Church Of St Andrew

Church of St. Andrew

Parish church, primarily of the 14th and 15th centuries, with later modifications. The church was substantially rebuilt in the 19th century: the porch in 1831, aisles in 1846, and tower and east end in 1866 by J. Fowler under the supervision of G. E. Street. The chancel was restored in 1894. The building is constructed of limestone ashlar and squared greenstone rubble with ashlar dressings and lead roofs.

The church comprises a western tower, clerestoried nave, aisles, chancel, and south porch.

The three-stage early 15th-century tower was largely rebuilt in the 19th century. It features stepped corner buttresses, moulded plinth and string courses, and an embattled parapet with corner pinnacles. The belfry stage contains a three-light 15th-century louvred opening with deeply moulded reveals, brattished transom, and cusped heads to the trefoil lights. On the second stages (except the east side) are niches with crocketed canopies and pinnacles. The west side has a small 19th-century doorway beneath a 15th-century four-light window with wave-moulded reveals, brattished transom, and panel tracery.

The 15th-century north aisle has a plinth, parapet with fleurons and small heads in the cornice, and stepped buttresses. The west side features a three-light window with cusped heads. The south side contains three similar smaller windows with slightly four-centred arched heads. A north doorway with flat head and quatrefoils in the spandrels is dated 1846 on the hood mould. The clerestory is constructed of limestone ashlar with eight 15th-century three-light windows with cusped heads. At the east end of the aisle is a 15th-century four-light window with fine moulded mullions and ogee heads to the lights.

The chancel north wall has three pointed windows of three lights with 19th-century tracery. Beneath the central light is a small 15th-century doorway with square surround and leaves in the spandrels. A four-light 14th-century east window displays curvilinear tracery. The south chapel has a 19th-century east lancet and two three-light 19th-century south windows. The south clerestory matches that to the north. The south aisle contains four two-light 19th-century windows.

The fine south porch is gabled with angle buttresses, a double quatrefoil frieze, corner pinnacles, and a central cross fleury. It has a moulded pointed outer arch with rectangular label hood and quatrefoils to the spandrels. Above is a blank niche with small vault. The inner doorway has a simply chamfered pointed 14th-century arch.

Interior

The interior features four-bay early 15th-century nave arcades with octagonal piers and capitals, bell-moulded bases, and moulded pointed arches. The arches are double-chamfered with large chamfered reveals. The 15th-century chancel arch matches the nave arcades. At the east end of the south aisle are a small doorway and three-light window leading to the vestry/south chapel. In the chancel, a two-bay arcade to the south chapel matches the nave arcades. A small pointed moulded doorway at the easternmost end leads by a passage (containing a 19th-century piscina with trefoil head) to the vestry.

The nave roof was replaced in 1846, reusing some earlier work. It features brattished arch-braced tie beams with bosses and tracery to the spandrels. The chancel has a painted ceiling of 1894.

Fittings and Monuments

Poppy-head bench ends were presented in 1846. The east window contains stained glass by Burlisson and Gryll, dated 1898. A 14th-century font base with a recut plain bowl is present.

The south aisle contains a cross-legged effigy of a knight with chain mail surcoat, possibly Sir Harry de Halton, dating to around 1338, with a fine shield bearing a lion rampant. Beside the effigy is a mid-13th-century black Purbeck marble slab with marginal inscription to Walter de Bec, died circa 1250. A small brass to Bridget Rugeley, died 1658, is mounted on the south wall.