Christ Church

ST 96 NE MELKSHAM WITHOUT CORSHAM ROAD (east side) Shaw

1/181 Christ Church

II*

Anglican Parish church. 1837, chapel rebuilt 1905. By C. E. Ponting at a cost of £20,000 paid for by Charles Awdry. Squared rubblestone with ashlar buttresses. Westmorland slate roof over timber framed clerestory. Consists of 5 bay nave with north-west tower, short transepts and apsidal east end. Arts and Crafts Gothic. Perpendicular-style door at base of tower has decorated spandrels and polygonal pilasters with statues of Angel Gabriel and Mary above. 4 stage tower has plain buttresses carried to top with life-size statues of saints and prophets on top of each of 8 buttresses. Two 2-light Gothic windows above string course of top stage. 4 carved rainwater spouts are winged-beasts. Pierced embattled parapet with oak shingled needle spire. West window in late Gothic style with good stained glass by H. Wilkinson, a 1914- 18 War Memorial. Square vestry to south west corner has hipped slate roof and raked buttresses. Nave has 5 Decorated-style windows to aisles, separated by pilasters. Clerestory is timber framed with roughcase panels and four 3-light square headed windows. South transept has rose window and 2 lancets. Apsidal east end has 4 tall 2-light Perpendicular-style windows separated by pilasters. Decorated lead fleche over crossing. Interior: Porch below west tower has ribbed vaulted ceiling on corbels. Nave and clerestory are oak timber-framed with chamfered aisle posts and arched braced arcade. Roof has arched braced tie beam trusses with queen posts and decorated spandrels. All windows have square-headed openings. Carved oak screen encloses chancel on 3 sides and is especially elaborate on nave-side. Fine reredos of carved oak with statues of The Apostles in niches, with Christ in the centre and St. Michael above, by Messrs. Martyn and Co., of Cheltenham. Sedilia and piscina. Brass candelabra from Melksham St. Michael's. Carved oak choir stalls. Nave pews are Victorian and from earlier chapel. Good stained glass of late C19 and early C20 in aisle windows depict saints and are memorials to members of the Awdry and Steadman families. 1908 watercolour by John Creswell, at west end of south aisle, depicts interior as rebuilt by Ponting. (N. Pevsner and B. Cherry, Buildings of England: Wiltshire, 1975) Particularly good history of this church is framed and hung in west end of nave.

Listing NGR: ST8886365720

This List entry has been amended to add sources for War Memorials Online and the War Memorials Register. These sources were not used in the compilation of this List entry but are added here as a guide for further reading, 26 October 2017.