Martley Church
It is uncertain how Martley church became under the patronage of the Mortimers of Chirk, but in 1315 a Mortimer chapel was consecrated to the south of the early twelfth century chancel. This has since been demolished. The chancel had its north wall rebuilt early in the thirteenth century and the east wall early in the fourteenth when a priest's door was added to the Mortimer chapel. The nave still contains two reset doorways of the early twelfth century to north and south.
The north doorway [above] projects half an inch from the newer wall while the west tower is fifteenth century. The roofs would all appear to be early fourteenth century.
Within the chancel there are wall paintings some of which would appear to be late thirteenth century and others from the fifteenth. The images below might well be contemporaneous with the Mortimer chapel.
There is also an effigy of Hugh Mortimer who died probably at the battle of Wakefield in 1460. He was a descendant of the first Roger Mortimer of Chirk (d.1326).
Copyright©2013 Paul Martin Remfry