Ancient parishes of Cheshire

The ancient parishes of Cheshire were the group of parishes that existed in the English county of Cheshire, roughly within the period of 1200–1800. Initially, the ancient parishes had only an ecclesiastical function, but reforms initiated by King Henry VIII, developed by Queen Elizabeth I and expanded by later legislation led them to acquire various secular functions that eventually led to a split between the ecclesiastical parishes and the purely civil parishes that exist today.

Ancient parish overall details

The data are in the form of two tables: the first one gives information about each ancient parish whilst the second one gives information about each chapelry that may exist within each ancient parish. This complexity is brought about by having ancient parishes which, after the dissolution of the monasteries in the sixteenth century, possessed in some form or another both an ecclesiastical role and a civil role. This dual role existed until the nineteenth century.

Ancient parishes

Chapelry details

Chapelry	Earliest Reference / Creation Date	Parent Ancient Parish	Constituent Townships	Additional Comments	References
Alsager		Barthomley	Alsager	The chapel was built in 1789-1790 with money given by Mary, Margaret, and Judith Alsager
Altrincham	1799	Bowdon	Altrincham	May be known as "Booth's chapel", which was given as a parochial chapel on a 1740 map, apparently bullt during the reign of Edward IV.
Alvanley		Frodsham	Alvanley
Aston	1635	Runcorn	Aston by Sutton, Aston Grange, Sutton iuxta Frodsham.	In 1843, the extra-parochial area of Middleton Grange was transferred to Aston by Sutton township.
Bosley	1402	Prestbury		The rights of a chapelry seem to have been conferred by a Papal Bull.
Bruera		Chester Saint Oswald	Churton Heath, Huntington, Lea Newbold, Saighton.
Burwaldsley	1735	Bunbury
Capesthorne	1722	Prestbury
Carrington	1759	Bowdon	Carrington, Partington.
Chadkirk		Stockport	Romiley
Chelford	1674	Prestbury	Chelford, Old Withington	The chapel existed from at least 1265/1266, but it is not clear that it was made a chapelry at this time.
Church Hulme		Sandbach	Church Hulme, Cotton, Cranage.
Congleton	1687	Astbury		Burial rights were awarded to this chapelry in 1687, though it had no wardens or any parochial duties.
Daresbury		Runcorn	Acton Grange, Daresbury, Hatton, Keckwick, Moore, Newton by Daresbury, Preston on the hill, Thelwall, Walton Inferior, Walton Superior.	Thelwall was a detached part of this chapelry.
Disley	1558	Stockport		The chapel was built in 1512 and consecrated in 1558.
Goostrey	sometime before 1350	Sandbach	Blackden, Goostrey cum Barnshaw, Leese, Twemlow.	Leese was a detached township. Twemlow township contained "No Town" as a detached part of the Rudheath Lordship.
Halton	1398	Runcorn	Halton	There is some suggestion that the townships of Norton and Stockham had a connection with this chapelry.
Haslington	1302.	Barthomley	Haslington
Latchford	1777	Grappenhall	Latchford
Little Budworth		Over	Little Budworth	This was first of all a "free" chapelry.
Little Leigh		Great Budworth	Little Leigh
Lower Peover		Great Budworth	Allostock, Nether Peover, Peover Inferior, Plumley.	The chapel was built around 1269.
Lower Whitley		Great Budworth	Lower Whitley
Macclesfield	1278	Prestbury	Hurdsfield, Kettleshulme, Macclesfield, Macclesfield Forest, Pott Shrigley, Rainow, Sutton Downes, Wildboarclough, Wincle.	Macclesfield Forest and Wildboarclough were made a separate chapelry known as Macclesfield Forest chapelry sometime before 1789. Pott Shrigley, Rainow, and Wincle were also later made separate chapelries.
Macclesfield Forest	Before 1789	Prestbury	Macclesfield Forest, Wildboarclough	Macclesfield Forest was originally part of Macclesfield chapelry in Prestbury parish, but was later made a separate chapelry in its own right.
Marbury		Whitchurch	Marbury with Quoisley, Norbury.	The two townships became civil parishes entirely within Cheshire in 1866. Marbury with Quoisley later changed its name to Marbury cum Quoisley.
Marple		Stockport	Marple
Marton	Before 1549	Prestbury	Almost all of Marton township.	Mutlow was a place in this township but in the parish of Gawsworth. It was the possible meeting place of the Domesday hundred of Hamestan.
Over Peover		Rostherne	Marthall cum Warford, Peover Superior, Snelson
Pott Shrigley	1472	Prestbury	Pott Shrigley	Downes Chapel was said to be here in 1472. Pott Shrigley was originally part of Macclesfield chapelry in Prestbury parish, but was later made a separate chapelry in its own right.
Poynton	1312	Prestbury	Poynton, Worth	Ormerod states that Woodford was in this chapelry, but another source denies this.
Rainow		Prestbury	Rainow	Rainow was originally part of Macclesfield chapelry in Prestbury parish, but was later made a separate chapelry in its own right.
Siddington		Prestbury	Siddington
Thelwall		Daresbury	Thelwall
Wettenhall		Over	Wettenhall
Wincle		Prestbury	Wincle	Wincle was originally part of Macclesfield chapelry in Prestbury parish, but was later made a separate chapelry in its own right.
Witton		Great Budworth	Birches, Castle Northwich, Hartford, Hulse, Lach Dennis, Lostock Gralam, Northwich, Winnington, Witton cum Twambrook.	Also contained a small part of the Rudheath Lordship.
Wrenbury		Acton	Broomhall, Chorley, Woodcott, and Wrenbury cum Frith. Parts of Dodcott cum Wilkesley, Newhall, and Sound.	Burleydam chapel was partly in Dodcott cum Wilkesley and partly in Newhall parish.

