Church Of St Mary

Church of St Mary, Farcet Broadway

A parish church with a 12th-century nave, west tower dating to around 1180–90, mid-13th-century chancel and south chapel. The south aisle was rebuilt with a wider east bay in 1270–80, and a south porch was added in the 14th century. The church underwent restoration in 1852, when a north aisle and arcade were constructed and the original 12th-century north door was relocated. The tower was restored between 1894 and 1897.

The walls are built of limestone rubble with Barnack dressings. Roofs are covered with stone slates and lead. The south elevation features a west parapet with corner finials and a low pyramidal roof. The belfry window has two pointed lights with a central octagonal shaft, moulded capital, round-headed arch, and shafted jambs with moulded capitals and bases. The nave clerestory contains three 19th-century quatrefoiled circular windows. The south aisle has two 19th-century windows.

The south doorway dates to the 13th century with chamfered jambs and a two-centred head. The south porch outer archway is 14th-century, comprising two chamfered orders on splayed responds with a two-centred head. The south chapel's rebuilt chancel north wall features a 15th-century low-side window with two cinquefoiled and transomed lights in a four-centred head with moulded label.

Internally, the nave arcades to the north date to the 19th century and have three bays with pointed arches on octagonal columns. The late-13th-century south arcade has four bays with round arches of two chamfered orders (the western arch is two-centred), supported on octagonal columns with moulded capitals and bases. The east respond has a moulded corbel with a free pendant carved with foliage, while the west respond has an attached half column. The east column formerly carried a cross arch to the aisle; the western bay may have been built as a planned extension to the nave.

The tower arch is two-centred with two chamfered orders, chamfered label, chamfered responds, and attached semicircular shafts with moulded caps, bases, and octagonal abacii. The south and west walls of the tower have tall round-headed lights that are deeply splayed and rebated on the external face, with a 19th-century stair turret.

The chancel arch dates to the late 13th century, with a two-centred arch of two chamfered orders, hollow-chamfered responds, and attached semi-octagonal shafts with moulded caps and bases. The arch to the chapel is mid-13th-century with two chamfered orders, chamfered responds, and moulded capitals with plain bases. The north wall of the chancel contains a locker constructed from reused material possibly of the 15th century. A 13th-century piscina has a trefoiled head, projecting drain, and wooden shelf. The sedilia are 13th-century, though restored. The south chapel's west arch is two-centred with two continuous chamfered orders.

The nave roof was rebuilt on old corbels carved with foliage, grotesque beasts, heads, and shields. Reset wooden carved angels with shields and six carved heads, possibly from an earlier roof, are incorporated into the present roof. A pulpit dated 1612 was rebuilt using early-16th-century carved panels; its steps were formerly part of the rood stair and were removed in 1852. Five early-16th-century benches survive with fleur-de-lis poppy heads.

Monuments and floor slabs include an inscribed slab over the south doorway to Dorothea Wright, dated 1674, who was known for her healing powers.