Church of All Saints

Church of All Saints

This is a church of cruciform plan with a central tower, dating from the mid to late 12th century, with 13th-century aisles and a 15th-century chancel. The building was restored in 1849 by B. Ferry, and underwent more extensive restoration work between 1851 and 1853 by G.E. Street. It is constructed of limestone rubble with ashlar dressings and retains some original plain-tile roofs.

The church comprises a three-bay nave with aisles to the north and south, porches to the south and west, transepts, chancel, and a three-stage central tower. The chancel windows are two-light openings with pointed segmental-arched heads, while the east window is probably from the 19th century. The transepts are late-Romanesque in character; the north transept retains its corbel-tables and angle-shafts, whilst the south transept has a rebuilt wall featuring a three-light window matching that in the north. The aisles are originally 13th-century and retain surviving lancets to the west and east of the south porch. Above the south porch is a 14th-century triplet of lancets, formerly a gabled dormer but incorporated into 14th-century walling when the aisles were raised. The north aisle contains two two-light windows with Geometrical Decorated tracery and a two-light window with reticulated tracery west of the porch.

The south porch, probably 14th-century, shelters a transitional doorway beneath a moulded outer arch with dogtooth ornament on detached shafts with carved capitals. The 14th-century clerestory has two pointed-trefoil windows on each side. The west wall of the nave is largely late-Romanesque with clasping angle-shafted buttresses and features a sumptuous doorway of two orders with projecting under-cut lozenges and dogtooth ornament on detached shafts with primitive stiff-leaf capitals. The original door retains elaborate 12th-century crescent hinges. The deep semi-circular porch has an entrance arch of two chamfered orders on detached shafts with moulded capitals. The three-stage tower has a north-west stair turret with angle-shafts to its top stage; elsewhere it has pairs of angle buttresses. The top stage, featuring paired lancet openings, was rebuilt in 1630.

Interior

The chancel contains two-bay blind arcades over the side windows and an elaborately-coffered canted roof with carved bosses, probably from the 19th century. The transepts feature blind semi-circular arches to the east; the north transept incorporates a blocked 12th-century doorway and window. Stone benches line the walls, and the roofs have arched braces to collars and curved wind-braces, possibly 15th-century. The crossing displays elaborate arches with much chevron ornament and compound piers with a variety of fluted and water-leaf capitals. The ribbed vault is the work of Street. The nave arcades and the arch to the south transept are 14th-century, though the shallow-pitched five-bay nave roof is probably 17th-century with square baluster king-posts. Remains of 12th-century vaulting-shafts are visible in the west wall.

The oak benches include much 17th-century panelling, some carved with lunettes, though the chancel woodwork is entirely 19th-century. The pulpit dates from 1896 and is by C.E. Kempe. The church contains much 19th-century stained glass, including the west window of 1852 by Hardman to Street's design, an east window of circa 1890 by Kempe, and probably several aisle windows by the same maker. Episcopal armorial panels are present in the chancel. Monuments include a wall plaque of 1620, three late 18th-century memorials with classical surrounds and cartouches, and wall-tablets commemorating several 19th-century bishops of Oxford. The 12th-century crescent hinges on the west door are notable examples of the 40 or so surviving examples of this type. The church formerly belonged to Abingdon Abbey.