Extra-parochial areas

Various areas of Cheshire were not included in any ancient parish. As Dunn states: The reasons are various and occasionally obscure. Dunn later goes on to state that associations with religious houses or with the Crown seem to explain most of them, but this area of research is still ongoing. The following table contains the extra-parochial places or areas of Cheshire with some details about each of them:

Extra-Parochial Area	Grid Ref.	Earliest Reference	Fate	Additional Comments	References
Birkenhead				A liberty which formed the desmesne of Birkenhead Priory.
Chester Castle			Became a civil parish in 1858.
Chester Cathedral Precincts			Became a civil parish in 1858.
Grafton			Became officially part of Tilston township in the parish of the same name in 1841.	An extra-parochial liberty that was informally taken to be part of Tilston township, which it officially became part of in 1841.
Great Stanney		1178	Became a civil parish in 1858.	Was a possession of Stanlow Abbey.
King's Marsh			Became a civil parish in 1858.	Has a detached portion to the south-east of the main body, bordered by Shocklach and Tilston ancient parishes.
Little Saint John, Chester				In 1778, this area was stated to contain Bluecoat Hospital, Northgate Gaol, and six almshouses.
Middleton Grange			Became part of the township of Acton Grange in Runcorn Ancient Parish in 1858.	This was an extra-parochial township which was linked with Aston by Sutton in 1843.
Prior's Heys			Became a civil parish in 1858.
Rudheath		1365	The separate portions of this Lordship were absorbed into the newly created parishes that contained them in the period from 1858 to 1866.	Formed the Rudheath Lordship, which was made up of a number of detached parts in Sandbach parish, Twemlow township, and elsewhere.
Shotwick Park			Became a civil parish in 1858.
Spital Boughton, Chester			Became a civil parish in 1858.
Stanlow			Became a civil parish in 1858.
Threapwood				The area was split between Cheshire and Flintshire, in Wales.
Willington			Became a civil parish in 1858.