Church Of The Holy Trinity

Church of the Holy Trinity

An Anglican parish church of early 14th-century date, probably with earlier origins, in the Perpendicular style. The building underwent significant rebuilding and restoration in the mid-1860s by Messrs. Middleton of Cheltenham.

The church comprises a nave with a north aisle and chapel, a projecting south porch, a chancel with a vestry on the south side, and a west tower. The construction materials vary across the building: the nave and porch are built of coursed squared and dressed limestone; the chancel and vestry of random coursed squared and dressed limestone; the north aisle of randomly coursed ashlar; and the tower of ashlar. All roofs are stone slate.

The nave's south wall features buttresses with offsets and a tall pointed window with hollow-chamfered mullion and ogee-curved trefoil-headed lights, each light containing a quatrefoil. The south porch conceals a 19th-century plank door set within a shallow moulded pointed surround.

The early 14th-century north aisle has a plinth with concave upper moulding to the west of the door, with an unusual additional projecting moulding to the plinth east of the door. It is lit by three two-light pointed windows with cinquefoil-headed lights and triangular cusped lights at the top, featuring moulded mullions and surrounds decorated with ballflower ornament, and moulded hoods with ballflower ornament and carved head stops with engaged finials at the apex of each hood. A 19th-century pointed plank door with decorative hinges stands within an almost round-headed surround with a small ogee curve at its apex, its deeply moulded surround decorated with ballflower ornament and carved head stops, with a carved head stop at the apex of the hood. The west window of the north aisle matches that lighting the north wall. A 3-light Perpendicular east window lights the eastern end of the aisle.

A monument towards the west end commemorates Thomas Lawrence, died 1767, and is constructed of limestone with a red sandstone triangular pediment.

The west tower comprises three stages with diagonal buttresses and Perpendicular upper stages. A double 19th-century studded plank door sits within a flat-chamfered 4-centred arched surround with carved spandrels and plain heraldic shields. To the right of the door is a stoup with an ogee-curved head. Two-light belfry windows feature stone louvres. The tower is crowned by a battlemented parapet with trefoil-headed blind panelling, a string course, and gargoyles.

The 19th-century chancel features angle and side buttresses, a 3-light east window, and pointed single-light and two-light windows in the side walls. A monument with a segmental-headed pediment and illegible inscription stands on the south side. A vestry occupies the south side with two triangular cusped lights facing south. The base for two circular chimney shafts, one surviving, appears at the eaves.

A gabled projecting porch, probably rebuilt in the 19th century, has double 19th-century plank doors with foliate hinges, flanked by red sandstone shafts with foliate capitals from which springs a moulded archway with a hood bearing carved head stops. A small window above has a flat-chamfered surround; its upper part probably reuses an image niche and features miniature engaged finials. The interior of the porch has a 19th-century roof, flagged floor, and contains two medieval oak chests with iron binding strips.

Interior

The nave and chancel walls have been scraped; the interior of the chancel is ashlar faced. A three-bay nave arcade features octagonal piers with moulded capitals and double-chamfered arches. The floor is flagged. The nave is covered by a three-bay 14th-century wagon roof with moulded intersecting beams bearing decorative bosses; the panels of the easternmost bay are subdivided into quarters by further intersecting beams also with bosses. Braced tie beams rise from angel corbels displaying shields. The south aisle has a similar but less heavily constructed three-bay 14th-century wagon roof with decorative bosses and comparable angel corbels from which rise small engaged columns.

A pointed chancel arch with double-chamfered arch is now partially blocked by a screen added in 1917. To the right stands a trefoil-headed image niche, and nearby a trefoil-headed piscina in the south wall. A Perpendicular tower arch opens to the west. A segmental-headed inner arch with hollow-moulded surround decorated with large ballflowers serves the north door; engaged hollow-moulded columns with bases and ballflower ornament frame the windows of the north aisle. A plank door to the former rood loft remains high up in the wall at the east end of the north aisle. An ogee-curved cinquefoil-headed niche is set in the respond of the nave arcade nearby. A pointed plank door with moulded 19th-century surround decorated with ballflower and four-petal flowers stands in the south wall of the nave.

The vestry is not accessible. A wide triangular-headed opening with large angel corbels supports an inner archway, the whole of which is blocked by a part-glazed partition.

A plain 19th-century octagonal stone font occupies the west end of the north aisle. 19th-century pews and choir stalls with blind tracery ornament the ends of the seating; two 18th-century benches with arm rests, fielded panels, turned legs and railings survive. A 20th-century organ sits at the base of the tower. A 19th-century carved hexagonal pulpit, brought from Bagpath in 1976, stands within the church. 19th-century brass communion rails and a 20th-century altar table complete the liturgical furnishings.

A fine 18th-century chest with ornate stained decoration depicting hunting scenes is displayed in the north aisle; a square stone sundial on the window sill above bears the inscription 'John Stanby his Gift 1645'. A wooden commandment board at the east end of the north aisle bears the inscription 'God save the Queen 1591. James Elbrige. William Bub' in inlaid lettering.

Monuments and Ledgers

A part of a medieval ledger with an incised cross serves as a step to the south doorway. A Baroque monument to William Hynson (died 1667) and his wife Elizabeth (died 1670) features barley-twist columns flanking the inscription panel, a painted heraldic shield, and a swan-necked pediment with cherubs above. The monument was formerly highlighted in gold and black. A white and grey sarcophagus-shaped monument to the right of the tower arch commemorates George Gough (died 1756) with an urn and painted cartouche above. A monument to Sara Gwinnett (died 1717) displays an oval inscription panel surrounded by roses and bell flowers, a bust, two cherubs, and a pointed heraldic shield at the top.

In the north aisle and chapel, a marble monument to Lyttleton Lawrence (died 1740) stands on the north wall with a pediment and urn. Six simple 19th-century marble monuments occupy the walls. 17th-, 18th-, and 19th-century ledgers line the floor.

Stained Glass

Some medieval stained glass survives within the tracery of the windows of the north aisle and the west window of the nave. 19th-century stained glass appears in the west window and chancel.

Historical Context

The church acted as a cell of the priory of Usk, which was founded by the de Clares. The decoration of the north aisle and chapel displays analogies with that of the south aisle of Gloucester Cathedral.