Parish Records

The Church Organ

The Church Bells

Welcome in the name of Jesus Christ to this ancient church. We hope you will enjoy learning something about its history and profit from the atmosphere of prayer and worship, which is present here.

The story of Melbourne is a long one, much of it unknown. There was a church here when the Domesday Book was compiled in 1086. We know nothing of  that church, but, with important Anglo-Saxon remains nearby at Breedon and Repton, it was possibly a substantial building. In the long course of Melbourne's story, some person of wealth and influence replaced that church early in the twelfth century with this magnificent building. Who that person was is a matter of conjecture, and why so large and imposing a church was built in Melbourne is a mystery. Melbourne once had a royal castle, although there are now only scant remains. It seems to have been a fairly large affair, and is said to have been one of the many places assigned to hold Mary Queen of Scots in the sixteenth century, but by then it was too dilapidated. Two well-known people have their place in the Melbourne story. Thomas Cook, the founder of modern tourism, was born here in 1808; and in 1837 Lord Melbourne, Queen Victoria's first Prime Minister, gave his name to the small Australian settlement which is now a great city.


Market gardening, shoe making and light engineering have all played their part in the story of Melbourne, now a town of about 4,000 people. Melbourne Hall has an essential place also, with society and political figures of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries gracing its rooms. Pride of place, however, must belong to this church. Many generations of Melbourne folk have gone to worship between these massive walls and columns for nearly nine centuries. Today there is a lively congregation which uses the building to the full and which takes its Christian witness and the responsibilities of maintenance seriously.

Mystery surrounds the building of this notable church. One long-held theory suggests the first Bishop of Carlisle built it. When King Henry I (reigned llOO~ll35) founded the diocese in 1133, he presented the church at Melbourne to Adelulf (or Aethelwulf), its first bishop. Since Carlisle was not a safe place to be at that time because of constant border warfare, it has always been assumed that Adelulf sought safety here in his southern base when Carlisle was captured by the Scots in 1136, and that he built himself a church worthy of his status.

Melbourne Church does indeed have the feel of a 'miniature cathedral' about it, and we know that thirteenth-century bishops used it as such when they were given permission to ordain their priests here. The building of the church would therefore have fallen conveniently into the years 1136 to 1156 when Adelulf is thought to have been resident here.

This theory has been questioned, however, both by research into the life of Adelulf and by a closer look at the highly unusual layout of the church. Doubt has been cast on the assumption that Adelulf came south, since there is evidence to show that he simply remained where he was and acted as a Scottish bishop.

An explanation of the size and grandeur of the church can be sought from its features. A glance at the upper level of the building shows an unusually elaborate arrangement. At the back of the church (west end) there is a gallery, and along each side there are walkways. These continue around all four sides of the crossing beneath the central tower, the final link being an upper chancel at the east end. Access would have been through what is now the central window, and the outline of the upper chancel is clearly visible outside the church.

Why does the church have this rare two-storey feature? The answer to this may lie in the second theory of its building, which suggests that it was built as a royal church by Henry I as part of his manor at Melbourne. If this was so, then the west gallery was a 'royal pew' and the upper chancel was for the King's use. Therefore this church was already standing (substantially as we see it today) when Adelulf received it from the King in 1133.

We cannot be certain which of these theories is correct, nor do we know if there are other reasons to explain why Melbourne Church was built in such a grand manner. Whoever was responsible has left us a splendid example of twelfth-century architecture, and the changes that have taken place down the centuries have not altered its outstanding qualities.

 
The west end is massive, with its fine door moulding and two low towers. The nearness of the tithe barn prevents a long view of this, but the crowning of a parish church with three towers was a unique extravagance. The east end of the church originally had a triple apse, that is, three rounded ends. This was a feature of early Norman churches, and traces of these can be seen both inside and outside the church. We can be grateful to those who altered the east end in later centuries for leaving it rather untidy. This way we can easily visualise what was there before.
In outline the plan of the church is 'cruciform'; in other words, it is built in the shape of a cross. The chief symbol of Christian belief is thus used to good effect, since all worship takes place 'within' the cross of Jesus.

The Organ of Melbourne Parish Church

Brief history

The origins of the present instrument go back to about 1860 when a two manual organ was built for the church by Bevington and Sons. The action was mechanical, and the console, being an integral part of the organ, was at the front of the organ gallery in the south transept. The mechanical action survived until 1956
when a new detached console was built in the north side of the chancel and direct-electric action was installed. This work was carried out by Kingsgate, Davison and Co. and incorporated several far reaching modifications. The compass of the manuals was increased from 56 to 61 notes, and an extension technique
was used to produce larger Pedal and Great departments. This, together with some revoicing of the pipework, gave the instrument a certain romantic character.

