St James' Church, Louth is the Anglican parish church of

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia **Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

, England. It is notable for having the third tallest spire in the whole of the United Kingdom and being the location of the

Lincolnshire Rising The Pilgrimage of Grace was a popular revolt beginning in Yorkshire in October 1536, before spreading to other parts of Northern England including Cumberland, Northumberland, and north Lancashire, under the leadership of Robert Aske. The "mo ...

History

The church is a medieval building. It has the tallest steeple of any medieval parish church in Britain. A recent survey has confirmed the height of the stonework as and to the top of the cockerel weather vane as . It also confirms it as one of the very finest medieval steeples in the country Louth church and spire seen from the town centre

Louth church and spire seen from the town centre

The

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

and

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

were re-built between 1430 and 1440. The building of the tower probably commenced in the 1440s or 1450s and had been completed to its present height by 1499. Work began on the spire in 1501 and it was not finished until 1515. The weathercock was placed on the top of the spire amongst great rejoicing on the eve of Holy Cross day Thursday 13 September 1515. This 'wedercoke' had been made in Lincoln from a huge copper basin captured from the Scots at the Battle of Flodden in 1513 and subsequently bought in York by Thomas Tayleyor one of the churchwardens. The total cost of the spire alone was £305 8s 4d, (). The church is mainly 15th century and is the third building on the site, replacing 11th- and 13th-century buildings. Originally the church had five subsidiary chapels and altars and a three-storey rood screen. In October 1536, as a result of Henry VIII's ecclesiastical changes, people gathered in the church to start the

, which was followed by the

Pilgrimage of Grace The Pilgrimage of Grace was a popular revolt beginning in Yorkshire in October 1536, before spreading to other parts of Northern England including Cumberland, Northumberland, and north Lancashire, under the leadership of Robert Aske. The "most ...

. Neither succeeded and the church was stripped of its riches including the rood screen.

The nave roof was replaced in 1825. The spire was restored between 1844 and 1845 by

Lewis Nockalls Cottingham Lewis Nockalls Cottingham (1787 – 13 October 1847) was a British architect who pioneered the study of Medieval Gothic architecture. He was a restorer and conservator of existing buildings. He set up a Museum of Medieval Art in Waterloo Road, Lon ...

. A further restoration took place between 1861 and 1869 by James Fowler, known as 'Fowler of Louth'. The clerestories and arcades were cleaned and underpinned. A new south porch was erected. The church was refitted with open seats of oak, the Corporation stalls being of the same material. The floors were laid with Minton's tiles, designed by the architect. A new heating system by Hayden and Son of Trowbridge was installed with the boiler in a newly constructed vault. A stained glass window, the gift of J. L. Fytche was fixed on the east end of the south aisle, and another window was to be placed at the west end of the north aisle, by Clayton and Bell, in memory of General Sir George Patey. The total cost of the works was around £6,000 (). The church was re-opened on 5 August 1869 in the presence of the

Bishop of Lincoln The Bishop of Lincoln is the ordinary (diocesan bishop) of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury. The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and ...

. In 1937, it flew the highest flag in Lincolnshire to mark the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

. Later that year, renovation work commenced on the spire, under the supervision of the architect, Mr. Goddard, who had previously worked on Lincoln Cathedral. In 2015 came a remarkable discovery from the adjoining Rectory garden in the form of two pieces of a pre-Conquest standing stone Cross dating to c950. In form the Cross is of the 'ring' or 'wheel head' type, the central design being of Christ crucified. The type is more commonly seen today in Ireland. The Cross and its implications for the archaeology, history and the early church in Louth are discussed in a major article by Everson and Stocker The Cros in the Markitte Stede'. The Louth Cross, its Monastery and its Town.'' (Medieval Archaeology Journal, vol. 61/2, 2017). The Louth Cross is on display within the church and a small booklet is available from the gift shop. St James' Church, Louth - geograph

In 2017 funding was raised to fit a viewing door to the cell just below the spire floor that holds the original medieval treadwheel that was used to haul up the stone and mortar for the building of the spire (1501-1515). Substantial records exist in the churchwardens' accounts from 1501 onward for the construction and use of the wheel which was to become known as ''The Wild Mare.'' A small booklet about this rare survival is available from the church gift shop.

Dedication

The dedication of the church is to

James, son of Zebedee James the Great, also known as James, son of Zebedee, Saint James the Great, Saint James the Greater, Saint James the Elder, or Saint Jacob (Aramaic ܝܥܩܘܒ ܒܪ ܙܒܕܝ, Arabic يعقوب, Hebrew בן זבדי , '' Yaʿăqōḇ'', Latin '' ...

, who was of significance in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

as the focus of a

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of S ...

in Spain.

