Church Of St Mary And St Nicholas

SP 5302 LITTLEMORE COWLEY ROAD (East side) 15/99 Church of SS. Mary and 18/07/63 Nicholas. GV II*

Church. 1836, tower and chancel 1848. By H.J. Underwood for Rev. (later Cardinal) J.H. Newman, extended by Joseph Clarke. Coursed limestone rubble with ashlar dressings; steep-pitched tiled roof. 4-bay aisleless nave, and chancel with tower and vestry to north. Early English style. Nave has lancets flanked by buttresses and, to west, a double lancet with plate-tracery. The west door has detached shafts with stiff-leaf capitals. Triple lancet east window with dogtooth ornament and shafts. The 3-stage tower has 2-light shafted openings with plate tracery (in the top stage ) flanked by quatrefoil openings. Interior: Chancel roof of 4-bays has 5-sided coupled rafters and arched braces rising from wooden angel corbels with elaborate bosses. Nave roof (not original) has 7-boarded trefoil trusses. The stone altar stands against richly-decorated and gilded arcading with a triple sedilia to south. The lancet to north has an elaborate double-shafted rear arch with trefoil head and dogtooth ornament. The richly-carved oak screen of 1913 in C15 style is by F.H. Crossley and has rood figures from Oberammergau. Elaborate 4-tiered oak font cover of 1924 stands on a C13 font with pointed trefoil arcading divided by fleur-de-lys brought from Church of St. Mary, Oxford. Mid C19 glass in 8 lancets is by T. Willement, and 2 others (the eastermost in the nave) have figures, of c.1887 by Morris and Co. East window of c.1900 by Louis Davis, and the central pair in the nave north wall also c.1900 by Shrigley and Hunt of Lancaster. Wall monument of c.1836 to Newmans' mother, with shallow relief, by R. Westmacott Jnr.Graded II* for historical asaciation with JH Newman. (V.C.H. Oxfordshire V, pp.213; Buildings of England, Oxfordshire pp. 688-9)

Listing NGR: SP5375502770