Lancashire 7 - Rufford - the Hesketh church and the modern windows

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After eating our lunch and venturing into the garden it was time to take the walk up to the Hesketh church .

The walk took us down an avenue of extremely large oak and beech trees . Look out for the carving in the trees. That was the message from a couple we met walking the same path. They told us that over the years people had carved their names into the oak tree trunks. Not easy to find but some were quite ancient . We never found the ancient ones but did find Harry loves Sue and many others dated from the 1960's onwards . I don' t think we did find Harry and Sue but it felt like all the young men and girls of the village had sworn their love to each other and carved their thoughts for eternity in the tree trunks. I imagine that the National Trust who owned the house and the land would have been very displeased to see the trees being carved now in such a way.

We were looking for St Marys church which turned out to be Victorian Gothic and was closely linked to the Hesketh family . There was as always a church on the site and it had been there for centuries . At some stage it must have either fell into disrepair or was felt unsuitable for modern church needs as the population of Rufford grew . However St Marys was the new church with the foundation stone laid in 1869. The church was red brick built in a gothic style . A steeple as added as well as a clock . We did not expect much from the interior as it all looked too new.

We had the church to ourselves and were able to look into nook and cranny. I expected more from it at times due to its connection with a wealthy family. . I expected to see monuments galore to the Heskeths. A crypt or a number of tombs but they must have been buried elsewhere and not commemorated in this church .

The inside was extremely sparse . It was painted white with one large chandelier . There was a small tomb of a knight Sir Robert Hesketh who died in 1541 inside the tiny Hesketh chapel . That was really small and felt to be shoved into a corner of the building . A bit of an oversight in a way . One tomb dominated the chapel . A dog was carved into the top of the tomb . I found myself more interested in the stone slab lying to the side of the larger tomb . This looked medieval and although much worn it was the most interesting feature of the church.

The font was ornate with marble inserts and stands . That stood to the side of the door . Along the walls were pictures drawn by the local schoolchildren . They had all been commented upon by their teacher and hung up for all to see . Most were Easter greetings so had been there a while . There did seem to be a connection between the local school and the church .

A royal coat of arms adorned the walls and the two tier brass chandelier was impressive . Dated at 1763 it must have been produced at the same time as an identical one in the Hall . That was a stunning object and was more impressive than the massive pipe organ . Around the walls were various war memorials to the dead of Rufford . .

Harvest festival had come to the church with dried hydrangea flowers in the windows and pumpkins and squashes displayed on every flat surface. I was not sure if the church was used for services but guess it must still have a function rather than being a dead building .

At this point we were joined by another visitor who let herself in a the far end of the church. She did not acknowledge us and we hardly knew she was there .

The stained glass was impressive but in an odd way as it was all relatively modern in design . There was also a series of stations of the cross . The church had the feel of a roman catholic church but without the extreme decoration or six candles on the altar .

The blurb about the church asks you to make your own mind up about the design and the interior features . I guess you either love or hate the windows . You love the simplicity or hate it . I doubt there is any in between . Same for the jewel like stations of the cross . It was also described as being a place of peace and quietness . A place of spectacular architecture . I was not sure about that one . Magnificent and enchanted were words bandied about . I guess that would be a matter of taste . I have to say that honestly I did not find it spectacular nor did it feel magnificent . Interesting but in a very mild way .

I wondered what the old church must have looked like and felt a little sorry that the Victorians had this great desire to demolish or refurbish what was probably more interesting and beautiful . But that was life and life changes as do the churches and what they look like .

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