Church Of St Edith

Church of St. Edith

This is a parish church of late 13th-century and 14th-century date, substantially restored in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The restoration work includes 1859 general work, 1900 chancel restoration, repair to the spire after lightning strike in 1906, south aisle restoration in 1915, and nave re-roofing in 1916.

The building is constructed of limestone ashlar with some coursed rubble, with Westmorland slate and lead roofs. It comprises a west tower, nave, chancel, north and south aisles, and south porch.

The west tower rises in three stages with a chamfered plinth, gabled and crocketed set-back buttresses, and a moulded string course featuring animal heads where it meets the broach spire. The spire has three tiers of lucarnes in alternating directions with cusped reticulated tracery, human head stops and foliate terminals. The belfry stage contains four louvred two-light bell openings with cusped reticulated tracery. On the south side is a single lancet with trefoil head, and a similar window faces west.

The north aisle dates to the 14th century and has a chamfered plinth, gabled buttresses, and coped gables. Its west wall contains a two-light window with cusped reticulated tracery, ogee heads to the lights and a wave-moulded pointed head. Three smaller similar windows face north, along with a late 13th-century doorway with engaged shafted reveals, a keeled moulded head and two orders of dogtoothing. The east wall has a three-light window matching the style. The south aisle mirrors the north with three two-light windows to the side and a three-light window to the east.

The chancel features two tall 14th-century two-light windows with pointed and moulded heads dating from the 1900 restoration. To the east is a large five-light window with restored curvilinear tracery including cusped mouchettes and quatrefoil and trefoil heads. A narrow priest's door with moulded reveals and moulded pointed head stands to the south, alongside a tall two-light 14th-century window with quatrefoil to the head.

The gabled 14th-century south porch has gabled set-back buttresses and a double entrance with filleted double-shafted reveals and double wave-moulded head. The 14th-century south door has slender filleted double-shafted reveals, annular capitals and a richly moulded head, now lacking its stops.

Interior

The four-bay nave arcades feature a late 13th-century north arcade with quatrefoil filleted shafts, hobnail annular capitals, chamfered and rolled arches with dogtoothing and human head stops. The south arcade has matching shafts but double wave-moulded arches, hollow moulded hoods and human head stops. Above the north arcade is a worn wall painting of a seated human figure. The 1916 nave roof has scalloped principals. The 14th-century tower arch has filleted double-shafted reveals and a double wave-moulded head, with the hacked-back gable of an earlier nave roof above it. In the south aisle is a pointed single-chamfered doorway to the rood loft.

The chancel, restored in 1900, contains a triple sedilia of that date with cusped-headed compartments and a contemporary piscina. The elevated altar has a marble reredos. The 1900 fittings include oak choir stalls and pulpit, supplemented by 19th-century pitch pine pews.

In the tower is a fine painted royal arms of Queen Anne dated 1708. An impressive though damaged 14th-century limestone carving of the Virgin and Child stands in the south aisle, discovered during the 1859 restoration in the blocking of the rood stair. The carving displays naturalistic drapery, fleurons to the base and extensive traces of red, green and blue paint. The plain 14th-century octagonal font has a double-chamfered plinth and a roll-moulded octagonal stem. Three sections of early 12th-century octagonal shafts are also present, one with a scalloped capital, possibly from the belfry lights of an earlier tower.

Monuments

In the chancel is a limestone wall plaque to Elizabeth Everingham, died 1707, with a draped cartouche and cherub over an epitaph panel. An illegible painted scrolled panel dated 1745 with cherubs and roses also hangs there. In the south aisle is a wall plaque to Gerard Gardiner, died 1742, featuring debased Corinthian columns supporting a segmental pediment with fluted keyblock, cherub and flaming urn.