The Church of St Mary the Virgin, Deane, 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 ...

in Deane,

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

, England. It is a member of Deane deanery in the archdeaconry of Bolton, diocese of Manchester. It is a Grade II* listed building.

History

The church of St Mary is situated in the old township of Rumworth on high ground above the Church Brook, the

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

''Kirkbroke'', which flows through Deane Clough to the River Croal. St Mary, or ''St Mariden'' was a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

St Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under various titles such as virgin or queen, many of them mentioned in the Litany of Loreto. ...

in Eccles before becoming the mother church of the ancient

ecclesiastical parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Deane which was formed from the northern part of the parish of Eccles and takes its name from Deane Clough, the narrow wooded valley close to the west of the church. The church originated as a 14th-century structure consisting of a nave and chancel with a steeply pitched roof and a western tower which has since been considerably enlarged and altered.

Structure

The oldest part of the church is the 14th century west tower which belonged to the older church on the site. The church is built of rough wall-stones with embattled

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

s to the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

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 ...

, and

aisle An aisle is a linear space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, in buildings such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parliaments, courtrooms, ...

s. It has three crocketed

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 east end. The windows have rounded uncusped heads to the lights and the clerestory has an almost continuous line of square-headed three-light windows. The chancel has a seven-light pointed east window. The chancel and nave are under a continuous flat-pitched oak panelled roof from 1884 following the lines of the older structure. In the early 15th century the church was extended by adding a new chancel and later widened by adding the north aisle. Sometime later the church was again extended by adding a third bay, and the south side rebuilt with three arches. The 14th-century nave was pulled down in the early 16th century when a new nave arcade and 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' ...

were built. The chancel was extended by in 1884 and an organ chamber added in 1887. Measured internally the chancel is long by 19 feet 6 inches wide and the nave 71 feet 6 inches by 20 feet 9 inches. The north aisle is wide, with an organ chamber at the east and vestry at the west end. The south aisle is wide with a south porch. The tower is square.

Churchyard

Notable interments include Thomas and Joseph Rowland Heaton, the founders of Lostock Junction Mills. Other graves include the war graves of 43 service personnel, 15 of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and 28 of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. There all also 27 graves of victims of the 1910 Pretoria Pit Disaster. The churchyard also contains a memorial to the Protestant martyr George Marsh which originally stood half a mile to the west of the church on New York Road. Inscriptions on its base record his martyrdom and the erection of the memorial in 1893. There is also an outdoor stone-built pulpit.

References

External links

The History of Deane Parish ChurchSt Mary the Virgin graves
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deane, St Mary the Virgin Grade II* listed churches in Greater Manchester Church of England church buildings in Greater Manchester Anglican Diocese of Manchester Buildings and structures in Bolton

History

Structure

Churchyard

See also

References

External links