Church of St Mary is a Grade II* listed building in the East Suffolk local planning authority area, England. First listed on 7 December 1966. A Medieval Church.
Church of St Mary
- WRENN ID
- shadowed-pewter-plum
- Grade
- II*
- Local Planning Authority
- East Suffolk
- Constituency
- Suffolk Coastal MP: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Lab)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 7 December 1966
- Type
- Church
- Period
- Medieval
- Address
- Church of St Mary, Halesworth Road, Walpole
- OS grid reference
- TM 366 746
- Coordinates
- 52.31866, 1.47135
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Church of St Mary is a parish church featuring a nave and chancel with a core that dates back to the 12th century or earlier. It underwent significant restoration in 1878, during which the tower and aisle were entirely rebuilt. The church comprises a nave, chancel, west tower, north aisle, and south porch. It is constructed from flint rubble, with some coursed work on the lower parts of the nave and chancel, and has stone dressings with a slated roof.
The small square tower has an octagonal spire, and the plinth includes flushwork panels from the old tower. The bell-chamber stage features large 2-light openings in the Decorated style, with colonettes at the corners. The nave has three bays, and the chancel has two bays, both with 2-light windows, except for the east chancel window, which has three lights. The chancel is supported by pilaster buttresses on the north and south sides, likely from the 12th century.
There is a simple 14th-century gabled porch that has been much restored. Inside, there is a 15th-century octagonal font that is moulded but not carved, which was brought from St Andrew's Church in Norwich. The south sanctuary contains a 14th-century cusped piscina and drop-seat sedilia. Above the tower arch, there is a small plaster representation of the Hanoverian Royal Arms. Additionally, there are two simple early 19th-century tablets on the north chancel wall. The church is designated as Grade II* for its surviving medieval features.
Local climate
Church of St Mary sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 730 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 80% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 59% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 15 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 85% of listed buildings. Of these, 9 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
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