At the beginning of the 18th century, Manchester was a small rural town, little more than a village, with many fields and timber-framed houses. A large cornfield named Acres Field, which is now St Ann's Square, became the site for St Ann's Church.[3] Acresfield was the site of an annual fair from the 13th century until 1823 when it was moved to Knott Mill.[4]
Although the church stood between the market and the collegiate church, both towers could be seen from all directions. It is a neo-classical building, originally constructed from locally quarried, red Collyhurst sandstone although, due to its soft nature, much of the original stone has since been replaced with sandstone of various colours from Parbold in Lancashire, Hollington in Staffordshire, Darley Dale in Derbyshire and Runcorn in Cheshire.[5] When the church was first constructed, the interior was simple, with plain glass windows. However, in the 19th century many changes were made, including the installation of stained glass windows. Some of these were bespoke, and others were adapted from other churches. One such window, on the north side of the church, was designed and made by William Peckitt of York.[a] The furniture includes a Queen Anne altar table, thought to be the only existing one of its kind, and a painting of "The Descent from the Cross" by Annibale Carracci of Bologna.[7]
The tower of the church marks the centre of the city; surveyors used it as a platform to measure distances to other locations. Their benchmark remains visible at the tower door.[8]
Buildings and statues in St Ann's Square
At the southeast corner of the square is the Royal Bank of Scotland which is in the Italian palazzo style. It was built in 1848 for Benjamin Heywood's bank by J. E. Gregan. In the square there are two statues; the statue of Richard Cobden is by Marshall Wood, 1867; the Boer War Memorial is by Hamo Thornycroft, 1907.[9]
History
Consecration
Interior of St Ann's Church
The Mosleys were the Lords of the Manor of Manchester and in 1693 the manor was inherited by Lady Ann Bland, daughter of Sir Edward Mosley.[citation needed] Lady Bland was a leader of fashion in Manchester, staunch in her religious and political views as a member of the Low Church Party: she herself at first worshipped at the Presbyterian Church in the centre of the town. In 1695, however, Henry Newcome, the incumbent, died and Lady Bland decided to found a church of her own. In 1708, Parliament was petitioned to seek permission to build a new church, as the population of Manchester was increasing rapidly. On 18 May 1709, Lady Bland laid the foundation stone of a new church at one end of Acres Field. On 17 July 1712, the church was consecrated by the Bishop of Chester and was dedicated to Saint Anne, the Virgin Mary's mother, which was a compliment both to the founder and to the reigning monarch, Queen Anne. Lady Bland herself is buried in the Church of St James, Didsbury, where a memorial plaque commemorates her life.[10][page needed]
John Byrom
As a result of the proximity of St Ann's to the collegiate church, there was a time when it was fashionable to attend "the old church" in the morning and "the new church" in the afternoon or vice versa. One of those who did so was John Byrom (1692–1763), author of Christians Awake, who played quite a prominent part at St Ann's under the first two rectors, despite his Jacobite sympathies.
Manchester becomes a growing town
St Ann's Square 1745
Towards the end of the 17th century streets had become more numerous in the St Ann's district; by 1720, St Ann's Square had been laid out and planted with trees in imitation of the fashionable squares of London and Bath. In 1729, Sir Oswald Mosley built an exchange, not far from the site of the present Royal Exchange. By 1735, buildings had begun to rise on the south side of Acres Field and King Street and Ridgefield came into being. There was now no longer the simple distinction between "the old church" and "the new church". The rapid growth of Manchester as a result of the Industrial Revolution led to the building of other churches. Then, as the population moved out to the suburbs in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of these churches fell into disuse and were demolished. St Ann's holds the memorials from several of these churches, for example Sir Charles Barry's St Matthew's, Campfield (built 1823–25, demolished 1950).
