Church of St Mary de Castro, Leicester

St Mary de Castro, Leicester
St Mary de Castro, Leicester
	The church of St Mary de Castro,; before the removal of its unsafe spire
	52°37′56″N1°08′25″W / 52.6323°N 1.1404°W
Denomination	Church of England
Previous denomination	Catholic Church
Churchmanship	Anglo-Catholic
History
Dedication	St Mary de Castro; "St Mary of the Castle"
Administration
Province	Canterbury
Diocese	Leicester
Parish	Leicester
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Rt Revd Norman Banks SSC (AEO)
Listed Building – Grade I
Designated	1950
Reference no.	1074070

Last updated May 15, 2024

St Mary de Castro is an ancient, Grade I listed church in Leicester, England, located within the former bailey of Leicester Castle. Today it acts as a parish church in the Church of England's diocese of Leicester. "St Mary de Castro" is Latin for "St Mary of the Castle"; a name chosen to differentiate from nearby "St Mary de Pratis": "St. Mary of the Meadows".^[1]

Architectural history

It dates its founding to 1107 after Henry I of England granted the lands and castle to Robert de Beaumont,^[4] although the chronicler Henry Knighton implies that an Anglo-Saxon college of St Mary had existed and Robert merely refurbished it.^[4] Robert established it within the castle bailey as a college served by a Dean and 12 Canons (that is, a collegiate church) in honour of the Virgin Mary and All Souls and as a chantry chapel for the souls of him, his family and the first three Norman kings.^[4] He endowed this and four other churches with £6 of his income and land in or near the city.^[4] However, in 1143 these endowments were all transferred by his son Robert le Bossu, 2nd Earl of Leicester, to his own new Augustinian foundation of Leicester Abbey. The collegiate church retained, or had restored to it a dean, six clerks and a chaplain, along with Robert de Beaumont's grant of 20 shillings for lamps. It also retained parish offerings and most of the tithes.^[4] The collegiate nature of the church lasted until the college was disbanded in 1548 under the Chantry Act of Edward VI.^[4]

The early-12th-century church had no aisles, and various parts of these walls survive.^[5] It underwent a major expansion in the 1160, with a north aisle, doorways to north and west, and an extension to the chancel. The two doorways provide striking external Norman zigzag decoration, but it is the Sedilia and Piscina in the Chancel extension that Pevsner describes as "the finest piece of Norman decoration in the county".^[5] Thirteenth-century alterations culminated in a major reworking of transepts and south aisle, to create an aisle wider than the nave, providing much more space for local parishioners.^[5] Also the huge east window of the south aisle, with ingenious tracery, was created around 1300.^[5] The tower was built inside the south aisle, apparently as an afterthought, rising to a quatrefoil frieze, four decorated pinnacles, and the needlelike spire rising from the battlements.^[5] The spire was completely rebuilt in 1783, but retained its crockets and three tiers of lucarnes.^[5] The interior was worked on by George Gilbert Scott throughout the 1860s.

Spire

The church was closed when the spire was found to be unsafe. The 14th-century octagonal spire, having been rebuilt in 1783, had developed six-metre-long cracks in four of its faces in September 2013. After inspections by structural engineers, it was deemed at risk of collapse. The severe condition of the spire meant it had to be demolished, at an estimated cost of £200,000, in 2014.^[6] Over £358,000 has been raised since 2011; however, there are currently insufficient funds to rebuild the spire and repair the tower.^[2]

Famous events

It is rumoured that here, around 1366, Geoffrey Chaucer married Philippa (de) Roet (a lady-in-waiting to Edward III's queen, Philippa of Hainault, and a sister of Katherine Swynford who later (c. 1396) became the third wife of Chaucer's friend and patron, John of Gaunt).^{[ citation needed ]}

The infant king Henry VI was knighted in the church at Whitsuntide 1426 by his uncle, John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford, the Regent of France (whilst the Parliament of Bats was being held at the Castle). Henry then proceeded to himself dub a further 44 knights on the same occasion, the first of whom was Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York.^[7]

William Bickerstaffe, a charitable local schoolmaster and antiquarian, was baptised, buried and held a seven-year curacy at the church.^[8]

