Church Of St Andrew

Church of St Andrew, Dent

A parish church on Main Street, Dent, probably dating to the 12th century but enlarged and remodelled in the early 16th century, with some Norman fabric remaining. The tower is said to have been added in the later 18th century, and the building underwent extensive renewal in 1889. The structure is built of mixed random rubble with quoins, has a stone slate roof over the nave, and copper roofs to the aisles. The architectural style is mostly simple Perpendicular.

The plan comprises a nave and chancel in one, with full-length north and south aisles, a south porch, and a west tower.

The square unbuttressed tower features an embattled parapet, a square-headed doorway in the south side, a small window in the west side, and small 2-light belfry windows with cusped lights and stone louvres. A lean-to structure in its north angle, continuing from the north aisle, has a round-headed doorway with a stone slate drip-band above. The nave is lit by 4 clerestory windows of 2 round-headed lights, while the chancel continues with two 3-light clerestory windows featuring cusped lights; all have hoodmoulds. The south aisle has a gabled porch at its west end with a round-headed doorway moulded in 2 orders and a 19th-century 2-centred arched inner doorway. The aisle contains 5 tall square-headed mullioned windows of various sizes, with a buttress between the 3rd and 4th windows. These include a 2-light window next to the porch with Perpendicular tracery, a tall 3-light window, a shorter 3-light window, and 2 original 16th-century 3-light windows, all with hoodmoulds with dropped ends; the second window features mask stops. Below the 4th window is a small round-headed priest door. The north aisle has a blocked round-headed doorway in the 1st bay with a chamfered surround, a square 2-light mullioned window above and to the left, and four tall 3-light windows with hoodmoulds matching those of the south aisle. The east end displays a large segmental-headed 5-light east window with a transom flanked by 3-light windows, all restored.

Internally, the nave and chancel have 3+3 bay arcades. The nave arcades, probably of early 13th-century date, have 2-centred double-chamfered arches with 2 cylindrical columns between octagonal terminal piers that appear to have been designed for different arcading; those at the west end are partly enclosed by the tower masonry, which has no opening. The chancel arcades, probably 16th-century, have octagonal columns with 2-centred double-chamfered arches. The 2 eastern bays have balustraded screens to the choir, probably of 19th-century date. The choir and chancel are paved on 2 levels with polished Dent marble in a black and white chequer pattern.

An octagonal oak pedestal pulpit with lozenges in the side panels stands in the nave, accompanied by a bracketed desk with a carved frieze including raised lettering "M T 1614" and a sounding-board. The south aisle contains 5 original 17th-century box pews with carved decoration, some with initials and dates, together with early 18th-century benches with fielded panel backs and initials worked in metal studs. The north aisle has early 18th-century enclosed side-benches in 2 tiers, with a late 17th-century box pew at each end.

Wall monuments include, in the south aisle, 2 early 18th-century pedimented sandstone aedicules with fluted pilasters and dentilled entablatures (now laminating with illegible tablets), a marble wall tablet commemorating Adam Sedgwick (1785–1873, Woodwardian Professor of Geology at Cambridge University), and another commemorating his son, vicar of Dent. The north aisle contains a pair of marble wall tablets to members of the Sill family of West House (now known as Whernside Manor), including John Sill "of Providence in the Island of Jamaica", died 1774, and another to Emma, widow of General Brownrigg (died 1815 at Broadfield House).