ChurchstokeorChurch Stoke(Welsh:Yr Ystog) is a village,communityandelectoral wardinMontgomeryshire,Powys,Wales.Located in the southeast of theVale of Montgomery,it is overlooked by Todleth Hill,Roundton HillandCorndon Hill.The riversCaebitraandCamladhave their confluence just outside the village. The nearest town isMontgomery.In the2011 censusthe village had a population of 708.[2]
Churchstoke
| |
|---|---|
 St Nicholas' church, Churchstoke | |
  Churchstoke Location withinPowys | |
| Area | 54.31 km2(20.97 sq mi) |
| Population | 1,691 (2011)[1] |
| •Density | 31/km2(80/sq mi) |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county |
|
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Montgomery |
| Postcode district | SY15 |
| Dialling code | 01588 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
Thecommunityof Churchstoke covers a wider area than the village, including the neighbouring villages ofHyssingtonandThe Marsh.Recently the detached part of the community around Weston Madoc was transferred to Montgomery's community.[3]The community is situated on asalientand covers an area of over 50 square miles (130 km2).[4]
Etymology
editTheplacenameidentifies it as a farm (or settlement) with a church; it was recorded as 'Cirestoc' in 1086 in theDomesday Book.
St. Nicholas Church
editTheparish churchtoday is largely the result of 19th-century rebuilding, but retains its 13th-century tower with a later timberbelfry.From the period before the 19th century, only afont,a stoup and a chest have survived up to three phases of restoration and reconstruction. The main body of the church with its large high pitched roof dates to the second half of the 19th century, although the sequence of construction is not completely clear.
The layout of thechurchyardand its location immediately above theRiver Camladsuggests an earlymedievalorigin. In 1881 the interior was laid out in its present form and the church was rededicated toSt. Nicholas(having previously been dedicated to St. Mary).[5]
The church has a 13th-century square tower at the western end, reduced in height in 1812 with a typicalMontgomeryshirestyletimber-framedbelfry and a pyramidal roof which was re-tiled with oakroof shinglesin 2005. The tower was used as a place of refuge during 14th-century feuds and later inEnglish Civil Warbattles. In 1646 theParliamentariansattacked theRoyalistswho were planning to stay overnight at Churchstoke. The Royalists took refuge in the church and in the ensuing battle the Parliamentarians set fire to the church door forcing the Royalists to surrender.[5]
The wooden belfry and thespirewere added in 1815. The clock was installed in 1887.[5]There is a suggestion that the tower was originally higher than it stands now.[citation needed]
In 1751 the south wall of the church was taken down and a new south aisle was constructed. In 1812 the old church was taken down and a new nave was built using stone from Churchstoke Hall and Churchstoke Quarries. It was roofed with slate from Corndon Hill and included a schoolroom and galleries. The present iron columns, made inCoalbrookdale,presumably carried the galleries. The columns, which have octagonal stone bases and square decorative capitals, now support the lowered roofline. In 1881 the schoolroom and galleries were removed along with the oldbox pewsand the interior was laid out in its present form. The exterior buttresses were added together with thenavewindows and the ground level lowered around the church. The north and south walls of thechancelwere rebuilt, and a new south porch was added. The aisles are divided from the nave by arcades of six bays above which is a frieze of timber arcading.[5]
The chancel is supposed to have been added in 1867 and is narrower than thenave.There are encaustic floor tiles throughout the chancel and sanctuary, and the tiledreredoshas recently been uncovered. There is apiscinain the south wall of the chancel, and three 19th Century brasses. These were probably added in 1867. The southtransepthouses the organ and the north transept forms the choirvestryunderneath which is the boiler house.[5]
The church is situated in a raised sub-circular churchyard which has been extended in recent times. A few signs ofmusketshots from the skirmishes in the Civil War can still be seen, notably on the soffit of the upper storey round-headed window on the north wall of the tower.[6]The graveyard extension to the west of the church was consecrated in 1868. The earliest gravestone recorded is a sandstone slab to Sarah (died 1749) and Hugh Pugh (died 1768). There is asundialwithoutgnomonon the south side of the church near the entrance porch.[5]There are many fine mature trees in the graveyard, which are protected by law, as they are in theConservation Area.[citation needed]
Although physically in Wales, the churches at Hyssington and Churchstoke are within theChurch of EnglandDiocese of Hereford.When theWelsh Church Act 1914had been passed to disestablish theChurch in Wales,Churchstoke, and Hyssington withSneadparishes both straddled theEngland-Wales border.TheWelsh Church Commissionerstherefore carried out aballot of parishionersin 1915 to decide whether the parishes of Churchstoke andHyssingtonwithSneadshould remain part of the Church of England, or form part of theChurch in Wales.The parishioners in Churchstoke voted by 390 to 70, and those in Hyssington with Snead by 108 to 33, to remain part of the Church of England.[7]
Methodist church
edit
Churchstoke EnglishMethodistchurch was built in 1879. AGothic Revivalbuilding, it is built of polychromatic brick under a slate roof. A plaque records the building's construction.[8]
Today
editThe village has many facilities including a largesupermarket(Midcounties Co-operative,formerly Harry Tuffins), as well as a primary school, twopublic houses(The Horse and Jockey and The Court House Hotel), a Chinese takeaway and fresh locally made ice cream. A market is also held here on Sundays. The central area of Churchstoke is aconservation area.
According to the2011 Census,Churchstoke is the community with the 2nd lowest proportion ofWelshspeakers in Wales. Only 4.3% of people in the community claim to speak the language.[9]
According to details published by theCo-operative Groupon its bottles, both Co-op Fairbourne Springs Water and their Sparkling Natural Mineral Water are bottled at source in Churchstoke.[citation needed]
Governance
editChurchstoke has acommunity councilrepresenting the community's interests, with nine councillors elected from Churchstoke and three fromHyssington.[10]
The Churchstoke electoral ward is represented by a county councillor onPowys County Council.Since 1995 the ward has elected anIndependentcouncillor.[11]
Notable people
editAdmiral SirMichael Pollock(1916–2006) lived at Churchstoke following his retirement from theRoyal Navy[12]while the Australian artist and lecturer,May Marsden,was born here in 1876.[13]
References
edit- ^"community population 2011".Archived fromthe originalon 4 March 2016.Retrieved10 November2015.
- ^"Custom report – Nomis – Official Labour Market Statistics".www.nomisweb.co.uk.
- ^Powys County CouncilArchived2012-05-10 at theWayback MachineChurchstoke boundary review
- ^"Custom report – Nomis – Official Labour Market Statistics".www.nomisweb.co.uk.
- ^abcdef"Churchstoke".Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust.Retrieved17 April2016.
- ^"Churchstoke information"(PDF).National Trail.Retrieved17 April2016.
- ^"Welsh Church Bill (Balloting)".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).2 March 1915.Retrieved9 September2016.
- ^"CHURCHSTOKE ENGLISH METHODIST CHURCH (11512)".Coflein.RCAHMW.Retrieved22 January2018.
- ^"Comisiynydd y Gymraeg – 2011 Census results by Community".www.comisiynyddygymraeg.cymru.Archived fromthe originalon 14 September 2017.Retrieved17 February2019.
- ^Churchstoke Community Council,Churchstoke Community. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^"Powys 1995–2012"(PDF).The Elections Centre.Retrieved22 January2018.
- ^"Obituary: Admiral of the Fleet Sir Michael Pollock".The Telegraph.29 September 2006.Retrieved8 September2012.
- ^Smith, Bernard,"May Marsden (1876–1968)",Australian Dictionary of Biography,Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University,retrieved13 January2024
External links
edit