Parish Church Of The Holy Trinity

PARISH CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY

The Church of the Holy Trinity in Queenborough is a parish church with a late 14th-century core, associated with Edward III's foundation of the town. The tower is difficult to date and by some considered to be 12th century, although a 14th-century date is also possible. The church contains extensive internal 17th-century fittings, and all windows were renewed in 1885, which may be the date of a major restoration.

The building is constructed of random rubble with a red tiled roof. It has a plan comprising a west tower, nave and chancel in one, with a southwest porch. A corrugated iron building with Gothic windows is attached to the north side.

The north and south sides have buttresses of 17th-century or early 19th-century origin, with deep set-offs and angle buttresses to the chancel. Two 2-light windows on each side have round-headed lights. The east window is a 3-light example in 19th-century Perpendicular style with tracery. Both long sides have a single roof dormer with a hipped roof, tile-hung cheeks and a pair of 2-light timber windows with segmental arched heads beneath a timber hoodmould. The southwest porch features a chamfered outer doorway, a segmental-headed inner doorway and a 19th or 20th-century boarded roof.

The short west tower, difficult to date, has diagonal buttresses and an embattled parapet. A large projecting southeast stair turret with embattled parapet rises above the top of the tower. Large west buttresses at right angles to the west face are dated 1636 by Pevsner. A Victorian Perpendicular style west doorway with carved spandrels is accompanied by a 3-light window of around 1900.

The interior features a canted boarded roof with late 17th-century painted decoration, now faded and obscured by damage from a 1930s fire in the tower. White clouds and gold stars decorate the portion over the nave. At the east end, the centrepiece represents the Angel of the Apocalypse sounding the last trump in a painted egg and dart medallion with cherubim painted in smaller medallions. The painting is thought to be Dutch. An earlier roof structure may exist behind the boards. The tower arch is hollow-chamfered.

The 1610 font has an octagonal bowl on a thick and elaborately moulded baluster-like stem. The bowl is inscribed with the name of Nicholas Taylor, 'Jurat of this towne', and bears a bold relief carving of the postern gate of Queenborough Castle (demolished circa 1650) shown with two cannon. A Jacobean domed font cover accompanies it. A 19th-century timber drum pulpit has panelled sides pierced with stylised flower motifs. Nave benches have very simple, thick shaped ends. Chunky choir stalls with reeded backs to the seats include the mayor's seat, dated 1885. The organ chamber occupies a gallery projecting over the south door and forming an internal porch. Gilded sanctuary rails from 1939 are the remains of a former wrought iron chancel screen. No reredos is present, partly because changes to the ground level of the churchyard mean that the east window sill is very low. Paintings of Moses and Aaron, dating to around 1700, hang in the nave but presumably originated in the sanctuary. Two brass candelabra presented in 1718 and 1724 are also present.

The late 17th and early 18th-century fittings correspond to a period of prosperity and much rebuilding in Queenborough, which preserves small but smart houses of this period in the High Street. The late 19th-century reordering of the church, with new windows and internal fittings, was sensitively done and complements the earlier fabric. The church stands in a churchyard with a wealth of good monuments and is a key element, historically and architecturally, in the main street of this small town rich in historic buildings.