Church of St Mary and All Saints

Church of St Mary and All Saints, Bradley

This village church in a large churchyard is Grade I listed. It possesses a late 13th and early 14th century core, with a Lady Chapel dedicated in 1343 and a mid-14th century north arcade. The nave was rebuilt in the early 16th century. The building underwent substantial restoration between 1906 and 1908 to the designs of W.D Caröe. It is constructed mostly of ashlar masonry with tiled roofs.

The plan comprises a nave and chancel with a two-bay north-east Lady Chapel whose east wall is flush with the chancel, a three-bay north aisle, a west tower, and an internal vestry at the west end of the north aisle.

Exterior

The chancel is fitted with clasping pilaster buttresses and low pilaster buttresses beneath the sill of the east window, which is a three-light traceried window in the Decorated style. The south side of the chancel features a probably 13th century priest's doorway with a medieval timber door, and three Decorated style traceried windows. The nave has an embattled parapet and an imposing early 16th century south elevation with very tall transomed three- and two-light windows with cusped lights. A square-headed Perpendicular south doorway with carved spandrels sits within an earlier, tall, blind arch.

The Lady Chapel is buttressed with a moulded stone cornice; the upper courses of masonry are later replacements. It possesses a triple lancet east window and two 14th century two-light traceried windows to the west. One of these windows has an integral small square light below the sill, and there is also a four-light square-headed window with cusped lights. The lean-to north aisle has angle buttresses and buttresses with set-offs. A north doorway of 19th or early 20th century appearance is accompanied by a plain square-headed window to its west and two square-headed two-light windows with cusped tracery. An 18th century sketch of the church confirms that these are later replacements.

The two-stage west tower features an internal south-west stair turret, diagonal buttresses, and a frieze of blind tracery below the embattled parapet. A 1907 west window displays reticulated tracery, and two-light belfry openings have cusped lights.

Interior

The interior contains exceptionally interesting features and fittings with unplastered walls. A double-chamfered chancel arch leads to an impressive Caröe chancel screen dedicated in 1914, which features flamboyant traceried openings and a rood loft, utilising the medieval roof loft stair turret on the south side. An exceptionally fine three-bay north arcade displays very tall piers of quatrefoil section with fillets and rolls and moulded arches. A two-bay arcade between the Lady Chapel and chancel has an octagonal pier supporting double-chamfered arches. The plain pointed arch between Lady Chapel and north aisle bears the scars of two lower lean-to roofs on its west face. A tall double-chamfered tower arch features moulded capitals to the responds.

The visible chancel roof dates to the early 20th century, a boarded wagon divided into panels by moulded ribs, with a medieval roof recorded to survive behind. The Lady Chapel roof is medieval, consisting of four tie-beam trusses with cranked tie beams, king posts and curved braces. The north aisle roof is also medieval, with rafters fixed to a wall plate on the outer face of the arcade, the wall plate supported on stone corbels, and one tier of purlins. The nave roof dates to 1908, a very shallow-pitched tie-beam roof with short curved braces, divided into panels by moulded ribs.

The east wall incorporates the remains of a 14th century reredos, a notably rare survival, consisting of a chamfered recess filled with large-scale stone tracery. A 12th century tub font displays unusually lavish carved friezes including a key pattern and cable moulding. A polygonal timber pulpit of 1907 is decorated with buttresses and ogee arches. A panel of medieval floor tiles remains in the sanctuary. Early 20th century choir stalls in an Arts and Crafts style feature ends with poppyhead finials. Fragments of Perpendicular stained glass appear in the south windows of the nave and in the east window.

Numerous monuments are present, including a wall monument to Sir Thomas Browne, who died in 1633, and his wife, featuring kneeling alabaster figures. 17th century stencilling and text appear on the north respond of the chancel arch. Nave benches have square-headed shoulders.

Historical Context

The church guide suggests that the north arcade originated at the Augustinian Priory at Stafford and was re-erected here in 1542, following a recorded purchase of cartloads of stone by the church wardens. The church possesses a copy of a circa 1798 print showing the north side before the restoration of the north aisle windows, and a Chronicle of Bradley includes a photograph of the interior looking west before Caröe's restoration.

The church is outstanding for the quality and extent of its medieval fabric, including a notably fine 13th century arcade, three medieval roofs, the rare remains of a 14th century reredos, and a 12th century tub font. The substantial restoration by Caröe in the early 20th century revealed much of the medieval fabric and added carpentry and joinery of a very high quality.