Church of Saint Margaret

Details

SJ 63 SW;
8/109

MORETON SAY C.P.,
Church of Saint Margaret

(formerly listed as Church of Saint Margaret of Antioch)

10.02.59

GV

II*

Parish church. Tower, dated 1769 and nave and chancel dated 1788, builders William Magley and William Griffiths. Nave and chancel incorporating a late C12 core. Restored, altered and south porch added in 1900 by Mr. Hodgson Fowler.

Red brick with grey sandstone ashlar dressings. East end rebuilt or refaced in 1900 in red sandstone ashlar. Plain tile roofs. Three-bay nave and chancel in one, west tower and south porch. Nave and chancel: chamfered brick plinth, raised brick quoins, stone cill band at gallery level, dentil brick eaves cornice and parapeted gable end to west with stone coping and shaped kneelers.

South side: three bays; two tiers of round-arched windows with raised brick architraves, raised keystones and imposts blocks and metal cross windows with leaded lights. Two blind upper-tier windows to right, that in centre with remains of inscriptions: "THIS CHURCH / was Rebuilt / AD 1788 /.............) - / WALTER .....) Church Wardens".

Round-arched doorway between first and second windows from left with architrave, imposts blocks and keystone, and pair of C19 doors. Gabled wooden porch on chamfered red sandstone plinth with Tudor-arched entrance, hollow-chamfered scalloped bargeboards and three-bay sides with ogee-headed lights. Flanking cast-iron bootscrapers. Round-arched priest's doorway in right-hand bay with architrave, impost
blocks and keystone.

North side: two bays. Two tiers of windows. Plinth stops short to right. Yellow/grey sandstone datestone between upper windows inscribed: "William Magley / William Griffiths / Builders A.D. 1788". Oval yellow sandstone memorial plaque to right of right hand lower window inscribed: "M.S.E. / MARIA /THEOPHILIHOULBRO0KELLE - /Carifsima Conjux / Mortalia reliquit 16 Die Junii AD 1786 / Suoeque /AEtatis 31 / I.E.T.S.E. / MARIA / Infantula / E.F."

East end: double chamfered plinth, flanking buttresses with chamfered offsets and parapeted gable end with coping, trefoil-panelled gabled kneelers and cross at apex. Large Perpendicular Style window of five cinquefoil-headed lights with taller centre ogee light, panelled tracery, moulded reveals and hoodmould with uncarved stops. Small quatrefoil-in-lozenge panel in apex of gable.

Tower: three stages. Double-chamfered stone plinth, stone string courses at set-backs to each stage, dentil bricks to coved stone cornice, blocking course and small corner obelisks. Flagpole. Round-arched louvred two light belfry openings with Y-tracery and architraves with impost blocks and keystones. Second-stage circular panels, that to south with moulded stone architrave and clock, that to north also with clock, and that to south rendered (mostly fallen off at time of survey, July 1986) and with date stone illegible at time of survey. First-stage lunette to west with radial glazing bars, stone architrave and cill and keystone. Round-arched south doorway with stone architrave, impost blocks and keystone and C18 nail-studded boarded door with decorative wrought-iron strap hinges. Remains of stone memorial tablet to north; square with husk border and two fluted brackets. Inscribed to: Mrs. MARGARET CORSER Wife of / Mr JOHN CORSER of WHITCHURCH / Died 23rd Nov 1778 Aged 75." and other members of the Corser family.

INTERIOR: late C12 round-arched west doorway (into tower) with inner chamfer, one order of shafts (missing) with stiff-leaf capitals, moulded impost blocks, roll-moulded arch and outer roll moulding. Gothic memorial door dated 1932. Late C12 roll-moulded round-arched piscina to south.

East window of 1900 has nook shafts with moulded bases and capitals, moulded inner arch and hoodmould with carved stops. Integral stone reredos beneath window with five cinquefoil-headed panels, panelled spandrels and carved frieze above with moulded top.

Flat nave roof with moulded cornice. C19 two-bay chancel roof has arch-braced chamfered tie-beams with central carved panels and resting on stone corbels; cross panels between, also with carved bosses.

Fittings: large west gallery dated 1634 consisting of large ovolo-moulded beam with ogee stops, carved strapwork to soffit and carved trail to front, ovolo-moulded post to left with fluted cap, and underside with four ogee-stopped ovolo-moulded beams; balustrade to front with stubby balusters and inscription to front: "THIS GALLERY WAS BUILT ANO DOMI 1634: 10 POWNDE TOWARDS THE COST OF IT WAS GIVEN BY THE RIGHT WORLL Ms JANE GROSIVENOR OF MORTON SAY AND ALL Y TIMBER WAS GIVEN BY THE RT WORLL ARTHUR SANDFORD OF SANDFORD ESQVER."

Dog-leg staircase to rear, with steps formed from solid blocks, closed string, turned balusters, moulded grip handrail, and square newels with globe or ovoid finials. C17 or C17-style dado panelling around walls. Circular red/grey sandstone font with moulded base and top and wooden cover. Wooden pulpit of c.1900 with pierced traceried panels and carved frieze. Two wooden eagle lecterns. Screen of c.1900; 2:1:2 bays with linenfold lower panels, cusped pierced heads with carved spandrels, carved vine trail frieze, rosettes and brattishing; central rood cross. C20 choir stalls with carved poppyheads. Carved pelmet over west door. Stained glass: east window of c.1900 by Kempe.

Monuments: large stone chest tomb to Jane Vernon (d.1623) and her two husbands, John Bostock and Richard Grosvenor; recumbent effigies, rising slightly from front to back, and 2 x 3 bay chest with Tuscan half columns; round arch to rear with imposts and cherub in keystone and strapwork and keystone within, flanking free-standing Corinthian columns, and cartouche above with shield and strapwork and flanking obelisks. Restored wooden tablet to Elizabeth, Mary and Rachell Vernon of 1642 (signed "T:PVE") with three kneeling figures flanked by columns and with shield and obelisks above. Several late C18 and early C19 tablets to members of the Clive, Corser and other families. Simple tablet to Robert, Lord Clive ("Primus in Indis") who died in 1774 and is buried in the church.

The builder of the 1900 work was Mr. Bridgeman of Lichfield.

Listing NGR: SJ6300334460

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

260414

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Cranage, DHS, An Architectural Account of the Churches of Shropshire, (1908), 705-7
Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Shropshire, (1958), 205-6

End of official list entry

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