Join Friends of Middleton Park member John Newbould for a walk and talk about recusancy in Middleton.

From the Reformation until Catholic emancipation the 'old faith' survived by those members of the Catholic gentry who could allow their houses to be used as chapels and were able to maintain a chaplain. From the early to mid 1700s Middleton and the Brandling family were to gain notoriety for having such a chapel in Middleton. In response to a growing population, St Mary the Virgin Church was consecrated in 1846. The people of Middleton now had their own church and no longer had to travel to Rothwell to worship. There will be a short history and tour of the Church and a viewing of the Brandling family graves.