Organ

The church contains a three manual pipe organ which was originally installed in 1860 by Forster and Andrews. It has been the subject of modifications and restorations in 1880 by Joshua Porritt, and R. J. Winn in 1960. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.^[9]

Organists

Henry Bramley Ellis organist 1878–1910
Benjamin Burrows 1910–?
William Snow, father of C. P. Snow 1930 – c. 1950
John M. Bence

100m
110yds

south gates

9

Magazine

8

'lost' Church of the Newarke (site of)

7

Newarke Houses

6

Trinity Hospital

5

Turret gateway

4

St Mary de Castro

3

Castle gateway

2

Castle Hall

1

Leicester Castle and The Newarke precinct, showing the Motte and bailey (green), boundary walls of The Newarke (blue), and the southern side of the town wall (red).
The historic sites include:-

1

Leicester Castle

2

Castle gateway

3

Church of St Mary de Castro

4

Turret gateway

5

Trinity House - former Trinity Hospital

6

Newarke Houses Museum

7

site of Church of the Annunciation of Our Lady of the Newarke, now includes DMU heritage centre

8

Magazine Gateway

9

South gates

Related Research Articles

Manchester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George, in Manchester, England, is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Manchester, seat of the Bishop of Manchester and the city's parish church. It is on Victoria Street in Manchester city centre and is a grade I listed building.

The Collegiate Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, Stratford-upon-Avon, is a Grade I listed parish church of the Church of England in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. It is often known simply as Holy Trinity Church or as Shakespeare's Church, due to its fame as the place of baptism, marriage and burial of William Shakespeare. More than 200,000 tourists visit the church each year.

Leicester Castle is in the city of the same name in the English county of Leicestershire. The complex is situated in the west of Leicester City Centre, between Saint Nicholas Circle to the north and De Montfort University to the south. A large motte and the Great Hall are the two substantial remains of what was once a large defensive structure. The hall is now encased in a Queen Anne style frontage. The Castle and the Magazine Gateway is a scheduled monument.

St Mary's, Harrow on the Hill, is the Borough and Parish Church at Harrow on the Hill in northwest London, England. It is a Grade I-listed building.

The Collegiate Church of St Mary is a Church of England parish church in Warwick, Warwickshire, England. It is in the centre of the town just east of the market place. It is Grade I listed, and a member of the Major Churches Network.

St Nicholas Church is a Church of England parish church in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, England.

The Magazine Gateway is a Grade I listed building in Leicester. Now a solitary landmark alongside Leicester ringroad, it was originally the main gateway of a walled enclosure built around 1400, giving access to the religious precinct of The Newarke. The vaulted archway was open to traffic until 1905. The gatehouse rooms were variously used as a porter's lodge, guest accommodation, prison, militia building, and regimental museum. It is now a building managed by the Leicester Museum Service, and is generally only open to the public by arrangement.

St Mary Magdalene Church, Newark-on-Trent is the parish church of Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire, England. It is dedicated to Mary Magdalene and is the tallest structure in the town.

St. Michael the Archangel Church is the oldest building still in use in the city of Southampton, England, founded in 1070. It is the only church still active of the five originally in the medieval walled town. The church is a Grade I Listed building.

The Newarke Houses Museum is a public museum in Leicester, England. It incorporates the museum of the Royal Leicestershire Regiment, and has a range of exhibits illustrating post-medieval and contemporary Leicester. The museum is close to the 15th century Magazine Gateway and within the precincts of the medieval 'Newarke', the 'New Work' of Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster. The museum stands in the middle of the De Montfort University campus.

St Mary's Church is a redundant Anglican church in St Mary's Place, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust, the Trust designated St Mary's as its first Conservation Church in 2015. It is the largest church in Shrewsbury. Clifton-Taylor includes the church in his list of 'best' English parish churches.

St Mary the Virgin's Church is in the village of Bottesford, Leicestershire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Framland, the archdeaconry of Leicester and the diocese of Leicester. Its benefice is united with those of eight local parishes. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

St Helen's Church is the Anglican parish church of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, in the deanery of North West Leicestershire and the Diocese of Leicester. There was a church in the town in the 11th century, but the core of the present building mainly dates from work started in 1474, when the church was rebuilt by William Hastings at the same time that he converted his neighbouring manor house into a castle. The church was refurbished in about 1670 to create more space, but the large and increasing size of the congregation led to further work in 1829, and a major rebuild in 1878–80, including the widening of the nave by the addition of two outer aisles.

