Chesterfield’s Crooked Spire (Derbyshire’s ‘tower of Pisa!’)
Chesterfield is a vibrant market town in Derbyshire, which sits on the edge of the Peak District. It’s got plenty of lovely walking areas nearby, if you want to get out of the urban areas.
If out walking, follow the Countryside Code to keep all creatures safe. Keep dogs on leads near steep banks (and away from toxic spring bulbs).
However, the town is best known due to being home to a crooked church spire at St Mary and All Saints Church, which twists and looks slightly unreal against the sky. It’s England’s own ‘tower of Pisa!’
Why the spire leans and twists
There’s a question! Of course there are many tall tales, but the most common explanation seems to be due to uneven timber, a heavy lead covering and centuries of weather. It’s basically shifted over time, and settled into the odd shape we know today.
Old buildings often move, especially when timber and weather meet for long enough.
But of course the legends are also there! From the devil landed on the church, and wrapping his tail around the spire. So when the church bells rang, he jumped away in fright, twisting the spire as he fled.
The other gentler legend is that the spire twisted in shock, when it saw a true virgin bride enter the church!
What about the real tower of Pisa?
Italy’s tower of Pisa sits in a very pretty town in Northern Italy. It began to tilt back in 1178, and was made worse in 1934 when Mussolini tried to fix it by pouring cement in the foundations, which made it sink further into the ground.
This bell tower has fewer steps on one side, and has now been ‘fixed’ to be stable for 200 years, but the tilt remains as the tourist attraction.
