Church of St. John the Baptist

This list entry was subject to a Minor Enhancement on 5 July 2017.

SU 23 NW 4/1

ALLINGTON Church of St John the Baptist

18.2.58

II

Anglican parish church, 1848-51, architect unrecorded but possibly T.H. Wyatt, on C12 foundations. Flint interspersed with limestone and limestone dressings. Tiled roof. Nave and chancel, and south porch raised as tower.

Nave has north and south doors, the north door with sections of late C12 lozenge, bead and chevron arch. Three and two light square headed trefoiled windows. Chancel has two reset narrow late C12-early C13 lancets and three-light east window, the hood mould on large mask terminals. Short tower over porch, two stages with angle buttresses, two-light bell openings and a crenellated parapet with gargoyle spouts. Pyramidal tiled roof.

Interior: Nave rendered and colourwashed. C19 wagon roof. Narrow chancel opening with arch of two orders on medieval bead cavetto string around imposts. Chancel of two bays, the walls stencilled in 1876 in memory of Fulmer William Fowle. Encaustic tiles. Shallow single sedilia with painted curtaining, and piscina with bowl on attached half shaft. East window contains a glazed Crucifixion of 1876.

Fittings: Font, limestone C19 in C12 manner. Pyramidal pierced font cover of C17. Pulpit of oak, C19. Pews, two C16-C17 slab ended, and others built to match.

Monuments: Simple marble tablet by Osmund of Sarum, to Mary Tarrant, died 1883. Detached painted metal creed board.

Furniture: In porch, a C16-C17 small oak churchwardens coffer on legs, with three iron locks, and a C17 stool.

Reverend Thomas Fowle was vicar at the church from 1793 to 1797. He was a pupil of Reverend George Austen, the father of Jane Austen, from 1779 to 1783. Thomas and Jane’s sister grew fond of each other when he studied with her father and they probably became engaged in 1792. Sadly he died of yellow fever in 1797 whilst accompanying his relative Lord Craven on military duties as a chaplain in the West Indies before he could marry Cassandra. Thomas left Cassandra all his savings in his will. Jane Austen is recorded as having attended church at Allington.

Listing NGR: SU2042039383

This listing was enhanced in 2017 to mark the bicentenary of Jane Austen's death.