Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Clumber Park

The Church of St Mary the Virgin stands in Clumber Park, a Grade I listed Anglican church in Nottinghamshire. It replaced an earlier chapel built in 1864 and designed by Thomas Chambers Hine, which became known locally as ‘the pigeon coop’. In 1886 the seventh Duke of Newcastle commissioned George Frederick Bodley to design the present church, completed in 1889. The stonework uses Red Runcorn internally and Steetly ashlar externally, with Red Runcorn dressings. Bodley’s Gothic design follows a cruciform plan and centres on a tower topped by a 53-metre spire. The church’s completion in 1889 cost £30,000 and drew national attention. Its dedication service included elaborate ritual and decoration that provoked the Protestant Alliance to protest in the press. Reports described crucifixes, images of the Virgin and St John, incense, banners and copes worn by bishops. The stained glass is by Charles Eamer Kempe, and the nave interior is plain while the chancel is richly carved. Inside, the nave leads to the decorated chancel where Kempe’s glass fills the windows with colour. The organ, installed by Gray & Davison in 1889 and later overhauled by Harrison and Harrison, remains largely original. The tower contains a single bell and the spire rises above the parkland setting. The building’s Gothic style and careful stonework make it a notable example of late 19th-century ecclesiastical architecture.