The Parish Church Of All Saints

The Parish Church of All Saints

The Parish Church of All Saints at Westdean is a Grade I listed building of Saxon-Norman origin, substantially unchanged from the medieval period. The church was restored in the late 13th and early 14th centuries, with further restoration work in 1878 and 1961, and was re-roofed in 1984. It is built of flint and Eastbourne stone rubble with a tiled roof.

The church comprises a three-bay nave and two-bay chancel in one, a west tower with broached spire, and a south porch. The west tower stands in two stages, with the lower portion being Norman and the upper section dating to the early 14th century. A half-hipped tiled roof covers the short spire, which was formerly shingled and is now surmounted by a metal weathervane. The bell stage has two small slit windows and a trefoil-headed window below. An early 20th-century traceried window sits above an arched west entrance, with deep buttresses flanking either side. A 19th-century gabled porch projects from the south side.

The nave and chancel are of equal height. The south side of the nave has three early 14th-century windows—two trefoil-headed lancets and one double trefoil-headed window with a light above. The north side features a small Saxon window, two lancet windows, and an early 14th-century window with double trefoils and a six-pointed star above. The east window contains intersecting tracery with a triple trefoiled window.

Internally, the tower-arch is round-headed with 14th-century shafts beginning relatively high. The Saxon date of the nave is confirmed by a small west window that was blocked until 1963. An ogee-headed early 14th-century stone stoup stands by the south entrance. An early 14th-century square stone font on octagonal columns is positioned on the south side of the tower-arch.

The church contains significant monuments and memorials. On the north wall is a marble monument of circa 1637 to Mrs Susanna Tirrey (née Thomas), featuring a curved open pediment with a coat of arms above, a floral swag beneath, and cherubs on either side—one holding a spade, the other a torch. A bronze head of Lord Waverley by Jacob Epstein, unveiled in 1960, is positioned in the corner where the south and west walls meet. The north wall also displays a bronze head of the painter Sir Oswald Birley (died 1952) by Clare Sheridan. A large stone memorial to the Harrison family is set into the floor.

The chancel contains two medieval stone tomb canopies on the north wall. The westernmost dates to the late 13th century and the easternmost to the early 14th century. These are believed to be the tombs of Sir John Heringod and his wife Isabella. Sir John was Lord of the Manor and represented Sussex in Parliament. In his will, he provided for two wax tapers and a lamp to be burnt over his wife's tomb. The church was subsequently endowed with the annual rent from land at West Dean known as the Tapersland and the Lampland.

On the south side of the chancel stands a large alabaster wall monument of circa 1639 to William Thomas, a wealthy citizen of Lewes who purchased the Manor of West Dean in 1611. It comprises two kneeling figures beneath a curved pediment decorated with a coat of arms, supported on composite half-columns and flanked by angels. Further to the east is an early 14th-century piscina. The east window contains stained glass dating to circa 1890 and is flanked by two brass panels of the Ten Commandments.

The roof of both nave and chancel is barrel-vaulted with crownposts to the nave and dates to 1984. The pulpit is late 20th century.

The early 14th-century restoration in Early English style was probably financed by Sir John Heringod (1250–1325). The church remains substantially intact as a medieval parish church with its Saxon-Norman origins clearly visible.