Church Of St Michael And All Angels

Church of St Michael and All Angels

Parish church, begun around 1200 with significant work in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. The building was restored in 1864 by Edward Browning of Stamford. It is constructed of ashlar and coursed limestone rubble with lead roofs.

The plan comprises a western tower, nave with aisles, south porch, chancel and north chapel.

The western tower is a four-stage structure of 14th-century ashlar with clasping buttresses, plinth, chamfered string courses, frieze and embattled parapet with corner pinnacles. Above rises a set-back crocketed spire with two tiers of lucarnes in the four principal directions. The belfry stage contains two-light cusped-headed windows with quatrefoils and brattished transomes. The ground stage has single two-light windows with hollow chamfered surrounds. The west doorway displays an elaborate continuously moulded surround with bosses and vine scrolls to the outer concave order, and a moulded hood. The spandrels are carved with jousting helms bearing peacock devices. The doorway is flanked by gabled niches at the buttresses with nodding ogee canopies and statue brackets; similar niches appear on the side walls. Above the door is a three-light window with cusped heads and concave surround.

The north aisle is a 19th-century addition with two-light windows to the west and three three-light windows to the side, all with flowing tracery. A 19th-century doorway stands in the angle to the taller 15th-century embattled chapel. The coursed limestone rubble north wall features two tall three-light windows with plate tracery separated by a stepped and gabled buttress, and a four-light window of similar character in the east wall. The chancel east window is a 19th-century work with five transomed lights and flowing tracery; a similar three-light window appears in the south wall. The nave clerestory has three pairs of 15th-century lights with cusped ogee heads, above which runs a lozenge frieze and embattled parapet. The embattled north aisle was reconstructed in the 19th century with three-light windows with panel tracery, one of which is 15th-century work. The south porch was also reconstructed in the 19th century and has a double-chamfered outer arch with 19th-century shafted reveals, though the inner pointed doorway is contemporary with the original structure.

Interior

The nave has three bays with arcades of around 1200 featuring circular piers and abaci, hobnailed on the north side, carrying double-chamfered round arches. The 19th-century arched braced roof rises from marble wall shafts on elaborate figured corbels with Southwell-style leaves to the undersides. The tall 15th-century tower arch has a continuously moulded surround and octagonal capitals. A 19th-century chancel arch with clustered shafted reveals, elaborate floriate capitals and deeply moulded pointed head connects the nave to the chancel. To the south, an opening to the pulpit has a 19th-century richly moulded nodding ogee arched head. Double-chamfered arches mark the east ends of the aisles, that to the north featuring an annular respond. The north wall of the chancel contains a double-chamfered arch with reset annular responds. The south side has a 19th-century opening matching the chancel arch design and an early 13th-century piscina with shafted reveals and reset arched head. In the north chapel west wall a further round-headed arch is visible, truncated by the north wall. The south wall of the chapel holds two small ogee-headed niches, and the east wall displays a quatrefoil frieze beneath a blocked opening.

The stained glass includes work by Waites dated 1851 in the north chapel east window, and a window by Clayton and Bell from 1874 in the east wall.

Fittings and Monuments

A fine brass candelabrum dated 1685 with a cherub's head stands in the nave. All other fittings are 19th-century work, including a font with marble embellishments and an elaborately carved pulpit. Three painted charity boards are positioned in the tower.

The chancel north wall contains a 14th-century arched tomb with a full-length effigy of a knight in armour resting his head on a helm with S-collar and feet upon a lion (the legs were probably reworked in the 16th century). The four-centred arch above has fleurons and a panelled archivolt; the ogee hood is elaborately crocketed and rises to a foliate finial, beneath which is a triangular panel of seaweed carving. The tomb chest sides display a quatrefoil frieze with shields.

The south wall of the chancel holds an elaborate alabaster and marble sideboard tomb to Robert Manners (died 1587) and his son Oliver, depicting the deceased kneeling opposite an altar in armour with ruffs. Behind them are semi-circular arches with roses in the archivolts. A fluted frieze bearing a memorial inscription is supported on composite pillars. Above is a cartouche of arms flanked by single shields, all in strapwork surrounds, with a gadrooned base bearing square sunken inscription panels.

On the north side is a similar wall monument to Dr. Stanton, Dean of Lincoln, showing the deceased and wife kneeling opposite with two female weepers. Above are two semi-circular arches with an angel blowing bubbles and Time. Composite columns support a frieze and a cartouche of arms supporting an obelisk, with scaly brackets and a death's head corbel beneath.

A fine wall plaque to Mary Bertie (died 1678/9) features a draped inscription panel surmounted by a cartouche of arms with flaming urn and gadrooned base. A similar monument to Charles Bertie (died 1710) displays draped styling with palm leaves and an escutcheon.

In the south aisle stands a pair of late 18th-century monuments to the Pierrepoint family in the form of obelisks with urns, rectangular inscription panels and painted panels of arms beneath.