Church Of St Thomas A' Becket

Church of St Thomas à Becket

This is a ruined church now lacking its roof. The building was founded in 1260, with surviving fabric from that date visible in the tower. The tower was raised in the mid-15th century when bells were inserted around 1440. The nave and south aisle date from the 14th century. The north aisle was replaced in the 15th century by another nave and north aisle, an unusual arrangement that included 2 chancels and 2 chantry chapels. In 1617, a gable with a domestic-style window was inserted to light one of 2 lofts. The south porch was rebuilt with 2 new buttresses in 1927.

The church is constructed of large, well-coursed, finely dressed stone. It comprises a west tower, double nave, chancels and aisles, and a south porch. A Perpendicular plinth with chamfered weathered course runs around the entire building. The embattled tower has an east stair turret and a sheer wall with angle buttresses. The west face displays a 2-over-3 light pointed arched window with cusped heads and a quatrefoil to the apex. The hoodmould features beak head and human mask stops. The north and south faces have smaller 2-light traceried windows with a clear break in stonework above, indicating an added stage with slightly flatter arched 2-light windows to each face and traceried heads to the belfry. False machicolation appears on the embattled parapet with chamfered moulded castellation matching the plinth profile. The north and east faces have wide circles for a clock dated 1809, now in the new church. The stair turret breaks forward and is clasped by the south aisle, which has a 2-light window with a quatrefoil. A similar window to the north aisle sits in a deeper chamfered surround. Diagonal buttresses to the aisle of 4 bays are articulated by offset buttresses. The 2-light windows with traceried heads are set in square, deeply chamfered surrounds. The porch in the 1st bay has diagonal buttresses, a richly moulded pointed arch doorway, and a coped gable. Some roof slates are reused gravestones. A diagonal buttress marks the junction with the 2-bay chancel, which had a lower roof than the nave with a sanctus bell cote at the junction of the two roof lines. The chancel features a pointed arched priests' door and 2-light windows. The east end has 2 gables with lean-to roofs to the aisles, each with identical 3-light windows with traceried heads. The original east window is an elegant plain 2-centred arched window retaining only 2 tall mullions and a transom. An added chancel window to the north has a flatter arched window mullioned and transomed with 5 arched lights to the lower part and a hoodmould with devils' face stops and a shield to the apex. A buttress with a carved crocket sits at its offsets. To the right, a 3-light arched window to the north aisle has cusped lights with cavetto mullions, 4 cusped lights over, and a quatrefoil to the apex, possibly from the early 16th century. The north return wall has windows in double chamfered surrounds with straight lintels of 2 and 3 lights. One survives with arched lights with sunken spandrels similar to the east window; another earlier example has 2 cusped lights carved on the lintel. A buttress at the division of the nave and chancel has many offsets. Set in the 4th bay of the nave is a gable with a 3 over 5-light mullioned and transomed window with a hoodmould with decorative label stops. The gable is coped with kneelers and ball finials. A north door in the 1st bay of the nave has a semi-circular arched doorway with a broad chamfered surround.

Interior

The church contains 4-bay naves with octagonal piers. Those to the south aisle and nave rise from square bases with chamfered corners decorated with carved faces, shields, and hearts. The moulded capitals are decorated with alternate squares and circles in high relief. The north arcade differs with octagonal bases and moulded capitals. The chancel arches angle differently from one another. One capital is engraved with a chi-rho symbol. The northernmost chancel arch has a cable moulded capital. The lower 2-bay chancels have similar columns. A corbel with a carved grotesque is present. A piscina survives in the original chancel. The tower arch rises from moulded capitals with a chamfered surround and a broach stop of similar design to the northernmost chancel arch. Two roof lines suggest the tower arch was altered when the tower was raised and the original north aisle was altered. A pointed arch doorway opens to the south inner wall of the tower, with 3 others at various stages of the tower. The porch has trefoiled pointed transverse arches to its roof.

This building is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.