Church Of St Martin

The Church of St Martin is a building of group value, dating back to the 12th century, with significant additions, alterations, and restoration across several periods. It is constructed of flint with stone dressings, with rendered cladding to the upper stage of the tower, and has plain tiled roofs. The church comprises a 12th-century Norman tower, a nave with a chancel to the east, a north aisle, a north chapel, a vestry, and a south porch. A pentice roof covers the north aisle. The tower, located to the west, is battle-mented and two-stage, with diagonal buttressing to the west end. It features cambered head louvred openings in the upper stage and brick-edged lancet windows below on its north and south faces, with stone-edged lancets to the lower stage. A clock face is located on the west front, flanked by two cambered head, louvred openings with lancet windows below. The rest of the church is 19th century, built in the 13th-century lancet style with trefoil-headed windows interspersed with buttresses. A larger, late 19th-century mullioned and transomed window is found in the north chapel. The north and west doors are 19th century, set within pointed arched, chamfered surrounds. The south door is situated within a gabled porch featuring cusped bracing and bargeboards. Inside, the nave is divided into four bays, the westernmost bay potentially dating to the 15th century. The bays are separated by a nave arcade, supported by octagonal piers with hollow chamfer to the arches. A mid-15th-century chancel arch is supported by half-column responds. Timber posts to the tower, braced, remain in the west of the church. The furnishings include a chalk and marble pulpit on a round pillar with twisted, gilded, wrought-iron rails resting on four piers with human corbel supports, a tub font, and several brasses, including depictions of Robert de Brantingham (circa 1400) and John Boothe, Bishop of Exeter (died 1478). Several monuments have been moved to the north nave wall, including a chest tomb to Thomas Cornwallis, Groom-Porter to Queen Elizabeth I (died 1626) and his wife, featuring half-life-size alabaster effigies on a black topped chest. Additionally, there are two well-preserved 18th-century Rococo wall cartouches located at the west end of the north wall, one dedicated to James Ffox (died 1753).