Church Of St James

Church of St James, Kings Nympton

Parish church with origins in the 13th century. The west tower, north wall of the nave and chancel, and possibly some fabric of the north transept date from this period. The north transept was remodelled, probably when the south aisle was added in the late 15th or early 16th century. The south porch is probably early 16th century. The interior was largely remodelled in the 18th century. Apart from some refenestration work, the rebuilding of the east end wall of the chancel, and refurbishment of the spire, there appears to have been no major restoration work in later periods.

The building is constructed of unrendered stone rubble with ashlar dressings, though some roughcast rendering is present on the north side. The roof is slate with coped gable ends to the south aisle and chancel, topped with apex crosses. The spire features fishscale patterned slates.

The plan comprises a west tower, nave, chancel, south aisle, south porch, and vestry. The church was probably originally cruciform in plan, with the south transept later extended into an aisle.

The exterior features a low unbuttressed west tower with small narrow openings to each face and a 19th-century Perpendicular-style west window of three lights. The broach spire has two-light timber lucarnes to each face, a ball finial, and weathervane. The south aisle has a battlemented parapet. Windows are principally 19th-century Perpendicular style with three lights at each end and four to the south side, separated by intermediate buttresses. The porch has 18th-century rainwater heads on each side and a coped gabled slated roof. A slate sundial dated 1846 is positioned over a Perpendicular pointed arched doorway with ogee-moulded surround. The 19th-century south side of the chancel has a straight-headed Perpendicular window, whilst the east end of the chancel has a three-light pointed arched window, also 19th century. The vestry has an east side Perpendicular straight-headed window of two cusped-headed lights. A Perpendicular-style three-light window is present to the north end of the transept; the north side is otherwise blank. Two 18th-century stone headstones to the Lane family are mounted on the south aisle towards the west end, and two to the Webber family are on the east side of the south porch. An ogee-moulded surround marks the priests' door below the easternmost window.

The interior features a south arcade of five bays with Pevsner 'A' type piers and capitals only to the main shafts. Unmoulded 13th-century pointed tower and transeptal arches are present. The south aisle and nave have ceiled Perpendicular wagon roofs: the south aisle features trailing leaf decoration to the carved wall plates, whilst the nave has crenellated wall plates and larger, more elaborate carved bosses at the intersections of the ribs. The nave ceilure is particularly elaborate, with panelled decoration and diagonal ribs. The north transept has a plain-ceiled wagon roof.

The chancel unusually has a wagon roof plastered in the mid-18th century and richly painted with clouds surrounding the sun, moon, and a large cross bearing inscriptions. A large 18th-century reredos with fluted Ionic pilasters flanks the commandment boards and central sunburst painting. Eighteenth-century communion rails feature alternating twisted balusters and columns, with a table with turned balusters. An 18th-century tiled altar step is present.

A fine early 16th-century screen of eight and a half bays survives complete with ribbed coving and three bands of ornament to the cornice. It features Pevsner Type 'A' standard tracery. Blind traceried decoration appears on the coving except at the right end, where one and a half bays are enriched with human figures and other decoration. Rood steps lead from the north transept.

A virtually complete complement of 18th-century box pews survives, tiered at the west end, with raised and fielded panels and butterfly hinges. An 18th-century pulpit with raised and fielded panels to the drum and base is present, with a 19th-century handrail. A timber doorway in the north chancel wall with four-centred head and studded two-plank door, probably 16th century, is visible. Seventeenth-century panelling in the south aisle at the east end, formerly the Pollard Chapel, features strapwork and linenfold decoration. The font, probably 18th century, has a gadrooned lead-lined bowl on a baluster shaft. A painted Royal Arms dated 1742 is positioned over the south porch doorway.

The easternmost window of the south aisle contains a shield of painted glass quartering the arms of Pollard of King Nympton Park. The east window of the south aisle has a window to James and Elizabeth Tanner, dated 1873. The chancel east end has a window to Rev. William Nicholson, 1892. The tower window contains late 19th-century glass in poor condition.

Monuments include, in the chancel north wall, one to James Smith died 1667, featuring a slate and alabaster surround with broken pediment, skull to base, and pilasters with hour glass motif; and to Richard Keats died 1812. The north transept has 18th-century nowy-arched painted verse boards. The nave north side has monuments to Samuel Johnson died 1802 and other family members, and to Rev. Adam Foskett died 1874, drowned in the River Mole aged 29. Two charity slates are positioned on the south aisle. A funeral helm is displayed at the east end of the south aisle over the arch of the end bay.