Church Of All Saints Including Fishacre Tomb Adjoining Transept (Formerly Listed Under Parish Of Moreleigh)

Church of All Saints, Halwell

This is a parish church, formerly serving Moreleigh before that parish was incorporated into Halwell. The building contains fabric dating from the 12th and 13th centuries onwards, with significant phases of development documented through to the early 20th century.

The earliest evidence of a church on this site comes from the 12th-century font. Records confirm a rector at Moreleigh in 1264. According to historical accounts, around 1279 Sir Peter de Fishacre, who owned both Moreleigh and Woodleigh, was ordered by the Pope to build a church at Moreleigh as a penalty for killing the parson of Woodleigh in a quarrel over tithes. Whilst he may have rebuilt the entire church, it is more probable that only the late 13th-century south transept was added by him. The original structure likely consisted of just a nave and chancel. Early 14th-century work, evidenced by chancel windows, coincided with the probable addition of the west tower. In the 15th century, a narrow south aisle was built, its eastern arcade bay replacing the transept arch. The tower may have been heightened or its top stage rebuilt at this time. A 17th-century south porch was added, and the nave and chancel were ceiled, if not entirely re-roofed. A Royal Arms of Queen Anne dated 1714 and an 18th-century pulpit survive from that period. The church underwent restoration in 1877, 1880, 1898 and 1904. In 1904 the tower was repaired with the top courses and parapets rebuilt, and decorative scripts were painted on internal walls. Further repairs occurred in 1975.

The building is constructed of shale rubble with some quartz and local limestone, with windows and dressings of Beerstone, granite and other igneous stone. The roof is slate.

The plan comprises a nave and chancel in one, south transept, narrow south aisle, west tower and south porch.

The chancel's south wall features two early 14th-century 2-centred arch 2-light Beerstone windows with quatrefoil tracery and cusped lights; the sill of the eastern window is higher. The two windows on the north side of the chancel have chamfered frames and were probably similar. The 3-light east window of the chancel is late 19th-century Decorated style with geometric tracery. The north side of the nave has a large 16th- or possibly early 17th-century arched perpendicular window with a hoodmould and 3-centred arched heads to the lights. Two large buttresses with set-offs appear on the north wall of the nave and chancel. Traces of a rood stair turret are said to exist on the north side.

The unbuttressed west tower has a slight batter. On the south side of the ringing stage is a plain rectangular opening. Bell-openings have flat heads, each with two round-headed lights with slate louvres; the west bell opening has been blocked. The tower appears to have been rebuilt or heightened above the bell-openings. The battlements have moulded coping and a moulded string below. There is no west doorway; a west window above the bell-openings is similar in style but taller. An internal stair turret on the north-west corner has window slits on the west face.

The south transept contains a late 13th-century 2-centred 3-light window with intersecting perpendicular tracery and a 15th-century 3-light 2-centred arch window with cusped perpendicular tracery and hoodmould. Below the sill of the south window is a projecting effigy niche and tomb of Sir Peter de Fishacre, who was refused entombment inside the church. In the gable of the transept is a slate sundial with a shaped head dated 1686.

The south aisle retains its chamfered stone wall plate and a small west window with two round-arched lights and a flat head, above which the west end wall is slate hung. The south window of the aisle retains its hoodmould and frame, but the mullions and tracery have been entirely replaced in 16th-century style Perpendicular. The north doorway has a simple chamfered 2-centred arch and a late 19th-century studded plank with ornate wrought iron hinges.

The 17th-century south porch is gabled with an unmoulded round slate arch. The slate roof has 17th-century crested ridge tiles, and the tile over the gable has a finial, a rare survival. Inside the porch are shallow stone seats either side and a 17th-century morticed collar rafter roof with nailed chamfered arch braces and a moulded wooden wall plate. The outer doorway has a 19th-century wooden slatted gate with 20th-century hardboard applied.

Interior

The internal walls have been rendered, but the hollow-chamfered rear arches of the windows are exposed. The tower arch is unmoulded and rendered. The 3-bay south arcade continues across the transept, with the east bay replacing the transept arch. The granite arcade has Pevsner A-type piers with hollows alternating with four shafts; only the shafts have capitals, which are crudely moulded. The bases are integrally moulded, and the 2-centred arches have double chamfers.

The narrow aisle roof is 15th-century and is ceiled between moulded ribs with carved feet and carved bosses at intersections. The moulded wall plate is jettied into the transept on a moulded timber corbel to carry the last rib of the aisle roof.

The nave and chancel form one space. Over the chancel and the east bay of the nave is a fine 17th-century plaster barrel-vaulted ceiling with moulded transverse, longitudinal and diagonal ribs and a moulded wall plate. Over the rest of the nave, the ribbed plaster ceiling and roof is 20th-century. The chancel ceiling may conceal a roof structure earlier than the 17th century.

In the tower, the floors and bellframe have been replaced. The three 15th-century bells have legends in Old English.

On the north side of the chancel is a recess, possibly an Easter Sepulchre, with a double-chamfered depressed 2-centred arch with pyramid stops. A similar but more richly moulded recess at the south end of the transept has a rectangular panel below and projects outside; this is the tomb of Sir Peter de Fishacre.

Furnishings

The 12th-century font has a round bowl with a carved plaited band. The 13th-century base has a water-holding moulding and was designed for a stern and four shafts, which have been renewed.

The reader's desk is made from a section of wainscot from the 15th-century rood screen, which is ornately carved and recently painted.

The 18th-century hexagonal pulpit has panelled sides and a moulded cornice that breaks forwards over the corner pilasters. Above the cornice is a shaped lecturn, and above that a fine sounding board with a similar but larger cornice with a reeded frieze and a tented ribbed canopy with an urn-shaped finial.

Late 19th-century benches appear to have been made from earlier panelled box pews; some have since been replaced by late 20th-century chairs. The late 19th-century altar rail has wrought iron stanchions and a moulded wooden rail.

A small late 17th-century table with turned legs and moulded stretchers is situated next to the font in the south aisle.

Several slate and local marble ledger stones of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries are present in the east end of the nave and in the aisle. The only wall monument is 20th-century.

The Royal Arms of Queen Anne, dated 1714, are painted on boards in a moulded frame with a shouldered triangular head, probably originally designed to have pinnacles.

Glass of circa 1870s is leaded, clear but with stained glass margins.