England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Ibstock St Denys

The Parish

The parish of Ibstock lies in western Leicestershire, not too far from its border with neighbouring Derbyshire. Ibstock is located about 6 miles southeast of the industrial town of Ashby de la Zouch. Ibstock is a substantial village lying astride the A447 road which connects Ashby de la Zouch with Hinckley. Ibstock has expanded notably in recent times albeit it was always a large village, nowadays it spreads for over a mile along the A447 from north to south. Ibstock's economy was diverse, the area was agricultural with pastoral farming dominant but many earned their livings from the local mining of coal as well as quarrying for stone, stocking knitting was also a large employer in the village. Ibstock is drained by small headwaters of the River Sconce which makes a convoluted way by the Anker and Tame to the Trent close to the Staffordshire village of Alrewas from here heading back eastwards to reach the North Sea through the Humber Estuary. Ibstock is sited at around 140 metres above the sea with the southern end being some 20 metres lower, it sits on something of a ridge with land gently rolling away in most directions. Parishes in this area are larger than in eastern Leicestershire and Ibstock parish matched the local trend, it covered 4,600 acres and would have supported a population of about 2,000 parishioners. In Domesday times Ibstock was a small place, held by Count Meulan it could only offer 4 ploughs.

The Church

St Denys' church (sometimes rendered as Denis) sits at the southern, lower, end of the village adjacent to the A447 which runs to its west; it is more usually accessed by the footpath running southwards from High Street. The church is large befitting a substantial village and follows the standard design of nave, chancel and western tower, here topped by a recessed spire, and augmented with aisles and arcades to accommodate the large congregation. The church seems to have been built as a single exercise in the 14th century and using the Decorated style of architecture. The clerestory is in the Perpendicular style so was either the finish of the build or a later addition. Two significant Victorian restorations of 1884 and 1897 refreshed in the former case the nave & aisles and in the latter the chancel. The tarred pathway runs some 200 metres from High Street to the churchyard which is relatively open and gives adequate photographic angles.