Background

Derbyshire Churches and Chapels

BACKGROUND TO THE CHURCHES AND CHAPELS OF DERBYSHIRE

Of nearly 400 Anglican parish churches and chapels-of-ease at present in the county, barely a third of that number display recognizable mediaeval origins. And of these a number of present-day parochial churches were originally built as chapelries within the one-time very large parishes (such as Duffield and Tideswell, to quote just two) that were a feature of the exceptionally extensive mediaeval diocese of Lichfield. Following a period under Southwell the modern diocese of Derby, comprising virtually the whole county, was created in 1927.

The only mediaeval building now used by the Roman Catholics is the Padley Chapel at Grindleford - a site of poignant memories in Catholic recusant history. Two further "chapels" pre-dating the Catholic "Emancipation" of 1829 are at Hassop and Hathersage. The southern half of the county now forms part of the diocese of Nottingham while the north comes within that of Hallam (Sheffield).

Congregationalists, Unitarians and English Presbyterians are all derived from a common source - the independent puritan congregations of the 17th century. There was some confusion by the earlier 18th century as to which branch of development these groups would follow, but by the end of the century they had sorted themselves into clear (though not necessarily organized) denominations. The majority of Congregationalists and Presbyterians combined in 1972 to form the United Reformed Church, though a substantial minority of the former body still chose to continue an independent tradition within the continuing Congregational Federation.

Baptists were also to be found among the early independent congregations, but very soon their beliefs regarding adult baptism led them into their own movement. Many early Baptists were of the "strict" (Calvinist) type but, by the 19th century, it was the "open" (General) Baptists who were to predominate in Derbyshire. The present-day Baptist Union dates from 1891.

The Quakers (Society of Friends) are yet another group whose dissenting origins lie in the 17th century. With no formal creeds or worship patterns, however, they seem not to have been prone to the sort of internal controversy that has led other bodies into bitter disintegration in the course of their histories. On the other hand their sometimes misunderstood policy of peaceful resistance laid them open, during the earlier decades, to persecution from all quarters.

The Methodist movement started in the mid-18th century as a break-away from Anglicanism (though not initially by any choice of its founder, John Wesley). The Primitive Methodists split from the Wesleyans in the early 1800's and soon became particularly strong in Derbyshire (where they were first referred to as "Ranters"); a number of other secessionist reforming groups appeared soon afterwards. Some re-allignments took place in the middle of the century, leaving four main Methodist bodies - Wesleyans (the mainstream group), Primitives (the second largest), United Methodist Free Church and the Wesleyan Reform Union. These eventually re-united, for the most part, in 1932 to form the present Methodist Church, but a number of small Reform Chapels - especially in the Dales villages - still remain outside this union.

The simple early buildings of the dissenters were referred to as "Meeting Houses". It was John Wesley who preferred the word "Chapel", with its correct ecclesiastical implication of being a place of worship subordinate to the main church of the parish. The term was adopted generally by non-conformists from the early 1800's until, eventually, the use of the word "Church" came to be regarded as adding a bit more "class" to the increasingly grandiose structures that were appearing later in that century.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

To have compiled a work of reference such as this would have been impossible without much assistance from helpers on the ground. In particular I must mention the contribution by The Revd Clive Thrower, Derby Diocesan Tourism Officer, who has enthusiastically backed the project and brought into operation his various communications facilities, and likewise The Revd John Bland, Information Officer for the Nottingham & Derby District of the Methodist Church. Other denominational officers who have also willingly distributed questionnaires on my behalf include Mr John Butlin (Baptist Union), Mr Don Hamilton (Congregational Federation), The Revd Anne Brown and The Revd Paul Wilson (Methodist, Sheffield and Manchester Districts respectively), Ms Valerie Bearn (Society of Friends) and The Revd Paul Breeze (United Reformed). To all of these I must express my gratitude for their interest and support. Then, of course, I must thank the countless individual clergy and church officers who have responded to the questionnaires and who have supplied me with a wealth of interesting information regarding their places of worship. I can only hope that they feel it to have been a worthwhile exercise that will ultimately bring benefit to their causes. To the Revd John Drackley (former Secretary of the Derby Diocesan Advisory Committee) I am greatly indebted for his interest and encouragement in checking through the script and filling in some gaps in the information.

Finally I must thank The Right Revd Jonathan Bailey, Bishop of Derby, for his great kindness in consenting to write the Foreword to this handbook.

Rodney Tomkins, Duffield, September 1999.