Building The Minster
Anglo-Saxon Period
A hundred years before the Normans invaded England in 1066, Dewsbury
Minster was already large by the standards of the time and important
in the region. It was the Mother church for over 400 square miles
stretching from east of Wakefield nearly to Burnley and it was
responsible for sending missioners out into the whole of this area.
The first church on the site was probably built in the eighth
century in wood. Quite a small stone church would probably have
replaced this soon after.
 If
you stand in the northeast corner of the Worship area and look
high above the last arch, you can see the earliest stonework in
the Minster dating from this Anglo-Saxon period (about 980 AD).
Taken with the shape of the high-pitched medieval roof which can
be seen above today’s
altar, we can deduce that the building at that time was very high
and stretched from today’s altar at one end to the font at
the other with side walls on the line of the present arches [
Plan A ]. The size of this building confirms its importance.
The windows were probably quite high up, narrow and in pairs,
creating a fairly gloomy interior. We know that by the Norman
period at the latest, a tower was built behind where the altar
now stands, as the tower steps and a Norman consecration stone
survive within the present 1767 tower. In the Anglo-Saxon and
Norman times the altar would have stood symbolically at the eastern
end of the churchin a small chancel, close to where the font is
now. Records suggest images or statues of the Saints surrounded
it.
Enlargement In The 12th & 13th Centuries
In
1170 the Minster was enlarged by the construction (on the south
side) of a fairly small aisle with four arches. The
northern arches and aisle were built in 1220 and are the most
outstanding architectural feature in the Minster by reason of
the four detached shafts in each pillar [ Plan B ].Both
aisles were enlarged with new outer walls and windows in the
eighteenth century [
Plan C ].
The roof bosses have been preserved from the fifteenth century
but the Chancel of the same period, which housed the altar, has
now vanished.
Moot Hall & Vicarage
 Close to where the refectory is now, northeast of the Minster,
stood a two-storey Moot Hall. It was built at the end of the thirteenth
century as part of the Rectory Manor House and was probably surrounded
by a moat. It could be regarded as Dewsbury’s first “Town
Hall” and was also used as a Courthouse. Beyond and to the
east of the Moot Hall stood the Vicarage, which was built about
1350. The Vicarage was demolished in 1884 to allow enlargement
of the church and the Council demolished the Moot Hall in 1962
to widen the Ring Road.
1750 - 1850
The Minster was in a very poor state of repair by 1764. By then
it was also too small for the expanding town of Dewsbury. Permission
was granted for collections throughout the county of York to pay
for the enlargement and rebuilding of the Minster, the design of
which was entrusted to the highly regarded architect John Carr
who hailed from Horbury. His work in Georgian style can still be
seen in the design of the walls in the North Aisle and in the tower
dating from 1767. (Unfortunately his matching South Aisle was demolished
and rebuilt in 1895 in the Gothic Style which had become more fashionable.)
In 1850, the roof of the Nave was raised so that an organ and “singing
loft” could be installed above where the altar now stands,
galleries were built along the walls above both aisles, a 3-decker
pulpit was introduced and box pews were renewed in oak throughout
the worship area. Behind the old altar was installed the magnificent
new window in memory of Samuel and Mary Becket and their children.
It can now be seen in the refectory.
1880 - 1920
 In
1878 it was mooted that the whole Minster should be demolished and
a new Victorian edifice should be built as had happened in many other
places. However the architect G.C.Street recognised the beauty of
the arches in both aisles and persuaded the church authorities not
to demolish them. Instead, work started in 1884 on a major extension
behind the old altar, which effectively doubled the size of the worship
area. The extension turned the worship area into the traditional
cross-shape facing east [ Plan D ]. The “foot” of the
cross was where the tower is now and the altar was located in a new
area that formed the top of the cross. Above the Altar a large beautiful
stained glass window was installed in memory of Elizabeth Caldwell.
It is still in its original position and can now be inspected closely
in the upper room. The two new “arms” of the cross (called
Transepts) now contain the Heritage display and the entrance foyer
(or Narthex).
 In 1884 most of this huge worship area was filled with new wooden pews [
B/W photograph ]. During the rebuilding of the walls in the south aisle, the “lost
font” was discovered and reassembled. It is a rare example of a thirteenth
century font. The galleries in the aisles were taken down at this time but
the line of an old gallery is still visible around the north aisle wall. Several
smaller rooms were constructed such as the Morning Chapel (which is now the
refectory), a choir vestry (which is now the refectory kitchen), a Lady Chapel
and a Vicars’ vestry. The Reredos (a large wooden screen carved with
the images of Saints), which is in the Narthex, was constructed in 1913 and
installed behind the altar.
The effect of all these changes was to create a church of Cathedral proportions.
This may have been deliberate as the Dewsbury and Wakefield Churches were in
direct competition as the seat of the Bishop for the new Wakefield Diocese
created in 1888. Unfortunately Dewsbury lost and Wakefield became the Cathedral
City.
The Last Thirty Years
Perhaps
it was inevitable that the Worship area created in the nineteenth century would
prove much larger than could be justified. Consequently radical changes were
implemented around 1978, 1994 and most recently 2005 to create a more appropriate
worship area [ Plan E ] and to use the east end of the building for much needed
community, heritage and refectory facilities. Prof. Murta developed the initial
1978 plan. The most radical departure from that has been the conversion of
the organ loft of the 1978 reordering, into the 1994 St. Paulinus Chapel. In
addition, a Mezzanine floor was added in the east end, to form both an Upper
Hall and the Chapel of St Hilda (now the Parish office).
Symbol of the “Wheeled Cross” (From disc but only
AD627 across the middle, no other writing) Since November
2005 the Worship Area of the Minster has been upgraded with a new underfloor
heating system, floor tiling and lighting. The ageing electronic organ
has been replaced by the pipe organ previously in the former St. Marks
Church, Dewsbury with an added remote consul. Chairs - each decorated with
the Saxon “Wheeled Cross” of St. Paulinus
have replaced the old pews.
(The information on this webpage is based on Richard A. Middleton’s
book, “The Church at Dewsbury”. 2006. Available from the Minster
Gift Shop or by post from the Parish Office).
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