By Chris Story

Last updated at 14:42, Friday, 30 November 2012

Major works will soon start to highlight the rich history of a village church where King Edward I lay in state.

From left, John and Carolyne Baines, project managers, church councillor Lisa Turner and vicar Tudor Boddam-Whetham

St Michael’s at Burgh by Sands is one of three churches that will benefit from a £115,000 project to tell the tale of their fascinating pasts to locals and tourists.

The team behind the Three Solway Churches Development Project this week revealed they had received £80,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), £22,476 from the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) and £3,000 from the Diocese of Carlisle.

They now hope their efforts will create an additional tourist attraction at the churches – along the line of Hadrian’s Wall, west of Carlisle – as well as creating an educational resource for schoolchildren.

Work will start in the new year and be completed during 2013. Project leader Carolyne Baines said: “We are greatly looking forward to getting started and delivering a project which we are confident will bring real benefits to the area, to many individuals, heritage and education.”

The scheme will see a welcome and information panel installed at St Michael’s in Bowness-on-Solway.

At St Mary’s, Beaumont, five historical information panels will be put in place.

But the most significant work will be at St Michael’s in Burgh by Sands, a church that dates back to the early to mid-1100s and earned its unique place in history following the death of Edward Longshanks on Burgh Marsh in 1307.

It stands on the site of the Roman fort Aballava, probably over the centre of the base, and was built from Roman wall stones.

Work there will involve reopening the church’s west doorway – blocked up in the 1880s – to provide alternative and disabled access, as well as reinstating key features.

It will also include opening up its west tower and providing information panels on the church’s links with King Edward I.

They will also give details of the building’s connection to the Border Reivers, during the days in which the tower was used as a defensive refuge for residents while the area was subjected to cross-border raids and animals were sheltered in the church.

A timeline of stepping stones will be created alongside the church path, highlighting dates in the area’s history. Other provisions will include toilets, tea and coffee-making facilities and a tap for cyclists and walkers to fill up water bottles.

Mrs Baines, who is also churchwarden of St Michael’s, said: “The Three Churches Development Project is a most exciting development.

“We are hugely grateful to HLF, RDPE, the Carlisle Diocese and all those who have given and promised support, both for their encouragement and for their vision in seeing the immense possibilities the project will open up.”

Schools at Burgh by Sands, Kirkbampton, Bowness-on-Solway and Caldewlea are helping to provide learning materials. It is hoped the work can also lead to historical re-enactments being staged.

Tullie House Museum in Carlisle is also showing an interest in the work.

Sara Hilton, head of the HLF in the north west, said: “This project will rejuvenate much-loved buildings, bringing them back to the heart of the community. They demonstrate how heritage buildings, which provide an important link to the community’s roots, can be adapted for the needs of today.”

A spokesman for the RDPE said the group was “extremely pleased” to be supporting a project, which would “enhance the cultural heritage for the area”.

Other grants have come from The Cumberland News’s Charitable Trust, the Stephen Clarke Trust and Alan Evans Memorial Trust. The remaining cash needed will be raised by St Michael’s. Hadrian’s Wall Trust is also supporting the venture.

First published at 14:40, Friday, 30 November 2012
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk