St Helen's Church, Sefton

St. Helen's Church is the Anglican parish church in the village of Sefton, Merseyside, England.

Commonly referred to as "Sefton Church", the "Cathedral of the Fields", or the "Jewel of West Lancashire", [http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~julieann/sefton_church.htm Sefton Church ] ] it is noteworthy as the only Grade I listed building in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton.

Etymology

The name "Sefton" is believed to have derived from the Old Norse sef, meaning "sedge" or "rushes" (a marshland plant), and tún meaning "farmstead". [ [http://www.formbycivicsociety.org.uk/learning/full_article.asp?storyid=14 Formby Civic Society - VIKINS IN LANCASHIRE’ by Stephen Harding ] ]

During the Middle Ages, the church and village was known as "Sextone", and later "Sephton", before eventually becoming "Sefton" sometime in the early 20th Century.

Consecration

The land was first consecrated around 1170, and a private chapel for the Molyneux family was built soon after. It has been suggested that the land was originally Saxon burial ground, and today the churchyard retains a distinctive oval shape, as was characteristic of Saxon cemeteries.

Architecture

A small, decorated chapel in the Norman architectural style is known to have existed by 1291, when the building's worth was estimated at £26 19s 4d in the Valor of Pope Nicholas IV. No part of this original chapel exists today, however, during building works at the East Window in the early 2000s, substantial Norman floor tiles were discovered and are now displayed in the Lady Chapel.

By 1320, the original building had been completely removed to be replaced with a more contemporary Gothic structure, which incorporated a nave with pointed ceiling and windows and a tower.

During the reign of Henry VIII prior to the English Reformation, the church was given an extensive rebuild. The 14th Century tower was retained, but the nave was removed and a traditional Tudor church was built, incorporating a new nave, chancel, side aisles and chapels, clerestory windows, and a characteristic flat roof, allowing a lot more light and space within the church. The window area on the south side became larger, as was fashionable, although those on the north side remained smaller, as it is most likely that the window frames of the earlier church were reused in the building of this wall. Further to this, large sections of Gothic arch can be seen which have built into the north wall to form alcoves, suggesting that much of the stone from the earlier 14th Century chancel was reused in the building of the Tudor one in the 1520s. Above the enormous Gothic arch leading to the ringing chamber, a right angle of stonemasonry can be seen where the rafters of the original chancel roof would have rested. Outside the church, it is easy to see fragments of arch and window architraving making up the north wall, and at the joint between the tower and north aisle, a line of rough stone work shows clearly where the Tudor aisles have been joined to the remnants of the old north wall.

In 1915, a small annex was added to the rear of the church, which is now used as the vestry and kitchen area for those using the church.

Decoration

Perhaps the most striking aspect of the church's interior is the Tudor screen separating the chancel from the nave. Dating to the early 16th Century, it is hand-carved and over twenty feet in height.

Twenty-six rows of hand-carved 16th Century pews line the nave, each of which carry a letter of the alphabet carved into the end face. However, given that pews were not a permanent feature in churches until Victorian times, and the fact that there is another full set of less elaborate pews now in the side aisles, it seems unlikely that they are original to Sefton. Further to this, they are not in strict alphabetical order: it is most likely therefore that they came from St Catherine's Chapel, Lydiate [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Catherine's_Chapel,_Lydiate] , a private chapel about one and a half miles away which was dissolved under the Henrican pillages of the 1530s.

Throughout the 18th Century, when the adorned decoration of the Romanesque style was at the height of fashion, increased wealth within the Parish resulted in the Tudor altar being removed and replaced with characteristic Neo-Classical wooden panelling, complete with a relief pillar design painted in gold. The area around the South Door was also given a decidedly 18th Century wooden porch, and above the (probably reused 14th Century) North Door, a white marble epitaph has been added. To increase capacity, raised wooden galleries were added in the side aisles (although these were later removed). The church also received three 12 armed gold chandeliers which line the nave.

During the Victorian period, and at the height of the Gothic Revival building fashion, St Helen's gained a wealth of fresh decoration. Reverting to a distinctly Roman Catholic façade (as was fashioable), Sefton received a set of stained-glass windows on the North and East faces (when the galleries were removed), invoking the style in which the church was built. Several images of the Madonna and Child were installed and private altars were reinstated in the side chapels adjacent to the main chancel.

Reformation

Like many churches in the North West of England, Sefton was relatively untouched by the Edwardine iconoclasm of the mid 16th Century; too far from Yorkminster and Westminster, it retained a distinctively Catholic appearance throughout the period. There is no evidence of whitewashing, and indeed above the arches in the nave, remnants of painted decoration can clearly be seen. None of the stained-glass windows are original, however the noteworthy Tudor woodwork, epitaphs, window architrave and 14th Century stonework remain intact. Furthermore, today St Helen's retains a decidedly Catholic appearance despite its Protestant history. This is due in part to the building, which is pre-Reformation, and the Victorian Gothic Revival additions which complement it. However, where many churches today continue to have whitewashed walls, minimal decoration and less elaborate services, Sefton has retained the beautifications of its history, resulting in a façade which is much more on the Catholic side of Anglicanism than the Puritan.

Notable Parishoners

Among those buried at Sefton are the Blundell family of Little Crosby, and the Molyneux family of Sefton and Croxteth, both having their own side chapel at Sefton. The Rothwells of Ormskirk, responsible for much of the redecoration of the Victorian period, are also buried here.

Of the Molyneux family, Sir Richard (d.1290) and Sir William Molyneux (d.1320), knights of the Crusades, are entombed within the church, and are the its oldest inhabitants. Their effigies now lie beneath a Gothic arch set into the wall in the Blundell chapel, which is outside of the 14th Century church walls.

Of the Blundell family, squires at Little Crosby since the 11th Century, the 17th and early 18th Century diarist, Nicholas Blundell is entombed in the Blundell family crypt, beneath the Blundell chapel.

In the churchyard, John Saddler, father of Transfer Printing is buried.

Bells

Sefton is a affiliated to the Lancashire Association of Change Ringers' Liverpool branch and has a ring of eight bells dating back to the 16th Century.

In 1588, during the final throes of the Spanish Armada, the first two bells (each weighing around 10cwt) were installed in the 14th Century tower. An inscription on each reads "X Hee Campana Beata Trinitate Sacra Fiat" and "X Fere God ‘Henri Oldfelde made thys beyl’".

In 1601, a pair of lighter bells were added, reading "X God bles the Founder hearof 1601" and "X Nos somus constructi ad lawdim domini 1601".

Much later in 1851, another two lighter bells completed a ring of six. They both read "Our voices shall with joyful sound, Make Hills and Vallies Eccho round".

In 1945, following Victory in Europe, Sefton's final two bells were added, giving a ring of eight. At this time, all eight bells were rehung in iron frames.

=Further Information=The church has open days for the public; these are on bank holiday Mondays and every Sunday in August between 2pm-4pm.

= References =

=External links=
* [http://www.merseyworld.com/seftonchurch/ Church website] - includes current details and history
* [http://www.sthelenssefton.org.uk/ Current Church Website] - in its infancy but changing weekly!
* [http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~julieann/sefton_church.htm]