A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



The fittings are all modern. There is a chancel 

 screen (1871), and a second screen separating the 

 vestries and organ chamber from the south aisle. The 

 present font, which stands at the west end of the 

 north aisle, dates from 188 1, but an older plaster font 

 is preserved at the rectory.'^ 



There is no old stained glass. 



Between the windows of the south wall of the ex- 

 tension of the south aisle (sometimes called the Mosley 

 Chapel) " is a fine marble and alabaster monument to 

 Sir Nicholas Mosley, kt., 161 z, sometime Lord 

 Mayor of London, with three lower compartments 

 containing the kneeling figures of his two wives and 

 of three of his sons. Above is his own figure in 

 mayoral robes. Over the figure of Sir Nicholas are 

 his arms (Sable, a cheveron between three pickaxes 

 argent, quartering Or a fesse between three eagles 

 displayed sable), and below on either side over the 

 figures of his wives two shields in oval frames, the first 

 having the arms of Mosley impaling Gules, a chess- 

 rook argent, on a chief argent three roses gules, for 

 Elizabeth Rookes, widow of — Hendley, his second 

 wife, who survived him ; the second, Mosley impaling 

 Whitbroke, Argent a lion rampant gules, for Margaret 

 Whitbroke, his first wife. There are four male figures 

 in the lower central compartment, being probably 

 those of Rowland Mosley (died 1616), son and heir 

 of Sir Nicholas, with his eldest son ; Anthony Mosley, 

 and Sir Edward Mosley, the two latter still living 

 when the monument was erected.'' 



At the east end of the north aisle is a mural tablet 

 with good plaster ornament to Ann, Dowager Lady 

 Bland (died 1734), erected by her son 'in memory 

 of one of the best of women ' ; with a lozenge over 

 bearing the arms of Bland, Argent on a bend sable 

 three pheons of the field, impaling the quartered arms 

 of Mosley, as on Sir Nicholas Mosley's monument ; 

 on an escutcheon of pretence the Mosley coat is 

 repeated. There is also a mural monument on the 



west wall of the Mosley Chapel to Sir John Bland 

 (died 1715).'' 



There are six bells all cast by Abraham Rudhall of 

 Gloucester 1727.'*' 



The church plate consists of a small paten (4J in. 

 diam.) inscribed ' Given to the chappel of Didsbury 

 in the parish of Manchester 1741 ' ; a small chalice 

 4 in. high, inscribed ' Belongs to the chapel of Dids- 

 bury 1743' ; a paten, 'the gift of Thomas Briarly 

 of Heaton Norris to Didsbury Chapel April 10, 

 1748'; a large silver flagon, 'the gift of Joseph 

 Boardman of Manchester to the Church of Didsbury 

 A.D. 1753'; a chalice marked ' a.m.' with crest, a demi- 

 lion rampant issuing from a coronet (supposed to be 

 the gift of Ann Mosley) ; a chalice, ' the gift of 

 Mrs. Frances Bayley to Didsbury Church 1 8 1 3 ' ; an 

 almsdish of 1843, and two breadholders of 1845. 



The registers begin in 1 561, and have been tran- 

 scribed (1561-1757) by Mr. H. T. Crofton and 

 Rev. E. Abbey Tindall (vols. 8 and 9 Lanes. Parish 

 Reg. Soc). The entries fi-om 1 561 to 1600 have 

 been apparently copied from previously existing loose 

 sheets. 



A chapel, it is believed, existed at 

 ADVOWSON Didsbury from the middle of the 

 13 th century," and the chapel yard 

 was consecrated in 1352 in order to provide for the 

 interment of those who died of the plague." The 

 chapelry, in later times at least, was considered to 

 include Didsbury, Withington, Burnage, and Heaton 

 Norris. 



The chapel and its ornaments were confiscated by 

 Edward VI, but the former were acquired by the in- 

 habitants for 1 3/. 4<^.'° Unlike other chapels in the 

 parish, after the Elizabethan reform it seems to have 

 been served as a rule by a curate of its own.*" A church 

 library was founded and a few volumes still remain in 

 the vestry.*' A stock of jf 48 belonged to the chapel 

 in 1650," and had grown to £10/^ by 1720," 



^' It has been several times taken to 

 the church of late years to be used for 

 adult baptisms, and being by tradition the 

 font in which Barlow was baptized, is still 

 an object of reverence to Roman Catholics. 



8^ The Mosley Chapel was originally at 

 the south-east comer of the chancel. 



