Church Of St German

Church of St German

This is a parish church that probably incorporates some 13th-century fabric with 14th-century and early 16th-century additions. The building was extensively restored in 1870 and 1875.

The walls are constructed of granite and local volcanic stone rubble, roughly coursed on the tower. The roof is covered with slate and features a decorative fish-scale pattern over the porch and chancel, with 19th-century coping-stones to the gable ends. The plan comprises a nave, chancel, south transept, west tower, north aisle and chapel, and south porch.

The low unbuttressed tower is probably the earliest part of the church, likely dating from the 13th century. The nave, chancel and south transept are likely to date from the 14th century, whilst the north aisle was added in the early 16th century.

The tower is a low two-stage unbuttressed structure with weathered crenellation and no pinnacles. The very primitive granite west doorway is almost round-headed and chamfered without stops. The west window is a 19th-century restoration comprising two trefoiled lights with a square hoodmould above. The original belfry lights probably have worn trefoiled heads. A square stair turret projects from the north side of the tower. Attached to the south wall of the tower, low down, is a slate memorial to Richard Redcliffe and his wife Joan who died in 1789 and 1793. The tower has a chamfered plinth.

The north aisle has no plinth. On its west wall is an early 16th-century granite two-light mullion window with four-centred heads in a reserved chamfer, with a square hoodmould. On its north wall the aisle has three similar windows of three lights without hoodmoulds. At the east end of the aisle is a contemporary three-light window with very simple late Perpendicular tracery; its hoodmould has carved headstops. The east window is a 19th-century restoration with Perpendicular tracery.

On the south side of the chancel is a 19th-century single cinquefoiled light, and there is a similar two-light window on the east side of the transept. In the angle between the transept and chancel is a slight projection for the rood stairs. The south window of the transept is 19th-century with Perpendicular tracery. The single storey porch is immediately to the west of the transept and may be entirely 19th-century with a plain stone arched doorway. To its left the south aisle has a restored two-light window with cinquefoiled heads.

The interior contains a porch with carved wall plates which are probably 19th-century. The south doorway has been rebuilt as a plain stone rubble arch. A four-bay granite arcade to the north aisle features shallow four-centred arches which are double chamfered. A freestone arch crosses the last bay at the east end, marking the side chapel. The piers are of Pevsner A-type with moulded cup capitals and simply moulded bases. The chancel arch has been rebuilt, is plastered and rests on corbels. The plain tall tower arch is slightly four-centred. The walls are plastered except for the chancel which has 20th-century render.

The roofs are 19th-century arch-braced collar beam construction to the nave, aisle and transept. The contemporary chancel roof is richly carved with a running leaf motif.

The font has a 15th-century octagonal granite bowl with a renewed shaft and base. The rood stairs entrance is in the transept and incorporates a squint to the altar, though the stairs are blocked higher up. There is a small piscina with a chamfered stone arch in the north chapel, and another piscina in the transept. On the north wall of the aisle is a simple wall memorial of 1800 to Anna Maria Seccombe. The church has a slate slab floor apart from the chancel which has 19th-century tiles.