Church Of St Thomas Of Canterbury

Church of St Thomas of Canterbury

This small parish church dates from the late 15th century and stands in Puddington. It was thoroughly restored in 1838 by W Bowden, a restoration that included the complete rebuild of the nave and chancel, the addition of a north aisle, and a new south porch.

The church is constructed of roughly squared blocks of volcanic trap and purple mudstone, with the restoration work carried out in snecked volcanic stone and mudstone, with Beerstone and volcanic ashlar used for detail work. The roofs are slate, with crested ridgetiles to the north aisle. The plan comprises a continuous nave and chancel under the same roof, a north aisle, a west tower, and a south porch, all executed in the late Perpendicular style.

The low, unbuttressed west tower has a moulded plinth and embattled parapet. Most of the tower fabric is original 15th-century work, though much of the detail was replaced during the 1838 restoration. All the belfry windows are restored Beerstone twin round-headed lights. The south side of the tower has a small flat-arched headed window to the ringing loft immediately above drip course level, which survives only on the west and north sides. The west side of the tower is roughcast and includes a now blocked original volcanic stone doorway with a two-centred arch, moulded surround, and cushion stops. The restored Beerstone window above the door is square-headed with two lights with flat-arched heads, sunken spandrels, and hoodmould with simple labels. A square stair turret projects from the north side and includes tiny unrestored volcanic stone lancet windows.

The nave has a two-window front, both of Beerstone, square-headed with two lights with cinquefoil heads, sunken spandrels, and hoodmould. The left window may be only partly restored, while the right window appears to be wholly 19th-century work of 1838. Between these windows is a 19th-century gabled porch with a plain round-headed front arch containing a studded plank door with applied trellis pattern. The nave and chancel to the right of the porch appear to be completely rebuilt in the 19th century of snecked masonry without a plinth.

The chancel has a single south-facing window, an arched-headed Beerstone lancet with cinquefoil head. At the east end of the chancel is an 1838 Beerstone almost round-headed three-light window with cinquefoil heads, Perpendicular-style tracery, and simple hoodmould. The gable end is topped with stone coping surmounted by a fleuree cross. The east end of the north aisle is set back slightly from the end of the chancel and includes a Beerstone three-light window similar to that in the chancel. The north front of the aisle has a Beerstone single-light lancet window with cinquefoil head to the east chapel at the left end, a buttress to the right, then three Beerstone square-headed two-light windows with cinquefoil heads and sunken spandrels, without hoodmoulds. The blind roughcast west gable end completes the exterior.

Interior

The porch has a plain plastered vault and benches on each side, with a plain restored arch-headed south door. The nave has a ceiled wagon roof that was extensively restored in 1838 but appears to include some reused timber. The chancel has a ceiled wagon roof of entirely 1838 work, and the contemporary north aisle has a ceiled flat-arched roof with exposed chamfered ribs. A plain high tower arch is probably of 15th-century date.

A Beerstone four-bay 1838 Perpendicular-style arcade divides the nave from the north aisle, with one bay overlapping into the chancel. It comprises moulded piers with plain capitals and low flat arches between. The nave has 18th-century fielded panel oak wainscotting, and the north aisle has plainer 1838 wainscotting. The chancel includes an 18th-century black and white marble chequer floor, with the altar on an 1838 encaustic tile floor.

Most furnishings are 19th-century work. There is a mahogany altar rail on gilded gothic-style iron supports with spiral twist centre sections, cusped brackets with fleur-de-lys. The 1838 gothic-style oak choir stalls incorporate a high-quality 17th-century oak bench with highly ornamented chip-carved two-panel back; the front of the seat rail and legs are also carved, the latter with guilloche decoration. An 1838 Perpendicular-style hexagonal stem pulpit features fielded panel sides with crockets and finials between and a richly carved cornice. A 20th-century oak lectern is also present. The oak benches are 1838 work but incorporate some late 15th- to early 16th-century bench ends with simple geometric or linenfold decoration with moulded surrounds.

The font is a good example of late Perpendicular Beerstone work. It has a square base and an octagonal stem carved with arched panels and cinquefoil heads, the corner panels including shields over bold cushion stops. There is roll moulding below the bowl, and the sides of the bowl are carved with alternate arches with cinquefoil heads and quatrefoils. An 1838 gothic-style timber screen separates the tower from the nave.

The north aisle includes a painted board recording a gift in 1662 by Humphrey Brooke of Cruwys Morchard of £10 to the poor, dated 1729 when William Pleace was church warden. The church contains some moderate stained glass of 1867 and 1872 (nave) and 1877 (north aisle chapel). The sill of the west window of the nave has a plaque containing a moulded plaster skull and crossbones rescued from the 17th-century Blagdon monument in Honiton Church after the fire of 1911.

The north aisle displays two bells and part of a mid-16th-century oak bell frame. The tenor is inscribed with letters of the alphabet and is thought by Reverend J G Scott to be 16th-century rather than 14th-century. The treble is inscribed "John Blackdon: Ward. 1742. TW" and was cast by Thomas Wroth of Wellington. A second trefoil of 1787, cast by Thomas Bilbie of Cullompton, is still in use.