Sunday and a Thoughtful… off to Church

All Saints Church, Kedleston, Derbyshire

All Saints lives in the shadow of Kedleston Hall… first its saviour and then perhaps one could say its downfall… let me explain.

Kedleston Hall was built by Sir Nathanial Curzon (later 1st Baron of Scarsdale) in 1759. But to build his grand stately home, it required that the medieval village of Kedleston had to be moved.. The Church was allowed to remain… as for the land surrounding the village it was swallowed up into the Scarsdale Estate and much of the land devoted to the creation of a landscaped country park, for the owners entertainment.

But back to the Church. It was originally built in 1198, was the Parish Church then became the Curzon’s family Church. Some alterations over the centuries, the most significant being the creation, in 1908, of a Memorial Chapel by Lord George Curzon for his wife Mary.

In 1977, the National Trust acquired the Hall in lieu of Death Duties.

Now back to the sad part. All Saints had lost its family status and no immediate congregation. So in 1983 the Church Authorities declared All Saints Redundant… Redundant, what a modern horrible name for such an old church. The good news is that the Church is now in the care of “The Church Conservation Trust“.

Rightly so, it is little, but also a great church of Norman origins… also full of records of English History.