Importance to civic life
The east side of St Ann's Square, 2015
St Ann's has always been closely associated with the civic life, and its rectors have from time to time acted as chaplain to the Lord Mayor, the county council chairmen and the police. In 1975, the Friends of St Ann's Church was formed from the business houses in the parish, to maintain the fabric of this historic building. Renovation work was carried out at St Ann's during 2011 (whilst the church remained operational). The work included the repair of its clock, bell, stonework and roof.[11] During renovation work the church was draped in large advertising banners, which was controversial for a Grade I listed building.[12] The church has an active concert schedule, including weekly lunchtime organ recitals (on Wednesdays), monthly professional concerts, and regular piano and chamber music concerts by RNCM students. The church has a four-manual George Sixsmith organ.
^Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2004), Lancashire: Manchester and the South East, The Buildings of England, Yale University Press, ISBN0-300-10583-5
^Schofield, Jonathan (9 May 2012). . Manchester Confidential. Archived from the original on 5 June 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
^Schofield, Jonathan (28 August 2012). . Manchester Confidential. Archived from the original on 20 October 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to St Ann's Church, Manchester.
church, manchester, church, church, england, parish, church, manchester, england, although, named, after, anne, also, pays, tribute, patron, church, lady, bland, church, grade, listed, building, churchthe, parish, church, annlocationmanchestercountryenglandden. St Ann s Church is a Church of England parish church in Manchester England Although named after St Anne it also pays tribute to the patron of the church Ann Lady Bland St Ann s Church is a Grade I listed building 1 2 St Ann s ChurchThe Parish Church of St AnnLocationManchesterCountryEnglandDenominationChurch of EnglandChurchmanshipBroad ChurchWebsiteChurch websiteHistoryDedicationSt AnneConsecrated17 July 1712ArchitectureFunctional statusActiveStyleClassical architectureGroundbreaking18 May 1709AdministrationProvinceYorkDioceseManchesterArchdeaconryManchesterParishSt Ann sClergyBishop s David WalkerPriest s Rev Canon Nigel Ashworth Contents 1 Architecture and setting 1 1 Buildings and statues in St Ann s Square 2 History 2 1 Consecration 2 2 John Byrom 2 3 Manchester becomes a growing town 3 Importance to civic life 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksArchitecture and setting EditAt the beginning of the 18th century Manchester was a small rural town little more than a village with many fields and timber framed houses A large cornfield named Acres Field which is now St Ann s Square became the site for St Ann s Church 3 Acresfield was the site of an annual fair from the 13th century until 1823 when it was moved to Knott Mill 4 Although the church stood between the market and the collegiate church both towers could be seen from all directions It is a neo classical building originally constructed from locally quarried red Collyhurst sandstone although due to its soft nature much of the original stone has since been replaced with sandstone of various colours from Parbold in Lancashire Hollington in Staffordshire Darley Dale in Derbyshire and Runcorn in Cheshire 5 When the church was first constructed the interior was simple with plain glass windows However in the 19th century many changes were made including the installation of stained glass windows Some of these were bespoke and others were adapted from other churches One such window on the north side of the church was designed and made by William Peckitt of York a The furniture includes a Queen Anne altar table thought to be the only existing one of its kind and a painting of The Descent from the Cross by Annibale Carracci of Bologna 7 The tower of the church marks the centre of the city surveyors used it as a platform to measure distances to other locations Their benchmark remains visible at the tower door 8 Buildings and statues in St Ann s Square Edit At the southeast corner of the square is the Royal Bank of Scotland which is in the Italian palazzo style It was built in 1848 for Benjamin Heywood s bank by J E Gregan In the square there are two statues the statue of Richard Cobden is by Marshall Wood 1867 the Boer War Memorial is by Hamo Thornycroft 1907 9 History EditConsecration Edit Interior of St Ann s Church The Mosleys were the Lords of the Manor of Manchester and in 1693 the manor was inherited by Lady Ann Bland daughter of Sir Edward Mosley citation needed Lady Bland was a leader of fashion in Manchester staunch in her religious and political views as a member of the Low Church Party she herself at first worshipped at the Presbyterian Church in the centre of the