Church Of St Peter

Church of St Peter, Church Lawford

The Church of St Peter has 13th and 14th century origins, but was substantially rebuilt in 1872 by architects W. Slater and R.H. Carpenter, largely funded by the Duke of Buccleuch. The cost of rebuilding was 5,000 pounds.

The church is constructed of rock-faced limestone ashlar with ashlar plinth, quoins, buttresses and dressings. The structure comprises an aisled nave, chancel, west tower, north porch and south organ chamber with vestry. The roofs are plain tile with ridge cresting on the nave and chancel, while the porch and aisle lean-to roofs are lead-covered. Moulded coped gable parapets with kneelers run throughout.

The design is in the Gothic Revival Decorated style, with a 2-bay chancel and 5-bay nave. The chancel features a double-splayed plinth and diagonal buttresses of one offset. The east window contains 5 lights with bar tracery and a hood mould with head stops. The north side has a 3-light window, while the south side has a 3-light window. Both are decorated with reticulated tracery and hood moulds with foliage or grotesque stops. Two lancets of red sandstone, possibly restored medieval work, have deep splayed reveals and chamfered straight-headed surrounds, with a chamfered low-side window below the western lancet.

The north porch features a doorway of 3 moulded orders with nook-shafts, foliage stops and ribbed double-leaf doors. Inside the porch are moulded straight-headed traceried 2-light windows and a continuous moulded doorway with double-leaf doors.

The aisles contain 2-light windows and cinqfoiled west lancets. The clerestory has straight-headed 3-light windows. The vestry has a 2-light east window and a moulded south doorway with ribbed door and hood mould, alongside a straight-headed traceried window. The south aisle contains a blocked early 13th century round-arched doorway.

The tower comprises 3 stages with angle buttresses with weatherings and moulded string courses. The west doorway and window sit within a large moulded arch with ribbed double-leaf doors. The spandrels are elaborately carved with foliage and shields bearing a date, with 3 panels above containing shields. A large 3-light window lights the first stage. The second stage contains clock faces to the north and west, with trefoiled north and south lancets. The third stage has 2-light bell-chamber openings, a corbel table and moulded embattled parapet. A square north-east stair turret has an octagonal upper part rising above the parapet and a small west door.

Interior

The chancel has rendered walls and a re-used piscina beneath the east window, which has nook-shafts and a hood mould. The chancel roof is boarded barrel form with 4 bays, featuring moulded arched braces and tie beams, with stone shield corbels. A 2-bay arcade to the organ chamber has 2 moulded orders with a round pier and moulded half-octagon corbels. The chancel arch has 2 moulded orders, the inner with moulded half-octagon corbels.

The nave contains 3 bays of 14th century north arcade with 2 chamfered orders and octagonal piers of alternating bands of red and cream sandstone. Carved heads to the springings and east and west corbels are present, with a trefoiled ogee piscina beneath the east corbel. The south arcade has more elaborate capitals and no banding. The clerestory has a sill course. The tower arch has a continuous outer order and inner half-octagonal responds, with 3 outer segmental-pointed chamfered orders. The west window and doorway mirror the exterior. Fragments of medieval tracery remain in the south wall. The south aisle has an arch of 2 orders to the organ chamber.

Fittings and Monuments

The chancel contains a seat below the south window made of re-used panelling dated 1618, and a 17th century octagonal pulpit. The font is a simple 14th century moulded octagonal design. A 17th or 18th century communion rail features column-on-vase balusters. 19th century stalls and pews are present, along with 19th century oil lamps on wall brackets and painted arms of George III.

Stained glass includes an east window of 1887 and chancel south window of 1884 by Kempe, with additional late 19th and early 20th century glass throughout.

The south aisle doorway contains a grave slab inscribed to Thomas Evans dated 1612. The tower preserves fragments of 2 medieval coffin lids.