St Leonard's Church, Bridgnorth

St Leonard’s Church stands on a quiet corner in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, built mainly of local red sandstone with clay tile roofs. The building began in the 12th century, though earlier Anglo-Saxon and Norman stonework is still visible inside. A tall tower was added in 1448, and later rebuilt in the 19th century after Civil War damage. The church was finally declared redundant in 1976 and is now looked after by the Churches Conservation Trust. Its walls carry fine carvings by S. Poole, James Redfern and Thomas Earp, including the Expulsion from Eden on a capital and a marble font of 1894. The east window of 1876, by Clayton and Bell, shows the Te Deum in memory of a local headmaster. Eight bells remain, five cast in 1681 and three more added later, while the reredos of 1882 depicts the Crucifixion and the four Doctors of the Church. Inside, hammerbeam roofs span the nave and aisles, and the chancel floor holds memorial mosaics. The octagonal library on the north side holds simple two-light windows and dormers. Outside, the tower’s embattled parapet is topped by eight crocketted pinnacles, and a statue of Saint Leonard looks down from its middle stage.