St. Peter's Church, Lowick, is the Church of England parish church of Lowick, Northamptonshire, England.

The Church of St Peter and St Paul, Uppingham is the Church of England parish church of Uppingham, Rutland. It is part of the Diocese of Peterborough.

St Mary's Church is on Church Street, Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Ludlow, the archdeaconry of Ludlow, and the diocese of Hereford. Its benefice is united with those of six local parishes to form the Cleobury Benefice. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. It is notable for its shingled twisted spire.

St Mary's Church, Wingham, is an Anglican parish church in Wingham, Kent. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

St Mary's Church, Ilkeston is a Grade II* listed parish church in the Church of England in Ilkeston, Derbyshire. Built in the 14th century, it is known as the "Mollis Chapel" because of a stained glass window which shows the rising sun above the cross which was fixed to it by the local saint.

The Church of the Annunciation of Our Lady of the Newarke in Leicester, was a collegiate church founded by Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster, in 1353. The name "Newarke" is a translation of the Latin "novum opus" i.e. "new work" and was used to distinguish the church from the older collegiate church of Leicester Castle, the Church of St Mary de Castro. Duke Henry enlarged his father's hospital foundation in the southern extension to the castle bailey and built the new church to house a holy relic, part of the Crown of Thorns given him by John II of France. The church became a place of pilgrimage. Leland visited it around 1540, shortly before its destruction during the Suppression of the Chantries. He described the church as "not very great...but exceeding fair."

References

↑ BBC. "A Haunted History: St Mary de Castro". Leicester. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
1 2 "Fears historic church spire may collapse". Leicester Mercury. 4 September 2013. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
↑ Google may be Godsend for 900-year-old St Mary De Castro Church, in Leicester Archived 2014-02-02 at the Wayback Machine , Leicester Mercury, 28 August 2012. Accessed 26 January 2014
1 2 3 4 5 6 W.G. Hoskins (editor) assisted by R.A. McKinley (1954). "Colleges: St Mary de Castro". A History of the County of Leicestershire: Volume 2. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 24 January 2014.{{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
1 2 3 4 5 6 Pevsner, Nikolaus (1960). Leicestershire and Rutland. The Buildings of England. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. pp. 144–148.
↑ "Leicester spire re-build needs £600,000". National Churches Trust. 12 March 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
↑ William Arthur Shaw, The Knights of England, Vol.1, p.130 (London, 1906)
↑ Jenkins, Robin P. (2004). "Bickerstaffe, William". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/2343.(Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
↑ "NPOR [N01304]". National Pipe Organ Register . British Institute of Organ Studies . Retrieved 23 February 2014.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] BBC. "A Haunted History: St Mary de Castro". Leicester. Retrieved 19 May 2013.

[Spire-2] 1 2 "Fears historic church spire may collapse". Leicester Mercury. 4 September 2013. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.

[3] Google may be Godsend for 900-year-old St Mary De Castro Church, in Leicester Archived 2014-02-02 at the Wayback Machine , Leicester Mercury, 28 August 2012. Accessed 26 January 2014

[hoskins-4] 1 2 3 4 5 6 W.G. Hoskins (editor) assisted by R.A. McKinley (1954). "Colleges: St Mary de Castro". A History of the County of Leicestershire: Volume 2. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 24 January 2014.{{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)

[pevsner-5] 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pevsner, Nikolaus (1960). Leicestershire and Rutland. The Buildings of England. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. pp. 144–148.

[6] "Leicester spire re-build needs £600,000". National Churches Trust. 12 March 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2020.

[7] William Arthur Shaw, The Knights of England, Vol.1, p.130 (London, 1906)

[8] Jenkins, Robin P. (2004). "Bickerstaffe, William". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/2343.(Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

[9] "NPOR [N01304]". National Pipe Organ Register . British Institute of Organ Studies . Retrieved 23 February 2014.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]