Church Of St George

ORCHESTON ORCHESTON ST. GEORGE SU 04 SE (east side) 3/172 Church of St. George GV II* Anglican parish church, now redundant. C13 with late C15 chancel, C12 north doorway ,restorations of 1833 and 1858. Flint and limestone, ashlar tower, tiled roof with coped verges. Consists of west tower, nave, chancel and north porch. C19 gabled porch has Welsh slate roof, Tudor-arched door and cusped lancet above, side walls have Tudor-arched windows. To left of porch, nave has cross window with pointed head, to right of porch is 2-light C16 window with cusped lights. Roof of nave probably raised 1833; dentilled brick eaves cornice. Chancel has chamfered pointed door in centre of north side, to left is Tudor-arched window and to light is C13 cusped lancet, string course at eaves level, battlemented parapet to shallow-pitched roof. East window is 3-light C16-style with cusped lights. South side chancel has one Tudor-arched light and one C13 cusped lancet. South side nave has one 3-light C16-style window and one 2-light C16-style window either side, all with hoodmoulds. 2-stage west tower is square with diagonal buttresses, Tudor-arched west door has hollow-chamfered jambs and carved spandrels, above is deeply recessed 2-light Perpendicular window with C19 tracery, hoodmould and grotesque beasts carved as terminals, string course to bell stage; single C16 window to each face, battlemented parapet and pyramidal tiled roof. Interior: Romanesque inner doorway has shafts with scalloped capitals. Nave has flat ceiling, probably inserted in C18. Chancel arch is double-chamfered with hollow-chamfering. Pointed arch to tower at west end, has fine cusped panelling to intrados. Most of fittings date from 1858 restoration by T H Wyatt, including pews, pulpit and altar screen, C15-style font of 1833, 1636 Royal Arms on south wall of nave, south wall of chancel has 1830 hatchment, probably of Rev. C.B.P.Lowther; a marble memorial to him, by Reeves of Bath is on same wall. C17 and C18 memorials includes brass in nave to John Elderton died 1695. Several classical tablets, including marble in nave to John Shittler, died 1861, signed by Lewis of Cheltenham, large Gothic wall memorial on south side of nave to Stephen Mills, died 1857, signed by Osmond of Sarum. Some good late C19 stained and painted glass, such as east window of 1888 and others in nave and chancel by Jones and Willis. (N Pevsner, Buildings of England: Wiltshire, 1975; Unpublished records of RCHM (England), Salisbury)

Listing NGR: SU0598144894