The 29.3 m leaning tower of the former church of St Chad, is also known as the 'Leaning Tower of South Cheshire' and the 'Hanging Steeple of Wimberie'.
The Tower of former Church of St Chad. (Formerly listed as Church of St Chad) is Grade II* listed. The description by British Listed Buildings can be seen at the following link. (
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A news article by Mark Hilditch about the opening of the tower to the public was published on 31st August 2008 in the Crewe and Nantwich Guardian.
Headline - 'Leaning tower to go on show'
"WYBUNBURY Tower opens its doors free of charge next month to the public.
The distinctive 96ft leaning tower is now all that remains of the 15th century Church of St Chad which was demolished in 1977 due to subsidence.
St Chads was the fifth church known to have been built there over the centuries on the unstable ground.
The tower was saved by Wybunbury Tower Preservation Trust which was formed in 1983 by a group of enthusiasts determined to save the landmark structure, which by then was leaning north east nearly four-feet from the vertical. Following several years of fund-raising by the trust, work to straighten Wybunbury Tower got underway in March 1989 when 85 hydraulic jacks were used to lift the 2,000 tonne structure.
The tower, which is now a grade II listed building, will be open between 11am and 4pm on September 13 and 14.
Parking has been made available by the neighbouring Swan public house.
The tower includes its own ground floor visitor centre and tours will also be available to see the six bells as well as the panoramic views from the top." Source: (
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"St Chad and the Old Churches of Wybunbury.
The Mercians had accepted Christianity in the 650s and Chad,in 669 AD, was a Bishop of Mercia. At sometime there was a church in Wybunbury which was dedicated to St Chad. The religious significance of having a priest and church was to remainan important factor in the history of Wybunbury. Records of the last five churches survive and illustrate what an extensive and important place the parish of Wybunbury had become,and even in medieval times it was a great parish. Eighteen townships clustered round the mother church of St Chad.
During the 15th century a new church was built with a tower that commanded great views and could be seen from far and wide. This church was built during the last phase of English Medieval architecture in Cheshire. According to Church wardens' accounts, in 1591 the church was taken down again and rebuilt, except for the tower which was left standing. In 1760 the church was again taken down and rebuilt except for the tower which, despite its lean, was preserved.
In 1832 James Trubshaw made a noteworthy attempt to restore and straighten the tower. He also demolished the old church and replaced it with a Gothic style church with large interior galleries seating 1,642. But by 1891 a report concluded that the high vaulted design made it unstable and was in danger of falling down. The church was demolished in 1892 but the tower, by then known as the “hanging steeple of Wybunbury" remained.
In 1893 James Brooks built a church planned to out last all others. It was built at the cost £8,575 and one third of the money was spent on the foundations. But it too was not to last and by 1970 was a cause of great concern. After considerable investigation and consultation the decision was made to close the church and build the next church on a new site. The church was finally demolished in 1976 but, again, the 15th century tower was left standing."
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Wybunbury Tower was saved from demolition in the 1980’s by a dedicated group of villagers now known as the Wybunbury Tower Preservation trust. In 1989 the tower was straightened in a project known as The Big Lift. Hydraulic jacks beneath the tower lifted it and brought it to rest on a base of reinforced concrete. It was intentionally left with a slight lean. (
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Other news articles about Wybunbury Tower can be found at the following links.
'Believe it or not, the village of Wybunbury and the Italian town of Pisa have something in common' (
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'TOWER TROUBLE IS PISA CAKE FOR WYBUNBURY' (
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