St Michael's, Whitewell, A 300yr Old Tapestry!!

Whitewell is a really quaint and picturesque village, this medieval Church and the Whitewell Inn are the only buildings of any note or size remaining. Many members of the Royal family have in the past stayed at the Inn whilst hunting or travelling round England St Michael's Church settled in the picturesque Hodder Valley dates back to a period between 1478-1521 being rebuilt in 1817 two years after the Battle of Waterloo. At the reformation it was dedicated to St. Michael when a chapel with the same dedication at Clitheroe Castle was abandoned and the revenue transferred to Whitewell. The chapel was known as Whitewell Chapel or as Bolland Chapel. The present chapel is the result of rebuilding and enlargement in 1817 (there is an inscription over the door recording this). A gallery was added in 1825 and the chancel in 1896. In 1878 it became a parish church, first in the diocese of Manchester, and then from 1927 in the diocese if Blackburn. The Magnificent stained glass window depicts the birth of Christ and was put in around 1900 in memory of Edward Parker 1846-1894. ​Resplendent on one wall is a 300 year old tapestry, a copy of an oil painting by "Reubens" which shows the first Good Friday afternoon. The tapestry was in the Parker family for 200 years and was loaned to the church just before the last war. Steeped with history, the old vicar of Whitewell "Reverend Thomas Brangwin Reid" took up residents in May 1947. Tommy as he was locally known, hand carved the font lid and a procession cross made from a hay rake and an old army form you have to be kidding me surely? Tommy now rests in peace on the church grounds graveyard. #exploring #hiddenhistory #grade11 #exploringvlog #bootsontheground #16thcentury #deer #deerpark #familycrest #oldhouse #oldsettlement #manorhouse #history #exploring #watersystems #oldbuilding #oldbuildings #blackburndrifter #farmlife #farmingcommunity #farmbuildings #historicbuildings #historicalarchitecture #unearthedsecrets #sacredhistory #villagelandmarks #travelhistory #truthseekers #heritagesite #oldworld #16thcenturyarchitecture #16thcenturyera #incrediblebuilding #municipalbuilding #historicbuildings #architecturephotography #timelessarchitecture #underground #architecturaldetails #historicdesign #artandarchitecture