Church Of St Paul

The Church of St Paul is a parish church located in Branxton, dating from the late 12th century or early 13th century, with significant rebuilding completed in 1849. It is constructed from snecked rhyolite with sandstone dressings and features a nave, chancel, and a north-west tower, all designed in a Romanesque style. The nave, which consists of five bays, was entirely rebuilt in 1849. To the left of the nave is a gabled porch that contains a round-headed door framed by a chevron-moulded surround, supported by two orders of columns with cushion capitals. The church has small round-headed windows featuring chamfered sill bands and drip stones. The lower chancel, built with older masonry, does not have any side windows, while the 19th-century east window includes shafts, cushion capitals, and a roll-moulded arch. The tower is notable for its two-light bell openings, which are separated by a shaft with a cushion capital, and it is topped with a stone pyramidal roof.

Inside, the church features a chancel arch from the 12th century, which was rebuilt in the 13th century in a pointed form, with semicircular responds and slimmer outer orders of columns on both the east and west sides. The capitals are scalloped, and the bases are moulded with spurs. The main arch is steeply pointed, with a chamfered profile that includes broach stops, while the outer arch is simply chamfered. The altar rails from the 17th century are characterized by fat turned balusters. The nave boasts an open timber roof supported by arched braces resting on stone corbels.