Church Of St Andrew

Church of St Andrew

This is an Anglican parish church of medieval foundation, largely dating from the late 12th, 13th and 14th centuries, with substantial restoration undertaken between 1847 and 1849 by the architect William Butterfield.

The building is constructed of flint with limestone dressings, except for the nave which is pebbledashed. The tower is built in limestone ashlar. Most roofs are covered in lead, though the chancel and porch have slate coverings and stone slates respectively. The church comprises a nave with north and south aisles and a south porch, a 13th-century chancel that has been restored, and a 14th-century west tower that was inserted into the west bay of the nave.

The north door features a round arch with chevron hoodmould and mask terminals, above which sits a weathered head. The south porch was rebuilt in 1914 and contains an inner round-arched door of Transitional style with nook shafts and a dog-tooth hoodmould. A mass dial is carved on the right jamb. The chancel has clasping buttresses, lancet windows, and a reticulated east window. A low-side window and priest's door are present. The nave has two-light clerestory windows. The aisles feature tall three and four-light windows with ogee tracery and square heads. The west tower rises in three stages with a south-west polygonal stair turret, two-light bell openings, and a crenellated parapet. The west tower door has flattened casement mouldings and a three-light Perpendicular window above it.

Internally, the nave arcade originally consisted of three bays but now comprises two. These have round arches with one recessed order on round columns bearing late 12th-century crocketed trumpet capitals. The south-east respond is carved while the north-east respond is mutilated. The clerestory windows are set into a low-pitched 15th-century roof with moulded tie beams, purlins, ridge and wall plates. Both aisles contain five roof bays and moulded roofs of late 15th and 16th-century date. The interior retains old plaster. A 19th-century chancel arch leads into the tile-paved chancel, which has a 19th-century trussed rafter roof and a tiled reredos. A shouldered piscina reuses a 12th-century trumpet capital as its base, with a mid-wall string above. A shouldered door opening in the north wall provides access to the pulpit. The 15th-century tower, inserted into the third bay of the nave, features a hollow chamfered tower arch with similar arches to the aisles. Squints pierce the internal buttresses from the west end of the aisles. The tower interior contains a fine tierceron vault with a ring for the bell trap and large foliated bosses at all intersections.

The font at the west end of the nave is a plain octagon on a square base. The pulpit, altar rail and pews are all 19th-century work by Butterfield. The tower is enclosed by screens.

Monuments in the chancel include a 17th-century gilded alabaster wall monument on the north wall featuring a shouldered frame with a recessed circular niche containing busts clasping a skull, a scrolled broken pediment with crested and mantled arms, and a predella showing eight kneeling children, six holding skulls. An inscription commemorates William and Elizabeth Goddard, erected by their son Thomas in 1655. On the south wall, a chaste white marble scroll on slate by Tanner of Swindon commemorates Mary Tanner, died 1863. In the sanctuary, a scroll on slate commemorates William Large of Wilsford and his wife, died 1874. In the nave stands a heavily pedimented 17th-century wall monument of gilded limestone with a scrolled open pediment, central crested arms and floral supports, commemorating Ann Seymour (Goddard), died 1687. The north aisle contains nine white marble wall tablets on slate, including monuments to Reverend Richard Heighway, died 1847, and John Pinnegar by Tarrant of Swindon, 1876. On the east wall is a group of 19th-century Canning monuments, including one to Sir Samuel Canning, died 1908, a pioneer of marine cable laying across the Atlantic and Mediterranean. The south aisle contains an early 19th-century coloured wall monument with a corniced panel, urn and light relief flower basket on the apron, commemorating Robert Canning, died 1811, and his sister Jane. An unfixed headstone with shaped top and naive lettering commemorates Francis Wyer 'with her babe', died 1692.

Four scriptural boards of wood covered in canvas are present. A late 17th-century table frame, restored, serves as the south aisle altar. A panelled chest of 18th-century date stands in the nave. A restoration-style upholstered chair and a 19th-century American Estey portable organ are also present. Glass in the north aisle dates to 1884.

The church was a dependency of the Abbey of Bec Hellouin from the 12th century to the early 15th century.