Church Of St Michael

SP 71 NW WADDESDON HIGH STREET (north side)

4/116 Church of St. Michael

21.12.67

GV II*

Parish church. Late C12 nave and S. aisle, altered C13 and C14; C14 chancel and N. aisle; late C15 clerestory; W. tower originally C14, rebuilt 1891; C15 S. porch, also rebuilt; all restored 1902. W. Tower is of coursed rubble stone, remainder roughcast with stone quoins and plinth. Concrete parapets, moulded to chancel, battlemented to remainder. Slate roofs. W. tower is of 2 stages with angle buttresses, S.E. stair turret, carved gargoyles, 2-light cusped openings to bell-chamber, W. door and traceried window. C19 vestry attached to N. 6-bay clerestory of late C15 2-light cusped windows with flat heads. N. aisle has 2 similar 3-light windows and 3 other windows, one to east, with 2-centred heads and Y tracery. Small moulded doorway. S. aisle also irregular with late C15 and C16 cusped windows. S. doorway has moulded arch with outer band of chevron on attached piers with carved capitals. Moulded niche above. S. porch has moulded arch and 2 rainwater heads dated 1736. Chancel has one bay of 2-light traceried windows and one bay of C15 3-light windows with flat heads, the N. wall also with 2 cusped lancets, the S. wall with small moulded doorway. Much restored 3-light traceried window to E. Interior: moulded arch to tower. Nave has C14 N. arcade with 6 bays of moulded arches on octagonal piers. 2 similar arches at E. end of S. arcade. Remainder of S. arcade is C12 and early C13 and has 2-centred arches of 2 off-set orders, one with roll moulding to inner order, on circular piers with scalloped capitals. Labels have nailhead, dogtooth or ball ornament and rest on carved head stops or short attached colonettes. C19 nave roof on C15 carved stone corbels. Cusped piscina in N. aisle, piscina with 4-centred head in S. aisle. Moulded chancel arch on semi- octagonal piers, the outer order on slender attached shafts. Fittings: C15 octagonal font with traceried panels; elaborate C19 marble pulpit, formerly in chapel at Blenheim; remainder C19. Monuments: stone effigy of knight c.1330 in N.E. corner of nave; small memorial tablets to Guy Carleton 1608 and Christian Wake 1609; marble wall tablet to John Ellis and wife c.1700 with scrolls, swags and broken segmental pediment; oval inscription tablet to Henry Wilkinson d.1647 in aedicule with festoons and swan-neck pediment. Brasses to: Robert Piggott and wife mid C16; to Hugh Bristowe 1548 with figure in shroud; to Richard Huntyndon 1543 with small figure of priest; to Sir Roger Dynham, knight, 1490, a large figure with surrounding inscription and triple canopy. RCHM I p. 301-4.

Listing NGR: SP7402316977