Towards the end of the l970s the lever-arm magnets in the electric action had become very noisy and unreliable. There were also distortions in the soundboards which were causing certain ranks of pipes to be nearly untunable. In 1981 a programme of work was begun with the aim of radically improving the mechanical efficiency of the instrument and improving the projection of tone into the nave.

Rebuilding the organ in 1981

The instrument was completely dismantled and the organ gallery cleared. Certain parts were removed to the builder's works at Malvern for special attention; the Trumpet pipes were fitted with new tongues and revoiced, the Great Sesquialtera and Swell Doublet were remodelled into 3 rank Mixtures, the console was refurbished with new electrical components for the drawstops and combination pistons. Back on site, the organ gallery floor was extended forwards to make a cantilevered projection of about 3 feet over the choirstalls. The original Bevington soundboards were stripped down, cracks repaired, the upper surfaces planed true, pallets releathered and resprung, and the wind channels reorganised to accommodate new pressure compensators. After this renovation, the Great soundboard was re-erected in a new position right at the front of the extended gallery. The Swell soundboard was positioned immediately behind the Great and each soundboard was fitted with completely new electro- pneumatic action. A new position for the soundboards was chosen because the former axis of the organ was from east to west and was about 8 feet behind the gallery front; both of these factors made it difficult for the sound to penetrate effectively into the nave. By rebuilding to a new north-south axis, with the Great pipework brought to the front of the extended gallery, the egress of sound was greatly improved. The final installation of a sound-reflecting canopy over the Great organ also contributed to this improvement.

Once the soundboards were in position, the other organ parts, such as drawstop motors, wind ducts, and pedal chest was added to the back of the Swell to accommodate thebottom notes of the Contra Oboe (including 12 new pipes). Acompletely new electrical transmission system was installed, linking the console to the organ and including a solid state control circuit panel. Finally, the pipework received considerable
attention before being relocated; much of it was revoiced to suit the redesigned wind supplies of a lower pressure. This final operation was of crucial importance to the transformation of the
tone of the instrument, and, as listeners can now testify, the clarity and brightness of the rebuilt organ is an outstanding achievement

 
Specification

Manual compass CC to C 63 notes                                      Pedal compass CC to F 30 notes

Swell Organ                                                           Great organ
I. Tremulant                                                         13 Trumpet              8'
2. Cornopean 8'                                    14 MixtureIII           19-22-26
3. Contra Oboe 16'                                    15 Fifteenth              2'
4. Mixture Ill 15-19-22                            16 Twelth                 22/3 '
5. Principal 4'                                     17 Principal             4'
6. Rohr Flute 8'                                      18 Suabe Flute        4'
7. Salicional 8'                                      19 Dulciana             8'
8. Celeste 8'                                      20 Clarabel              8'
9. Open Diapason 8'                                       21 Open Diapason   8'
10. Swell Octave                                                   22 Swell to Great
I I. Swell Unison Off
12. Swell Sub Octave
Pedal Organ                                                   Accessories

23 Fagotto                       16' from No.3             Four adjustable manual pistons to  Great Swell.                 24 Octave Flute                 4' from 29                                                                                                         25 Fifteenth                       4' from No.28           Four adjustable Pedal pistons                                            26 Quint                            5 1/3' from No. 29    Four toe pistons duplicating Swell pistons                         27 Base Flute                    8' from No. 29          Reversible thumb pistons and toe pistons to Great to         28 Principal                      8'                                                                                 Pedal, Swell to Great.   29 Bourdon                     16'                               Reciprocal thumb pistons to Oboe 8'                                 30 Open Diapason           16'                              Great & Pedal combinations coupled.                             31 Swell to Pedal                                                                                                                                       32 Great to Pedal

The organ was rebuilt in 1981 by Messrs. Nicholson and Co. (Worcester) Limited of Malvern.                  The specification was revised through consultation between the firm's Tonal Director, Mr. D. F. Thurlow and Mr. Laurence Rogers, the Choirmaster and Organist(1975 - 2002), with advice from Mr. Roger Fisher, Master of the Music at Chester Cathedral.

