St. Chad's Church - Hanmer

The church of the shining mere has it all – scale, romance, history, war, fine features, and stunning views across the adjacent mere.

The original 12th-century church has been twice badly damaged by fire, and rebuilt each time with local sandstone on the same foundations, in the Perpendicular-style.

Around 1380, Owain Glyndwr was married here to Margaret Hanmer, the glamorous daughter of Sir David Hanmer, a Justice of the Kings Bench.

In 1643, during the Civil War, Nantwich Roundheads raided the village and stabled their horses in Fenns Chapel where the organ now stands. Later, a large body of Parliamentarian horse and dragoons were cut to pieces nearby, by Welsh Royalists.

St Chads features in Bad Blood - the award winning and best selling autobiography of Lorna Sage, who recorded her childhood in Hanmer Vicarage during the post-war years.
Other notable features include stained glass windows by Kemp, exquisite wood carvings, and a lovely Church Square with four listed buildings.