A few miles south of Rochdale proper, but still in the borough, Middleton’s parish church is also a Grade I monument and merits a closer look.

Most of St Leonard’s is from the 1520s, with a few earlier remnants like the south arcade, south porch and tower from the 1410s, and the priest’s door dating back a century before that.

The church was completed in a Perpendicular Gothic style by Sir Richard Assheton as thanks for the knighthood he received for his role in the Battle of Flodden in 1513. Make sure to see the Flodden Window in the sanctuary, thought to be the UK’s oldest war memorial.

St Leonard’s also has a tremendous array of monumental brasses from the 1500s and 1600s, among which is the only brass depicting a Civil War officer in full armour.