Church Of St Mary

Church of St Mary

This parish church dates from around 1300 with significant 15th-century work, and was substantially remodelled in 1812 for George Manners of Bloxholm Hall. The building is constructed of coursed limestone rubble and ashlar with ashlar dressings, plain tile roofs, and 19th-century ashlar coped gables with kneelers.

The church comprises a west tower, nave with clerestory, aisles, chancel, and south porch. The three-stage tower is slightly set back into the nave and features a deeply moulded plinth with angle buttresses with set-offs. The west face displays a single pointed arched, two-light Y tracery window in a deeply chamfered surround with hood mould, above which is a large circular bronze clock face. The lower two stages of the north and south faces are blank. Above a moulded band to the third stage, each of the north and south faces has a single two-light pointed arched bell opening with panel tracery. A further moulded band above this is topped with corner gargoyles and fretted battlements with crocketed corner pinnacles.

The north aisle west wall contains a single pointed lancet in a chamfered surround. The three-bay north wall has a single large and three small buttresses, and a central segment-headed doorway in chamfered surround with plank door. Either side are single three-light, segment-headed windows with flowing tracery in moulded chamfered surrounds with hood moulds. The east wall of the north aisle has a single two-light pointed arched window in a chamfered surround.

The chancel has diagonal buttresses with set-offs and a single three-light, pointed arched east window with cusped intersecting tracery in a chamfered surround with hood mould. The clerestory features three pointed four-centred arched windows to both north and south, each two-light with panel tracery in chamfered surrounds with hood moulds.

The south aisle contains a two-light, pointed arched window to the east. The south porch is centrally positioned and gabled, with a three-light segment-headed flowing tracery window to the east in a moulded chamfered surround, and to the west a three-light, flat-headed panel tracery window in a chamfered surround with hood. The porch has diagonal buttresses with set-offs, a moulded plinth, moulded eaves band and parapet. The unusual four-centred arched opening features a roll-moulded arch with the coat of arms of George Manners dated 1813 in Coade stone above. The inner doorway has a four-centred arch with Gothic tracery and double doors.

Interior

The interior has two-and-a-half bay nave arcades (the tower occupies the western bay) with double chamfered arches, octagonal piers and responds, the north arcade responds being keeled. Capitals and bases are moulded; those on the south have benches. The tower arch is double chamfered with shaft responds, moulded capitals and bases.

The nave and chancel have plaster quatropartite vaults added for General Manners, supported on shafted corbels. An octagonal 15th-century font with cusped decorative panels and stem sits in the nave. The chancel contains an aumbry with crocketed ogee arch.

Furnishings include oak benches, pulpit, choir stalls, and altar rail from around 1900. Wall tablets commemorate Danial Mackinnon (1825) in the south aisle and George Wade (1807) in the north aisle. A plaque in the tower records the gift of the clock in 1887 by Lieutenant Colonel Ellis of Bloxholm Hall. In the floor lies a coffin lid to Robert Glaisierr dated 1652.