The church has two sections, which, although connected, have no internal access between them: these are the tower/chapel and the main church. The seventeenth-century tower and old chancel are in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust (CCT); the key is kept at the nearby Derby Museum and Art Gallery.[4] The main church was closed as a place of worship in 1984[5] but reopened in September 2017[6][7] as part of the Holy Trinity Brompton Church network.[8] The church meets for worship every Sunday in the main church at 10.30am and 6.30pm every Sunday and is of a contemporary music style.
History
It is of medieval origin, but the oldest surviving part of the church is the tower, which was rebuilt between 1601 and 1608. The chancel was built in 1699. The remainder of the church was rebuilt in 1893–94 in stone from Coxbench quarry, the architect being Sir Arthur Blomfield. The style of this rebuilding is Gothic Revival in the manner of the 15th century.[1]
The church closed in 1984 and the parish joined with St Alkmund's. Memorials from the main body of the church were moved into the chancel and some of the windows, by Kempe and Herbert William Bryans, were moved to All Saints' Church, Turnditch. The church was declared redundant in 1990, and the body of the church was converted to commercial use. The building has been an indoor market and Chinese restaurant but was closed for seven years. On 17 September 2017, St Werburgh's reopened as a church.
The tower and chancel were vested in the Churches Conservation Trust in 1989.[3] The tower was refurbished in 2004, and contains a chapel known as the "Johnson Chapel".[3][9]
Samuel Johnson married Elizabeth Porter (née Jervis) on 9 July 1735. Elizabeth (or "Tetty") was a well-to-do widow. At the time he was 25, she 46, and neither family was enthusiastic about the match. The marriage lasted until Elizabeth's death in 1752.
The chancel has a wall-mounted war memorial by Arthur George Walker. It is a cast-bronze figure of Christ with arms outstretched surmounting a plaque. The inscription reads "Remember 1914–1918 / (Names) / Blessed are the Peacemakers". A total of 47 men are listed.[10]
Organ
The church had an organ as early as 1750.[11] A new organ by John Gray was opened on 3 February 1841.[12] It was replaced by a new instrument by Walker and Sons of London which was opened on 14 December 1872.[13] After several restorations and enlargements (including Henry Willis & Sons in 1905), it became a four-manual instrument with 47 speaking stops. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.[14] William Hartley Ashton was organist and choir master in early 1910s and 1920s.[citation needed] In 1989 the organ was sold to All Saints, Newton Heath, Greater Manchester but never installed.[14]
Stanley Mayes was succeeded by Dr Arthur Pope (Head of Music at Bemrose Grammar School), and later by David Johnson, also Head of Music at Bemrose.[citation needed]
^Boeringer, James (1989). Organa Britannica: Organs in Great Britain 1660–1860 : a Complete Edition of the Sperling Notebooks and Drawings in the Library of the Royal College of Organists, Volume 1. Bucknell University Press. p. 263. ISBN9780838718940.
^"St Werburgh's Church, Derby". Derby Mercury. England. 3 February 1841. Retrieved 4 June 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
