Church Of St Margaret

Church of St Margaret

This church on Wolston Main Street originated in the 12th century, with significant medieval development and later modifications. It stands as an aisled cruciform building with a crossing tower, chancel, nave with aisles, transepts, and a north vestry.

The chancel dates from around 1300, while the remainder of the church was substantially rebuilt in the 14th century, with a clerestory added in the 15th century. The tower was rebuilt in 1760 by Job Collins, and an 18th-century vestry was added. The entire church underwent restoration in 1860.

The building is constructed primarily of coursed limestone rubble with red sandstone dressings. The transepts were partly rebuilt in coursed squared limestone with bands of red sandstone ashlar. The clerestory and vestry are of regular coursed sandstone, while the tower is of sandstone ashlar. The chancel, nave and aisles have lead roofs, while the transepts, vestry and tower retain old plain-tile roofs. The building features coped gable parapets; the chancel, nave and aisles have gablet kneelers, whilst the transepts have moulded kneelers.

The chancel comprises three bays with a sandstone splayed plinth and diagonal buttresses of one offset. A moulded sill course runs along the wall. The east window is a moulded 5-light design with 19th-century curvilinear tracery and hood mould with return stops; its upper wall section was rebuilt. A 19th-century cross finial crowns the gable. A massive south buttress of two offsets supports the structure. A doorway of two moulded orders with hood mould opens to the south, and two windows with renewed Y-tracery are present. A low-side recessed chamfered mullioned window of two round-arched lights is notable. The north side features a window with Y-tracery, and a large 17th-century segmental-pointed 3-light mullioned window with pointed outer lights.

The two-bay vestry has a lean-to roof and recessed chamfered mullioned windows of two basket-arched lights.

The south transept exhibits 19th-century twin south gables with diagonal buttresses of two offsets. Its 3-light east window has 19th-century geometrical tracery, and the 3-light south window features intersecting tracery with a sill course. The aisle has diagonal and two south buttresses of two offsets. A Romanesque doorway of two orders—the outer with shafts and scalloped capitals—displays zigzag and hood mould with pellet ornament; 19th-century ribbed double-leaf doors hang within. South-east and south-west windows have cusped Y-tracery, and a large 19th-century trefoiled lancet is present.

The three-bay clerestory features straight-headed traceried 2-light windows to north and south.

The north transept has diagonal buttresses of one offset. Its 3-light east window has restored curvilinear tracery. Notably, the north wall bears a 3-light mullioned window with a label dated 1624 inscribed with initials RW, above which sits a small 2-light mullioned window dated 1577, both inserted into the original arch. An inscription at the foot reads "Restored AD 1866". The aisle has diagonal and two north buttresses. A north doorway features chamfered inner and moulded outer orders with hood mould, fitted with early to mid-19th-century double-leaf panelled doors with applied mouldings. Traceried straight-headed windows—one of 2-light and one of 1-light to the west—are present.

The west front features a large nave buttresses of three offsets and an altered segmental-pointed mullioned window of five cusped lights. The aisles have windows similar to the clerestory.

The tower comprises two stages with a string course. Bell openings have Y-tracery, and a shallow pyramidal roof sits behind the parapet.

The interior is plastered. The chancel contains three sedilia and a separate piscina dating from around 1300, both featuring shafts and cusped arches. The shallow-pitched roof was extensively repaired in 1680 and features moulded tie beams, curved braces, wallposts, and painted decoration from 1760 with later restoration.

The 12th-century crossing displays large east and west single-stepped arches with roll mouldings to the west and nook-shafts. Capitals are carved with small figures, one with interlace. Small, low north and south arches, which formerly had windows above (possibly renewed in 1760), feature scalloped capitals; the pointed north arch is of two orders.

The nave roof dates to the 15th century and comprises moulded purlins, ridge and tie beams, and three carved bosses. The arcades are of early 14th-century (south) and later 14th-century (north) date, featuring octagonal piers with moulded capitals and bases. The aisles have lean-to roofs.

The north transept arch is of chamfered and moulded orders. The transept ceiling is panelled with wood ribs. The segmental-pointed south transept arch is of two chamfered orders. Piscina, sedile and two tomb recesses feature shafts and cinqfoiled arches with hood moulds topped by head stops.

Furnishings include an altar rail of 1683, brought from Rowington, composed of large turned balusters. An octagonal font, possibly 17th-century, displays mouldings and primitive crocketed ogee gables. A 19th-century Romanesque-style pulpit and 19th-century pews are present. Stained glass in the east window dates to 1859.

Monuments include two effigies—one much defaced—of around 1300 housed in tomb recesses. An early 16th-century Purbeck marble monument features a recess originally intended for brasses, with panelled sides, coving, cresting and a quatrefoil frieze below. A wall monument to Johannes Mitchener (1760) in the chancel south displays an open pediment.