Incumbents

Vicars

*1200 Jordan, Priest *1247 Herueus (Harvey) *1276 Gilbert de Tetilthorp *1278 Master Richard de Welleton, Chaplain *1294 William de Leycton *1328 Robert de Foston, Deacon *1345 John de Waynflet *1349 Thomas de Kele *1368 Robert de Bloxham *1369 John de Harhill * Simon Waynflete (over 20 years) *1421 Thomas Gedeney (Gednay) (20 years) *1443–44 Master John Sudbury *1461–62 Dom. Thomas Sudbury *1502 Master Richard Barnyngham (Bernyngham) *1514 Master Thomas Egleston *1527 Master George Thomson *1534 Master Thomas Kendall *1537 Geoffrey Baily (Baylie) *1549 John Louth *1558–59 Robert Doughty *1600 James Calfhill *1601 Alexander Cooke *1604 John Melton (still signing registers in 1636) * Richard Smith *1630 Paul Glisson *1654 Henry Gray *1656 Henry Daile *Francis Castillion *1668 Samuel Adcock *1671 William Wetherell * Samuel Nicholls (not instituted) *1704 William Richardson *1711 Charles L'Oste *1730 Stephen Ashton *1764 Stephen Fytche *1780 Wolley Jolland *1831 Edward Reginald Mantell

Rectors

In 1859 the income of the vicarage was augmented by an Order in Council by amalgamating it with revenues of the associated canonry of Lincoln Cathedral, the benefice becoming a rectory in its own right. The vicar in post became the new Rector of Louth and held the associated canonry from that point onwards. During the 19th and early 20th centuries the parish was divided to create two new parishes, of which the Rector of Louth was the patron. From 1928 the Rector of Louth was held together with the post of Rector of Welton le Wold. In 1974 the benefice became part of a Team Ministry serving the newly created Parish of Louth which incorporated these parishes (St Michael's and Holy Trinity) with those of South and North Elkington, Keddington and Stewton. Since that time the Rector of Louth has been Team Rector of the Team Ministry. *1859 Albert Sydney Wilde *1915 Arthur Duncan-Jones, later Vicar of St Mary's, Primrose Hill and Dean of Chichester *1916 Charles Lenton *1928 Humphrey Phillipps Walcot Burton *1952 Aidan Crawley Pulleine Ward *1969 Michael Edgar Adie, afterwards become Archdeacon of Lincoln and then Bishop of Guildford *1977 David William Owen *1993 Stephen Douglas Holdaway *2013 Nicholas James Watson Brown *2021 John Cameron Watt

Bells

There is a peal of eight bells. They were recast in 1726 by Daniel Hedderly. In 1798 the great bell was cracked when it was rung to celebrate Nelson's victory in the Battle of the Nile. They were rehung in 1957, and the treble and two were recast. They have subsequently been refurbished and rehung in 2022.

Tower clock

The clock in the tower was installed in 1846 and made by

Benjamin Vulliamy Benjamin Vulliamy (1747 – 31 December 1811), was a British clockmaker responsible for building the Regulator Clock, which, between 1780 and 1884, was the main timekeeper of the King's Observatory Kew and the official regulator of time in Londo ...

. It had a pin-wheel dead-beat escapement, with an eight-day movement. It was expected to last 200 years before needing replacement, and was set going on 25 July 1846. It was replaced in August 1901 by a clock made by Leonard Hall of Louth. It contained a double three-legged gravity escapement as invented by

Edmund Beckett, 1st Baron Grimthorpe Edmund Beckett, 1st Baron Grimthorpe, KC (12 May 1816 – 29 April 1905), known previously as Sir Edmund Beckett, 5th Baronet and Edmund Beckett Denison, was a "lawyer, mechanician and controversialist" as well as a noted horologist and archit ...

, and chimed the

Westminster chimes The Westminster Quarters, from its use at the Palace of Westminster, is a melody used by a set of four quarter bells to mark each quarter-hour. It is also known as the Westminster Chimes, Cambridge Quarters or Cambridge Chimes from its place of ...

every 15 minutes. The hour hammer weighs . The total weight of the clock is about with driving weights of another 1 ton, suspended on steel wire ropes of .

