiple lights, designed to be hung from the ceiling. Chandeliers are often ornate, and they were originally designed to hold candles, but now inca ...

. The

alabaster Alabaster is a mineral and a soft Rock (geology), rock used for carvings and as a source of plaster powder. Archaeologists, geologists, and the stone industry have different definitions for the word ''alabaster''. In archaeology, the term ''alab ...

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

was designed by John Douglas and made by Hardman & Co. The pews are carved with poppyheads and the

and stalls, dated 1856, were designed by Scott. The fittings in the north-east chapel were designed by Sir Thomas G. Jackson in 1921 as a war memorial, as were both organ cases, which are dated 1923.

Stained glass

The stained glass came from several designers and manufacturers, including

William Wailes William Wailes (1808–1881) was the proprietor of one of England's largest and most prolific stained glass workshops. Life and career Wailes was born and grew up in Newcastle on Tyne, England's centre of domestic glass and bottle manufacturing. ...

Clayton and Bell Clayton and Bell was one of the most prolific and proficient British workshops of stained-glass windows during the latter half of the 19th century and early 20th century. The partners were John Richard Clayton (1827–1913) and Alfred Bell (1832� ...

, Lavers and Barraud, Alexander Booker and

Burlison and Grylls Burlison and Grylls is an English company who produced stained glass windows from 1868 onwards. The company of Burlison and Grylls was founded in 1868 at the instigation of the architects George Frederick Bodley and Thomas Garner. Both John Bur ...

. One window commemorates the painter Richard Wilson, who is buried in the churchyard. Other monuments include a

brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

dated 1602 and a series of

cartouches file:Birth and Throne cartouches of pharaoh Seti I, from KV17 at the Valley of the Kings, Egypt. Neues Museum.jpg, upalt=A stone face carved with coloured hieroglyphics. Two cartouches - ovoid shapes with hieroglyphics inside - are visible at the ...

dating from 1666 to 1757.

Organ

The organ was installed in 1973 by the Liverpool firm of

Rushworth and Dreaper Rushworth and Dreaper was a firm of organ builders, and later general instrument suppliers associated with Paul McCartney, based in Liverpool. The manufacturer was founded in 1828 by William Rushworth (organ builder), William Rushworth. In th ...

, to replace an earlier organ made by the same firm. It is a locally unusual example of an organ with baroque voicing. In place of the usual swell louvres, it features opening doors with carved hinged panels. This organ was rebuilt by Peter Collins in 2008.

Bells

The tower has a

ring (The) Ring(s) may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell Arts, entertainment, and media Film and TV * ''The Ring'' (franchise), a ...

of eight bells, five of them cast in 1732 by Abraham Rudhall II and three added in 2005, cast by Eijsbouts.

References

External links

Description of the 1973 organ
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mold, St Mary's Church Grade I listed churches in Flintshire Church in Wales church buildings in Flintshire English Gothic architecture in Flintshire Joseph Turner (architect) buildings Anglo-Catholic church buildings in Wales St Mary's Church