Parish Church Of St Andrew

Parish Church of St Andrew, Trent

A parish church of 13th-century origin with a nave and north chapel, substantially altered and extended through later centuries. The south tower and porch were added in the early 14th century, the chancel was rebuilt in the 15th century when the nave was lengthened, and major repairs and restoration took place in 1694, 1729, 1840, and the 19th century. The 19th-century additions include an organ chamber and west vestry.

The walls are constructed of rubble stone and ashlar with stone slate and slate roofs finished with gable-copings. The nave features two 15th-century three-light windows to the north and south walls, much restored. Immediately east of the eastern window are the eastern splay and part of the sill of a medieval window, with a straight joint between them indicating the former extent of the nave. The 15th-century west window comprises three cinquefoiled lights with vertical tracery in a pointed head, featuring a moulded label with returned stops. A west doorway provides access to the vestry.

The south tower rises in three stages with angle buttresses with set-offs, finished with a trefoiled corbel-table featuring head corbels, a parapet of pierced quatrefoils, and angle-pinnacles. The east wall of the tower displays a ground window of two trefoiled lights with pointed trefoils and a Y-tracery head. A two-light window with Y-tracery lights the winging-chamber. Above this is a tall two-light window with Y-tracery and a quatrefoil in the head, with stone tracery to the bell-openings. All windows have labels and head-stops. The south wall contains a three-light window with trefoiled lights and geometrical tracery in the head; the windows above mirror those on the east wall. Access to a turret staircase is provided in the south-west angle of the tower, externally. The north wall of the tower includes a doorway to the nave roof with chamfered jambs and a pointed head. The stone spire, largely rebuilt in the 19th century, is octagonal with ribbed angles. The south porch features a pointed outer archway of one continuous chamfered order with a moulded label and defaced head-stops, a high pent roof against the west face of the tower, and restored quatrefoil parapets.

The north chapel has a restored early 14th-century east window of three trefoiled ogee lights with tracery in a pointed head, complete with a label and head-stops. The north wall and windows are 19th-century work. The west wall retains a blocked lancet window of 13th-century date. Angle and clasping buttresses are present externally.

The chancel features diagonal and straight buttresses with carved figures above them, all of 15th-century date. The east window comprises four cinquefoiled ogee lights with vertical tracery in a pointed head, with a label featuring returned stops. Both north and south walls display two windows of two lights with a design similar to the east window. A 19th-century west vestry of polygonal form incorporates a 15th-century doorway reset in the west wall, with moulded jambs flanked by small square buttresses set diagonally.

The interior nave has a 14th-century archway on the north wall, segmental and pointed, leading to the north chapel. A cavity exists in the wall east of this. The east wall features a 15th-century lower doorway to the rood loft staircase with moulded jambs and a four-centred head, while the upper doorway is square-headed. The nave roof, mid-19th century, features depressed vaulting with angels holding Apostles' shields-of-arms at the springers. The porch roof, early 14th century, comprises two bays with moulded braces forming segmental arches, carved bosses, and moulded corbels carved with heads and leaves.

The church contains numerous important fittings. The rood-screen is oak with five bays including the doorway, divided by grouped shafts supporting a ribbed soffit of the loft. It features a panelled dado with six panels to each bay, each with trefoiled ogee and crocketed heads and a moulded and carved rail. The open upper panels contain six cinquefoiled ogee lights with vertical tracery in pointed heads, all of 15th-century date. Under the arch to the north chapel is a low oak screen of five bays divided by carved brackets with arched panels below and enriched decoration above, dating from the mid-17th century.

Medieval and 15th-century doors are present, including a south doorway and a west doorway with two leaves, a four-centred head, and panelled decoration. Pews and bench-ends have moulded and panelled backs, with square-headed bench-ends carved with window-tracery, Apostles, symbols of the Passion, and other designs of early 16th-century date. Some pews date from 1840 restoration work.

A 15th-century octagonal font-cover stands in the tower, with a base of quatrefoils and pierced traceried sides. The pulpit is octagonal with carved angles including figures; each face features a cartouche below and a figure subject above, believed to be Dutch work of approximately 1600.

The chancel east window contains a collection of 16th and 17th-century Swiss, German, and other glass placed there in the 19th century by Reverend Turner. The north and south windows feature glass by Wailes dated 1842, depicting figures of the Apostles. Late 16th and 17th-century helmets are displayed in the north chapel.

Monuments are numerous throughout the church. The north chapel contains freestone effigies of two figures from the 14th century and a monument to Storke dated 1530. Against the arch to the nave stands a monument with plain side-columns supporting an entablature with the achievement-of-arms of Gerard impaling Coker, and painted decoration on the respond at the back. The soffit of the arch above is painted with a genealogical tree. 17th-century monuments commemorate the Gerard family and Sir Francis Wyndham, Baronet, who died in 1676.

A copper weathercock stands on the spire with a rounded body. Inscribed on its wings are the names of the rector, churchwardens, maker and date: George Gaylard, 1698.