Organ

An organ accompanied the singing of the ''Te Deum'' at the consecration of the church in 1515. This organ had been brought some years before from Flanders. When this organ was worn out in 1531, it is recorded in the parish records:

That the honest men of this towne of Louthe deshirying to have a good payr of organs, to the laude, prayse and honour of God, and the Hole, Holy Co’pany of heffen, made an assemble together for this purpose on a certayne daye; at which type Mr. Richard Taylor, preste and bachelor of laws, then abydyng w’tin the dyocess of Norwiche being p’sent, herying the good devoute mynds, and vertuouse intent of the said townesmen, wherin he was borne and brought up, offred for to cause them have a payr made of a c’nnyng man in Lyn, that should be exampled by a payre of the same making at Ely, who was called Mr. Blyton, which then had a singular Prayse, for the sum of xxii powndes, whereof he pr’mysed to giff thereto xi powndes: upon whiche promesse they accorded, insomuch that the said Mr. Taylor covennantyd and bargaynyd the organ to be made and brought to this towne, and set upon the north syde in the hihhe quere, on St Barnabe Eve, in the yere of oure Lorde, M.V. xxxj., &c., &c.

A new organ by

Gray & Davison Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

costing £800 () was opened on 17 December 1857 by

Henry Smart Henry Thomas Smart (26 October 1813 – 6 July 1879) was an English organist and composer. Biography Smart was born in London, a nephew of the conductor Sir George Smart and son of a music publisher, orchestra director and accomplished violini ...

. This organ was altered by

Forster and Andrews Forster and Andrews was a British organ building company between 1843 and 1924. The company was formed by James Alderson Forster (1818–1886) and Joseph King Andrews (1820–1896), who had been employees of the London organ builder J. C. Bisho ...

in 1868/9. After a rebuild in 1911 by

Norman and Beard Norman and Beard were a pipe organ manufacturer based in Norwich from 1887 to 1916. History The origins of the company are from a business founded in Diss in 1870 by Ernest William Norman (1851–1927). In 1876 he moved to Norwich where he we ...

, it now has 37 stops and three manuals and pedals.

Organists

* Joseph Hill 1768 - 1819 (formerly a pupil at

Beverley Minster Beverley Minster, otherwise known as the Parish Church of Saint John and Saint Martin, in Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire, is a parish church in the Church of England. It is one of the largest parish churches in the UK, larger than one-third ...

; about 30 years of age when he was appointed to Louth, presumably his first and only appointment. See also ''obit.'') *

John Hoyland John Hoyland RA (12 October 1934 – 31 July 2011) was a London-based British artist. He was one of the country's leading abstract painters.

1819-1827 (previously organist of St James' Church, Sheffield) *William Hoyland 1829 - 1857 (son of John Hoyland) *George Dixon 1859 - 1865 (afterwards organist of

St Wulfram's Church, Grantham St Wulfram's Church, Grantham, is the Anglican parish church of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England. The church is a Grade I listed building and has the second tallest spire in Lincolnshire after Louth's parish church. In his book ''England's ...

) *George Henry Porter 1866 - 1897 *Owen Menai Price 1897 - 1946 *Harold Dexter 1946 - 1949 (later organist of

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ) or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge. It is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Southwar ...

) *

Dennis Townhill Dennis William Townhill (29 May 1925 – 18 July 2008) was an English organist and composer. Born in Lincoln, he was educated at Lincoln School and studied under Dr Gordon Archbold Slater at Lincoln Cathedral. Townhill composed a set of r ...

1949 - 1956 *William Pierce 1956 - 1960 (returned to Australia) * Michael Nicholas 1960 - 1964 *Michael John Smith 1965 - 1966 (later organist of

Llandaff Cathedral Llandaff Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Llandaf) is an Anglican cathedral and parish church in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is dedicated to Saint Pet ...

) *Peter Burness 1966 - 1996 *Frederic Goodwin 1996 - 2009 *Keith Morgan 2009 - 2011 *Lisa Taylor 2011-2015 *Allan Smith 2014–present (Master of the Choristers) *Phil Hotham 2016–present (Organist)

Assistant organists

*Albert Sharman ca.1905Kelly's Directory of Lincolnshire, 1905, p.535 *Roger Harrison 1999 - 2011

Visiting and tourism

St James is nominated a "Cascade Church" within the Lincolnshire Church Tourism Network, an ecumenical scheme which promotes visits to and understanding of Lincolnshire's many churches. Like other Cascade churches it is stewarded on weekdays and there are guides available until 16:00. The western end of the church now has a tea shop, book shop and toilets, as well as information leading to other churches in the East Lindsey area.

Gallery

Image:St James Louth belfry.JPG, Interior of the western tower or belfry. Image:St James Louth nave.JPG,

Nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and chancel, viewed from the western end of the church. Image:St James Louth Chancel.JPG,

Chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

of the church, viewed over the nave altar. Image:St James Louth high altar.JPG, High

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

of the church. Image:St James Louth chapel altar.JPG, Altar of St Stephen's

Chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

. Image:Lincolnshire Rising plaque, Louth.JPG, Plaque commemorating

of 1536, opposite south entrance to church.

References

{{Major Churches Network Church of England church buildings in Lincolnshire

Louth, Lincolnshire