town In 1695 however Henry Newcome the incumbent died and Lady Bland decided to found a church of her own In 1708 Parliament was petitioned to seek permission to build a new church as the population of Manchester was increasing rapidly On 18 May 1709 Lady Bland laid the foundation stone of a new church at one end of Acres Field On 17 July 1712 the church was consecrated by the Bishop of Chester and was dedicated to Saint Anne the Virgin Mary s mother which was a compliment both to the founder and to the reigning monarch Queen Anne Lady Bland herself is buried in the Church of St James Didsbury where a memorial plaque commemorates her life 10 page needed John Byrom Edit As a result of the proximity of St Ann s to the collegiate church there was a time when it was fashionable to attend the old church in the morning and the new church in the afternoon or vice versa One of those who did so was John Byrom 1692 1763 author of Christians Awake who played quite a prominent part at St Ann s under the first two rectors despite his Jacobite sympathies Manchester becomes a growing town Edit St Ann s Square 1745 Towards the end of the 17th century streets had become more numerous in the St Ann s district by 1720 St Ann s Square had been laid out and planted with trees in imitation of the fashionable squares of London and Bath In 1729 Sir Oswald Mosley built an exchange not far from the site of the present Royal Exchange By 1735 buildings had begun to rise on the south side of Acres Field and King Street and Ridgefield came into being There was now no longer the simple distinction between the old church and the new church The rapid growth of Manchester as a result of the Industrial Revolution led to the building of other churches Then as the population moved out to the suburbs in the late 19th and early 20th centuries many of these churches fell into disuse and were demolished St Ann s holds the memorials from several of these churches for example Sir Charles Barry s St Matthew s Campfield built 1823 25 demolished 1950 Importance to civic life Edit The east side of St Ann s Square 2015 St Ann s has always been closely associated with the civic life and its rectors have from time to time acted as chaplain to the Lord Mayor the county council chairmen and the police In 1975 the Friends of St Ann s Church was formed from the business houses in the parish to maintain the fabric of this historic building Renovation work was carried out at St Ann s during 2011 whilst the church remained operational The work included the repair of its clock bell stonework and roof 11 During renovation work the church was draped in large advertising banners which was controversial for a Grade I listed building 12 The church has an active concert schedule including weekly lunchtime organ recitals on Wednesdays monthly professional concerts and regular piano and chamber music concerts by RNCM students The church has a four manual George Sixsmith organ See also Edit Greater Manchester portalGrade I listed churches in Greater Manchester Listed buildings in Manchester M2 List of ecclesiastical works by Alfred WaterhouseReferences EditNotes The Peckitt window came from St John s 6 Citations A Z of Listed Buildings in Manchester Manchester City Council Retrieved 27 December 2007 Historic England Church of St Anne 1247612 National Heritage List for England Retrieved 27 December 2007 St Ann s Square Conservation Area Manchester City Council Conservation Areas Manchester City Council Retrieved 10 March 2018 Hartwell Clare 2001 Manchester Pevsner Architectural Guides Penguin Books p 199 Building stone in the city of Manchester St Ann s Church Retrieved 25 July 2008 Hartwell Clare 2002 Manchester Pevsner Architectural Guides Yale University Press pp 11 253 ISBN 978 0 300 09666 8 Manchester for the Tourist City of Manchester Publicity Office 1969 p 6 St Ann s in the 18th C St Ann s Manchester Archived from the original on 21 November 2007 Retrieved 27 December 2007 Hartwell Clare 2001 Manchester Pevsner Architectural Guides Penguin Books pp 201 02 Hartwell Clare Hyde Matthew Pevsner Nikolaus 2004 Lancashire Manchester and the South East The Buildings of England Yale University Press ISBN 0 300 10583 5 Schofield Jonathan 9 May 2012 St Ann s Church Manchester Exclusive Refurb Pictures Manchester Confidential Archived from the original on 5 June 2014 Retrieved 6 September 2012 Schofield Jonathan 28 August 2012 The Good The Standard The Ugly St Ann s Ads Manchester Confidential Archived from the original on 20 October 2012 Retrieved 6 September 2012 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to St Ann s Church Manchester Welcome to St Ann s Coordinates 53 28 54 N 2 14 45 W 53 48167 N 2 24583 W 53 48167 2 24583 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title St Ann 27s Church Manchester amp oldid 1100139605, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
