England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Cowley St Mary

The Parish

The parish of Cowley lies almost centrally within Gloucestershire and is located roughly 5 miles south of the town of Cheltenham. Cowley sits just over a quarter mile west of the A435 road which links Cheltenham with Gloucester. Cowley is a small village dominated by the grounds of the former Manor, now a luxury hotel. Most properties lie just outside the grounds of the manor which was largely rebuilt in the 1850s for its owner, a London stockbroker, on the footprint of an original house of 1695. Cowley sits on the steeply sloping sides of the valley of the River Churn, the main portion of the village sitting where a dry-valley approaches from the west with a few farms and cottages rising up said dry-valley. Like most estate villages the local economy would have been dominated by the needs of the estate and here arable farming was the main source of wealth, early gazetteers estimate as much as 80% of the parish acreage as set to arable. Modern development were progressing in the 2nd decade of the 21st century as the nearby A417 road (Gloucester to Swindon) was being upgraded to modern dual-carriageway highway bringing construction aplenty to the west of the parish. Cowley is drained initially southeast and then south by the Churn which passes through Cirencester to meet the infant Thames within the flooded gravel pit complex of Cotswold Water Park, the Thames, after a lengthy eastward journey reaches the North Sea through its estuary. Cowley is sited on rising ground, the church sits at around 180 metres above the sea whilst the westernmost properties sits at 240 metres to the west Shab Hill tops out at 294 metres high above the Gloucestershire vale. Cowley parish covered a little over 1,800 acres making it typically sized for its area, that acreage would have supported a population of close to 300 parishioners. Domesday Cowley, held by Pershore Abbey, was also a typical rural manor offering 9 ploughs backed by a small meadow, stretches of woodland and a mill.

The Church

St Mary's church sits within the ground of the former manor now hotel Cowley Manor, it sits to the east of the main house with parkland falling away further eastwards to the Churn below. The main body of the church, both nave and chancel, are products of the 13th century Early English Gothic period, the chancel being slightly later than the nave. An impressive row of 7 lancet windows grace the northern face in a fine example of the style. The western tower is an amalgam of the 13th and 15th centuries, the lowest 2 stages are contemporary with the main body, 13th century, the topmost stages were rebuilt in the 15th century in a distinguished Perpendicular styling complete with battlements and pinnacles; Pevsner places that work into the late-Perpendicular so certainly 15th century. Also of the same era is the southern porch. During the Victorian period the church received the familiar restoration, here it came in 1872 and was a relatively conscientious and sensitive piece of work. Visitors should make use of the hotel's substantial car park and head east of the main block to where the churchyard sits. The churchyard is relatively busy with trees so the photographer will need to find the best viewpoints to adequately record this church.