Church Of Holy Trinity

Church of Holy Trinity

This is a parish church dating from the 12th century, with 14th-century additions and a tower dated 1644 on the south west buttress. The building was mostly rebuilt in 1864-5 by J.E. Gill and restored in 1893. It is constructed of coursed limestone freestone and rubble, with an ashlar tower, herringbone masonry in the south wall of the nave, stone dressings and quoins. The roofs are plain tiled with raised coped verges and kneelers, and feature cross finials to the nave and porch. The building comprises a nave, north aisle, south porch, south east tower, chancel and north east chapel (now used as an organ chamber). The architectural style shows Gothic Survival in the tower with 19th-century Perpendicular detailing throughout.

The west elevation of the nave displays a large four-light Perpendicular window with leaded lights, iron stanchions, hood mould and stops, weathered buttresses, angle buttresses and an ashlar plinth. The north aisle has a similar two-light west window. The aisle extends for five bays with four two-light windows and a central door with pointed arch, hood mould, stops and corbels. A corbel table runs along the top, with a stack in the left bay and an external stair to a cellar door with four-centred arch.

The south elevation of the nave contains three three-light windows and herringbone masonry. A small leper window with trefoil head is also visible. The gabled porch has a high pointed arched opening with a 19th-century lantern above, stone benches, and an inner door with pointed arch, moulded and hollow-chamfered surround retaining some original painting. It has a hood mould, stops and relieving arch, with a 19th-century door featuring decorative strap hinges. A holy water stoup with trefoil head stands to the right. The porch roof comprises three bays with arched braces, collar and collar purlin.

The three-stage tower has a west door in chamfered surround, two-light windows with leaded lights and chamfered mullions at the first and second stages on the south side, and a pointed arched window with bell louvres and tracery at the third stage on all sides. The tower features a freestone plinth, diagonal buttresses, string courses and gargoyles at the corners (very worn at the south east). An embattled parapet surrounds the top with a plain pinnacle at the north west corner.

The chapel has a two-light north window with trefoil heads and flat hood mould, and a two-light 14th-century Perpendicular east window. The chancel has a two-light north window, three-light south window and five-light east window. A small stone carving above the east window, possibly from the 11th or 12th century, was found during the 1893 renovations.

Interior

The walls are faced with ashlar. The nave roof is an eleven-bay wagon roof divided by moulded ribs with wall-plate. The leper window in the south wall has a very deep splayed reveal, and more herringbone masonry is visible internally along the lower part of the south wall. A south door has a round-headed reveal.

The five-bay arcade between the nave and aisle features clustered shafts on heavy plinths with rough-cut block capitals and kite-shaped springers for pointed arches. A high pointed arch opens to the chancel with hood mould and low stone screens to either side. A lower pointed arch connects the aisle and chapel, with panels carved with trefoil-headed recesses on the soffit. The aisle has the same eleven-bay roof as the nave.

The chapel has a three-bay roof of earlier date with brattished wall-plate and moulded ribs. The plain wall-plate to the south rests on three heavy stone corbels. A pointed arch opens to the chancel. The chancel has a blind arch to the south repeating the chapel arch, with the roof divided by a high arch into five bays to east and west. The eastern bays feature rosette bosses and carved flowers on the wall-plate. 19th-century sedilia occupy the north and south sides.

19th-century fittings include pews, pulpit, lecterns and a Perpendicular octagonal stone font.

Monuments and Memorials

A hatchment in the aisle commemorates the Davy family who lived at Tracy Park from 1820-1926, showing the deceased fought at the Battle of Talavera in 1809. A 19th-century painted board in the aisle displays the Commandments and Lord's Prayer. A cornerstone from the 1865 rebuilding is set in the aisle.

A memorial brass in the chancel reads "WILLM AT WODE AND MARGARET HIS WYFFE", dated 1529. Another memorial brass in the chancel with an admonitory verse commemorates John Atwood, 1707, and other family members. 17th-century ledger stones in the chapel commemorate the Hillman, Still and Ridley families. A stone tablet in the chancel with broken pediment and laudatory verse commemorates Mary Chapp, 1695. An 18th-century headstone with triple round-headed inscription panels, putti and swags in spandrels stands below the leper window in the south wall of the nave.

Two 18th-century monuments occupy the south wall of the nave: a marble classical monument with Ionic columns, broken scrolled pediment, urn and skulls, commemorating Elizabeth Langton (date indecipherable) by Stanton of London; and a stone monument with Ionic pilasters, broken segmental pediment, urn and putti, commemorating Joseph Jackson, 1719, and other family members.

Four roundels of early glass showing symbols of the four evangelists are set in a window in the north aisle.