Church Of The Blessed Virgin Mary

Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary

This is a parish church with 13th-century origins, though most of the building was rebuilt in the 15th century. It underwent substantial restoration by the Reverend Edward Copleston, Bishop of Llandaff and Dean of St Paul's (died 1849), and was further refurbished in 1874, as evidenced by a dated rainwater head. The church is built of local stone and flint rubble with Beerstone quoins and detail, beneath a slate roof. The plan consists of a nave with a narrower and lower chancel that does not extend the full length of the building; the chapel is now used as a baptistry.

The 15th-century west tower stands in two stages with diagonal buttresses, an embattled parapet, and a semi-octagonal stair turret projecting from the north side. The belfry contains single and double lancets with Beerstone grilles. The west doorway of the tower is a two-centred arch with moulded surround, with a three-light window of Perpendicular tracery directly above. An early 19th-century south porch and a late 19th-century vestry occupy the south side of the chancel.

Most of the church's windows were replaced in the 19th century. The gable-ends feature 19th-century shaped kneelers, coping, and apex crosses. The south side of the nave comprises three bays, with the centre bay containing a doorway beneath a gabled porch with diagonal buttresses. The outer arch is a two-centred arch in Early English style with moulded surround, caps to the shafts, a band of ballflower decoration, and a hoodmould with badges carved on the label stops. An old sundial sits above this porch. The porch interior has a cobbled floor and the south doorway is a plain two-centred arch. On either side of the porch are square-headed three-light windows with trefoil-headed lights; three more such windows appear on the north side of the aisle. The south side of the chancel contains a single rectangular light, as most of this side lies behind the 19th-century gabled vestry, which itself contains a window with Decorated tracery. The east end of the chancel features a large three-light window with Perpendicular tracery, with similar windows at each end of the aisle.

Inside, both the nave and aisle have ceiled wagon roofs with moulded purlins and ribs, which may date to the 15th century, though the carved bosses are 19th-century replacements. The chancel has a plaster vault of indeterminate date. A tall tower arch with moulded surround leads into the church. The chancel arch is round—almost horseshoe-shaped—with a chamfered surround. A three-bay arcade of moulded Beerstone piers (Pevsner's type A) with carved capitals divides the space. A fourth arch between the chancel and north chapel has its soffit and sides lined with Beerstone trefoil-headed panels. The walls are plastered and the floor is flagged. A 19th-century Beerstone reredos forms a blind Gothic arcade, flanked by 19th-century sedelia and piscina in the same style. A 19th-century oak altar rail on Gothic-style timber standards stands before the altar.

The stalls are 19th-century but incorporate fielded panelling from 18th-century stalls. The lectern was made in 1935 but includes fine 17th-century oak carving, notably a panel representing the Last Supper. A notable three-decker pulpit was erected in 1724 and lacks only its sounding board; it is said to conceal the stone base of the previous pulpit. Carved figures of the Evangelists were added to its panels in 1784. Box pews were installed in 1798 but were reconstructed in 1853. The tower screen comprises two bays of a fine 15th-century oak chancel screen, which came from the Church of St Mary Major, Exeter in 1970.

The font, located in the former north chapel, is of late 15th to early 16th-century date in Beerstone, with an octagonal bowl carved with quatrefoil panels enriched with four-leaf motifs, foliage carved around the base, and a panelled stem. It retains a late 17th-century oak cover with broken ogee profile surmounted by an eagle with a hook for the former hoisting chain. Housed in this chapel is a fine piece of carved 16th-century oak panelling, formerly serving as a reredos; the centre panel depicts Jesus carrying the cross, with representations of the Evangelists on the flanking panels. These carvings, which may be Flemish, were brought here by Bishop Copleston.

The monuments include the oldest in the aisle, commemorating Joana Southcott (died 1696), with a bolection-framed plaque beneath a swan-necked pediment and cartouche containing armorial bearings and carved foliage on the apron below. Over the south door is a memorial to John Ford (died 1729) and his wife Mary (died 1742). The chancel contains a group of 19th-century marble memorials, principally to members of the Copleston family. Royal arms were painted in 1974, and some painted texts were retouched at the same time. Nineteenth-century painted commandment boards stand either side of the south door.

The chancel south window contains a collection of fragments of ancient glass, with some 18th-century stained glass in the tracery of the chapel east window. Additional 19th-century stained glass is present throughout the church.