A Church Through the Ages towards a Church for the Ages
By Barry Richardson
This week, I’m walking with St Mary’s through time.
Newark’s beloved church has stood sentinel for centuries, adapting to changing needs of its people. It is more than just a building; it’s a heartbeat, echoing with worship, war, plague, music, and now with the industrial sounds of renewal.
Worship, Interrupted (But Never Silenced)
St Mary’s has always been a place of life’s great milestones - baptisms, weddings, funerals - binding generations to a sacred rhythm. From Roman Catholic liturgy before the English Reformation (pre 1534) to Church of England (post 1534) services, its spiritual role has endured, with a few notable pauses:
1349 - Black Death plague(s) silencing voices and decimating the population
1649-1660 - suspending church services across England during the Interregnum
Mid 1800’s - most likely interrupting services during the Victorian Restoration
2020-2021 - opening DIgital windows during Covid lockdowns
20242025 - an industrial soundscape in the Church as Re-Awakening works progress
Even in these ‘silent’ periods, the Church building has found a different voice to continue its story and share its history.
From Saxon Roots to Norman Grandeur
Newark’s strategic position on the Foss Way and River Trent made it a natural hub. By the 10th century, a Christian cemetery nestled within the castle precinct, and a Saxon church stood where St Mary’s now rises. Around 1180 the Norman parish church began to take shape, and the church site would have been a hive of labour and endeavour to remodel and augment the building to deliver much of what we see today.
A Sanctuary in Plague
During the Black Death (1348–1349), St Mary’s was licensed by Edward III to operate as a ‘hospitium’ - a place of care for the afflicted. Borough records speak of ale, bread, and straw purchased for patients lodged in the chapel.
It’s humbling to imagine the nave transformed into a refuge, the chancel into a ward. An AI-generated image helps us visualise this—though no rendering can quite capture the courage of those who stayed to serve.
A Fortress in the English Civil War
Between 1643–1646, Newark was a Royalist stronghold and St Mary’s became a military asset:
Soldiers quartered in the nave
The chancel turned field hospital
Munitions and hay were stored within
Sentries posted atop the 232-foot tower had an expansive view in all directions
The tower still bears a scar - possibly from cannon fire - and churchwarden accounts from those days record repairs and provisions for wounded men.
Newark being under siege issued its own currency - examples of which remain on display in the Town Hall to this day.
The sound of healing, warehousing, and orders would have replaced the usual soundscape in this AI rendering of a typical scene during this period.
Victorian Revival
In the mid-1800s, Sir George Gilbert Scott led a sweeping restoration:
Carved oak replaced plaster ceilings
Gothic revival stained glass was installed
Floors were retiled, and the structure repaired
St Mary’s once again echoed to unfamiliar sound of industry during the VIctorian Restoration of the building, in many ways the predecessor to today’s Re Awakening
This revival set the stage for St Mary’s Grade I listing in September 1950, recognising its national significance. The current Re-Awakening Project honours that legacy, preserving the fabric with care and reverence yet providing modern augmentations.
Re-Awakening: Past Echoes, Future Purpose
Today’s Re-Awakening isn’t just about stone and mortar to preserve a glorious inert space - it is about using that space wisely yet reverently to celebrate heritage and augment the purposes to which the building can be put. The new spaces echo past roles:
A café for community, like wartime billeting and camp camaraderie
The Magnus Room for meetings, echoing officers’ councils and Church Warden assemblies
An expanded crossing for performances, continuing a rich centuries-old musical tradition
Educational displays and walks, deepening civic outreach, narrating and bringing to life the rich cultural heritage of the Church and its’ place in English history
Today, traditional skills - stonework and carpentry - blend with modern technology: solar panels, batteries, and efficient heating systems. It’s a blend of heritage and innovation, ensuring St Mary’s remains robust for generations to come.
A Living Landmark Re-Awakened
St Mary’s has always adapted - through plague, war, restoration, and renewal.
As the Re-Awakening Project works towards its delivery building phase, the building prepares to breathe again…the organ will thunder… choral voices will soar… children will giggle… visitors will tread softly and marvel… plates will chink and cafe voices murmur… Hymns will rise and prayers settle… Artists will perform…
…and someone—perhaps you—will sit quietly, feeling the weight and wonder of 1,000 years. In that very moment, you’ll know that the church has Re-Awakened, not just for you, but for the next voices in the next millennium.