Drive and Stroll with RON FREETHY

LATE winter and early spring is the best time to visit St Chad's church at Poulton because at this time the display of crocuses is famous throughout Lancashire.

As the crocuses fade they are replaced by waves of daffodils. This year, the display is early and is marvellous at the moment.

The crocus itself has a fascinating history and the family has long been of economic importance because it is the source of saffron, one of the most sought after of the world's culinary herbs.

The crocus family originates in Greece and Asia Minor and some members flower in spring and others in autumn; it is from the crushed stamens of the autumn crocus that saffron is obtained.

In the 1920s, the English botanist E A Bowles worked on the spring crocus and described varieties which he named after birds namely yellow hammer, golden pheasant, siskin and the snow bunting but only this latter type has survived to the present time.

Perhaps Bowle's choice of name was influenced by the fact that many birds tear off the petals of crocuses being particularly fond of yellow blooms. Chad is one of the most interesting of the Northumbrian Saints. His feast day is March 2. It is not certain just when Chad was born, but he died of plague on March 2 AD 672 which was the year before the birth of the Venerable Bede who wrote The Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation, which includes details of Chad's life.

Chad was a very holy man who became the Bishop of York and then Bishop of Mercia based at Lichfield and this accounts for the fact that most of the churches dedicated to him are situated in the Midlands.

The Poulton church is one of only a few in Lancashire carrying St Chad's name. The name Poulton in Saxon means the town by the pool.

Whilst it seems likely that there was a Saxon church on the site there is no definite proof. Many Saxon churches in our part of the country, then called Amounderness however, were ransacked and burned by the ravaging Vikings from their bases in the Isle of Man.

Even if there was no church at Poulton prior to the Norman Conquest, one was built soon after as a document exists dated 1293 suggests that one was built around 1094 by Roger de Poitou who had been given land by William the Conqueror. Roger gave the right to appoint the clergy of Poulton Church first to Sees in Normandy and then to St Mary's Priory Lancaster.

This Priory church set by the castle above the Lune continued to have the right from 1414 and also survived the ravages on monastic establishments by Henry VIII and along with St Chad's is one of Lancashire's finest churches.

In 1291, Poulton was assessed as the third richest church in the county with a larger income than Preston. The church suffered badly in the Scots raids led by Robert the Bruce in 1322. By the 18th century however, St Chad's was not in good condition.

In 1752, the medieval church was replaced by the present architectural gem, but the tower dates to 1630 and the apse to 1868. Recent work on the building suggests that part of the old red sandstone church may have been retained, but hidden beneath the new fabric.

In the churchyard of St Chad's are the remnants of the steps of a Saxon cross predating any church which may have been built later and these steps are now surmounted by a modern sundial. Close to the porch is a doorway leading to the vault of the Fleetwood family with a weathered stone inscription over the lintel and which reads "Insignia Rici Fleetwood Ari Hujus Eccliae Patronis Anno Oni 1699." The translation is "The Arms of Richard Fleetwood Esquire patron of this church Anno Domini 1699."

However impressive the exterior of St Chad's may be, it does not prepare the visitor for the magnificence of the interior, which is now pure Georgian.

In the gallery are a fine set of hatchments and a number of box pews removed from the body of the church during the construction of the gallery.

Connecting the gallery to the nave is a magnificent Georgian staircase close to which is a curtained pew which was used by the Fleetwood family.

There are many interesting wall monuments of which the most impressive is dedicated to the Hull family, especially John born in Poulton in 1761. He was a surgeon by profession, but also a brilliant botanist who wrote several important books on plants.

St Chad's is therefore a botanist's church both inside and out as well as being a true flower of the Fylde in its own right.

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