The Church Bells

The first bells to be mentioned in the church are the 'iiij bells in the steple with a sanctus bell' in 1542. The central tower was probably rebuilt to its
present height between 1602 and 1610, and by 1732 it housed four bells:

1 GOD SAVE THE CHURCH 1610
Founder's mark of Henry Oldfield

2 I SWEETLY TOLLING MEN DO CALL
TO TASTE OF MEATS THAT FEED THE SOUL 1632
Founder's mark of George Oldfield

3 WILLIAM REVITT AND HENRY MUGGLESTON
CHURCHWARDENS 1614

4 JOHN COOPER, JO. FISHER, D.W. AND J HEDDERLEY
MADE ME 1732

During a general restoration of the tower in 1882 these bells were recast by Taylors of Loughborough and two new bells were added. As a memorial of Queen Victoria's Silver Jubilee, the octave was completed in 1887. They were rehung in 1897 and 1936.


In 1995 the bells and wooden frame were removed and a new metal twelve bell frame was fitted by Eayre & Smith. At the same time the internal masonry of the tower was repaired and sound control installed. The bells were rehung on new bearings and two new trebles added, bringing the ring up to ten. The two additional new bells provide Derbyshire with its first ring of twelve bells. All four new bells were cast by Eijsbouts of Astens in Holland and are not 'Simpson tuned' but made to the same 'sound profile' as the eight 19th century Taylor bells.

Details of inscriptions and weights (cwt-qr-lb)

Treble GIVEN BY
STEVEN PEERS
DAVID AND JOANNE MARSHALL
& THE DERBY CATHEDRAL BELLRINGERS
IN THE JUBILEE YEAR OF
THE DERBY DIOCESAN ASSOCIATION
OF CHURCH BELLRINGERS
4-0-5


2 SAM
GIVEN BY BOB AND RUTH SMITIl
IN MEMORY OF
QUEENIE ALMA WATSON 1910-1995
ANNIE APPLEBY 1913-1992
'A WOMAN THAT FEARETH THE LORD. SHE SHALL BE PRAISED'
3-3-7

Both bells also have the following inscnptions:
Crown: EIJSBOUTS ASTENSIS ME FECIT ANNO MCMXCVI
Reverse: The Trade Mark of Eayre and Smith
THE REVD CANON F ROSS: VICAR
ROSALIND BELL & HENRY WILKINS
CHURCHWARDENS

3 I RING FOR EVER IN MEMORY OF
LOUISE EARP, 1972-74. AND
MARTIN EARP, 1976-83
4-0-4

4 IN MEMORY OF CHRIS EARP, 1935-1991
A FAITHFUL SERVANT OF MELBOURNE CHURCH:
TOWER CAPTAIN, STEEPLEKEEPER, CHURCHWARDEN
THE GIFT OF THE BELLRINGERS
4-0-2

Both bells also have the folIowing inscriptions:
Crown: EIJSBOUTS ASTENSIS ME FECIT ANNO MCMXCV
Reverse: The Trade Mark of Eayre and Smith
THE REVD CANON F.ROSS VICAR
C. MURRAY-LESLIE
H. WILKINS CHURCIWARDENS


5 OCTAVE COMPLETED IN THE FIFTIETH YEAR OF
THE REIGN OF QUEEN VICTORIA 1887
4-1-21

6 same as the 5th
4-3-18

Both bells also have the folIowing inscriptions:
JOSEPH DEANS, VICAR
WILLIAM RICE, CURATE
W.J.WOOD
W.COOK CHURCHWARDENS
J.TAYLOR & CO. FOUNDERS LOUGHBOROUGH


7 I SWEETLY TOLLING MEN DO CALL
TO TASTE OF MEATS THAT FEED THE SOUL A.D.1882
J.TAYLOR & CO. LOUGHBOROUGH 1882
4-3-12


8 A.D.1882
J.TAYLOR & CO. FOUNDERS LOUGHBOROUGH 1882
5-3-7

9 same as the 8th
7-0-6

10 A.D.1882
J.TAYLOR & CO. BELLFOUNDERS LOUGHBOROUGH 1882
8-0-20
11 same as the 10th
4-0-4


tenor JOSEPH DEANS, VICAR
W.BRIGGS
F.F.FOX CHURCIIWARDENS
A.D.1882
J.TAYOR & CO. BELLFOUNDERS LOUGHBOROUGH 1882
15-1-24 in F#

PARISH RECORDS

Please note that all Archive Parish Church Records are now held in the Records Office at Derbyshire County Council

Details may be obtained from the above link or by contacting the office at the address below:


Derbyshire Record Office,
County Hall,
Matlock,
Derbyshire
DE4 3AG.
We can also be telephoned on the following numbers:
01629 585347  (Record Office Search Room)
01629 580000 ext 59202  (General Office) 
01629 580000 ext 59207   (Duty Archivist) 
Fax: 01629 57611
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