Church Of St Dennis

The Church of St Dennis is a parish church, likely dating from the late 14th to early 15th century, with a late 15th-century tower. It was substantially rebuilt in 1847 and suffered fire damage, and was undergoing further rebuilding at the time of a survey in 1987. The church is constructed from squared granite rubble with granite dressings, and the tower is of granite ashlar. The roof is covered in C20 slate, featuring ridge tiles, gable ends with raised coped verges and cross finials.

The building comprises a nave and chancel, combined under a single gable, a south aisle added in 1847, a south porch (also 1847), and a north aisle rebuilt in the 19th century. The east end features two 3-light C19 windows with cusped lights, 4-centred arches, and hood moulds. The north side of the nave has two 2-light C19 windows with cusped lights and square heads. The south aisle features five bays, with the porch positioned in the second bay from the west. All south aisle windows are C19, 2-light, with cusped lights and triangular hood moulds. The west end, probably rebuilt in the late 15th century, is blind and constructed in granite ashlar.

The gabled south porch has a 4-centred arched outer doorway flanked by moulded shafts with caps, and incorporates C19 cast iron gates. A datestone reading "1847" is set within a panelled gable, accompanied by obelisk finials. The interior of the porch features stone benches and an inner 4-centred arched doorway with roll-mouldings and cushion stops. The north aisle has two bays, with a 2-light and a 3-light window, both with cusped lights and square hood moulds. A similar 2-light east window is also present.

The west tower consists of two stages on a chamfered plinth without buttresses, and features moulded string courses, an embattled parapet with circular panelled pinnacles, and a circular stair tower to the north with lancets and a coped parapet. A 4-centred arched west doorway forms a shallow internal porch; above it is a paired lancet window with Y tracery and a hood mould. The second stage has 2-light bell-openings with cusped lights, Y tracery louvres, and hood moulds, with a single cusped light on the north side. The tower is topped with a pyramidal lead roof.

Internally, the walls are plastered, and a C20 5-bay arched-brace roof rises from stone corbels in the nave, chancel, and south aisle. A 4-centred tower arch includes inner arches with carved figures as springers. A stone newel stair is located within the stair tower. A C20 arcaded connection to the north aisle features octagonal piers. The only surviving fitting is the font, located in the nave, constructed from granite with panelled sides and a stem, and likely dating from the 19th century. The church stands on the site of an Iron Age hill fort, making it a prominent local landmark. A circular boundary wall follows the outline of the fort and contains a noteworthy collection of 19th-century monuments.