^^ The inscriptions read as follows : — 

 'This is in memory of Sir Nicholas 

 Mosley, Knight, sometyme Lord Mayor 

 of London, who dyed the 12 day of 

 December i6i2 of ye age of 85, and lyeth 

 here interred.' 



' Margaret Whitbroke, his ist wife, by 

 whom he had 6 sonnes and 2 daughters.' 



' Elizabeth his second wife, at whose 

 cost this monument was erected, dyed 

 without issue.' 



' I. Rowland Mosley, Esq. Sonne and 

 heyre of Sr Nicholas, first married Anne 

 Houghton, by whom he had issue a son 

 and daughter.' 



'After, the aforesaid Rowland married 

 Anne Sutton, one of the co-heiresses of 

 Sutton, by whom he had Issue Edward his 

 son and heyre, and Ann his daughter yet 

 living; and he dyed 23 rd Feby. 1616, and 

 lieth here interred.' 



' 2. Anthony Mosley his second son yet 

 living. 3. Sir Edward Mosley, Knt. his 

 youngest son, Atty Genl of the Dutchy of 

 Lancaster now living at RoUeston in 

 Staffordshire.' 



^^ The inscriptions on these two monu- 



ments are given in Booker, op. cit. pp. 

 25-6. 



^^ The inscriptions on these bells are 

 as follows : (i) * Let us ring for the 

 Church and the King, 1727' ; (2) 'Pros- 

 perity to all our benefactors, 1727 ' ; (3) 

 ' Lady Ann Bland and S' John, her son, 

 hart. Benefactors, 1727'; (4) 'Robert 

 Twyford, Minister, 1727'; (5) 'Wm. 

 Twyford and Thos. Whitelegg, Ch. War- 

 dens, 1727 ' ; (6) ' Abr. Rudhall of Glou- 

 cester cast us all, 1727.* 



87 Alexander, chaplain of Didsbury, was a 

 Barlow feofTee about 1300 ; Booker, op. 

 cit. 251. In 1352 the Bishop of Lich- 

 field gave his licence to celebrate divine 

 service in the chapel there ; service had 

 been performed time out of mind, though 

 only seldom of recent years. A chaplain 

 was to be paid by the people. At the 

 same time the cemetery was to be conse- 

 crated, the bishop having had testimony 

 of ' their devotion in the time of the late 

 pestilence,' when it was inconvenient to 

 carry the dead all the way to Manchester ; 

 Lich. Epis. Reg. iii, fol. 127. 



^ On 16 Sept. 1 361 the Bishop of Lich- 

 field granted licence to the inhabitants of 

 the vill of Didsbury to bury in the cemetery 

 of the chapel there, by reason of the mor- 

 tality ; Lich. Epis. Reg. Stretton, v, foL 7. 



8' Raines, Chantries (Chet. Soc), 277. 

 The chapel had two bells which the people 

 had refused to surrender ; ibid. 274, 259. 



296 



The inscriptions are in the Owen MSS. 



*•* Robert Lowe was curate of Didsbury 

 in 1563, according to the Visitation list. 

 The following occur in the registers of 

 the chapel: — 1580, Ottiwell Baguley ; 

 1588, — Loydes ; 1589, Richard Massey; 

 Booker, op. cit, 53, 54. 



About 1610 the chapel was described as 

 ' annexed to Manchester the mother 

 church' ; Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. xiv, App. 

 iv, II. 



<i Christie, Old Lanes. Libraries (Chet. 

 Soc), 97 ; Moss, Didsbury, 18. 



*^ Common-wealth Ch. Surv, (Rcc. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), 13. There was also 

 a leasehold house, worth about ,^10 a 

 year. It was recommended that a distinct 

 parish should be assigned to the chapel. 



The Committee of Sequestrations in 

 1649-50 ordered ^^30 a year to be paid to 

 the minister of Didsbury ; Plund. Mins. 

 Accts. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 

 259. In 1652 the income was only ^^lo 

 a year, and ^^40 out of the Manchester 

 tithes was ordered to be added ; ibid, ii, 

 35. The sum was afterwards reduced to 

 j^33 loj. i ibid, ii, 91. 



•"= Gastrell, Notitia (Chet. Soc), ii, 86, 

 87. The bishop notes that 'Rowland Mos- 

 ley, esq., left lands to this chapel worth 

 £zo per annum for 80 years after the death 

 of a person mentioned in the lease ; not 

 known when the person died, but the 

 lands are taken away. There was also a 



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