He had no one to guide him; no school of artists
or craftsmen to help him in the detail of his buildings; no great
principles of architecture to direct him. But he triumphed over all
obstacles and devised a style of his own that was well suitable for
the requirements of the time and climate and for the form of worship
of the English National Church. And how have we treated the buildings
which his genius devised for us? Eighteen of his beautiful buildings
have already been destroyed, and fourteen of these since the passing
of the Union of City Benefices Act in 1860 have succumbed. With the
utmost difficulty vehement attacks on others have been warded off, and
no one can tell how long they will remain. Here is a very sad and
deplorable instance of the vanishing of English architectural
treasures. While we deplore the destructive tendencies of our
ancestors we have need to be ashamed of our own.
We will glance at some of these deserted shrines on the sites where
formerly they stood. The Rev. Gilbert Twenlow Royds, Rector of
Haughton and Rural Dean of Stafford, records three of these in his
neighbourhood, and shall describe them in his own words:--
"On the main road to Stafford, in a field at the top of Billington
Hill, a little to the left of the road, there once stood a chapel.
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