Church Of St Michael And All Angels

Church of St Michael and All Angels

This is a church of 14th and 15th century date with 13th century origins, restored in the 19th century. It is constructed of coursed squared ironstone with red and grey sandstone dressings and some limestone, and has lead roofs. The building comprises a chancel, nave, north and south aisles, a south porch, and a west tower and spire.

The chancel is two bays in length. The east window is of five lights with intersecting tracery and a hood mould. Angle buttresses separate the two bays, built of red sandstone, and the walls have two-light windows with Decorated tracery to both north and south. A priest's door to the south has a pointed head and sunk chamfer.

The nave features a clerestory with four two-light Perpendicular windows to both north and south with straight heads and hood moulds. A sanctus bellcote is positioned to the east gable on corbels. The north aisle contains a three-light Perpendicular east window, a larger three-light Perpendicular window to the north-east, a three-light window to the north-west with reticulated tracery, and a two-light Perpendicular west window with depressed head. A 19th century vestry with gabled tiled roof adjoins the north aisle, with a one-light window. The north door within has a 13th century double-chamfered pointed arch with inner arch resting on moulded capitals and shafts, and a hood mould with saw-tooth ornament. The south aisle has a three-light Perpendicular east window and a similar window to the south-east, three-light windows on either side of the porch with 19th century Decorated tracery, and a three-light west window with reticulated tracery. The south door has a many-moulded arch with two orders of fleurons and a hood mould.

The south porch is dated 1619 (possibly). Its doorway has a round-headed arch on imposts with a date stone above and is flanked by buttresses.

The west tower is three-staged. The lowest stage is open on three sides with double-chamfered arches and hood moulds, with a rib vault springing from corbel heads with edge ribs and a large bell-hole. Doors lead to the nave and a smaller door opens to a south stair turret. The middle stage has a niche with nodding ogee head to the west and narrow chamfered rectangular windows with straight heads to north and south. Two-light bell-openings have cusped Y-tracery. A battlemented parapet surmounts the stage, and a recessed spire rises above with two tiers of lucarnes in alternating directions. The clerestory, aisles, and chancel all have plain stone-coped parapets.

Interior

The chancel has a piscina with cusped head and a fine Perpendicular roof with moulded purlins and ridge. The chancel arch has two continuous sunk quadrant mouldings. The nave has four-bay arcades. The northern arcade includes two quatrefoil piers of approximately 1300 (noted by Pevsner), while the easternmost pier and those of the south aisle are 15th century, octagonal in plan with polygonal responds. The north-east respond is carved as an angel bearing a shield. The arches are double-chamfered to the north and hollow-chamfered to the south. The aisle roofs are much renewed; the north aisle roof is probably 18th century. Box pews in the aisles and at the back of the church date from a re-pewing of 1826. An early 17th century communion table is present, along with Commandment, Creed, and Lords Prayer boards. Communion rails have stick balusters. The Royal Arms of Queen Anne in oil on board are displayed over the west door. A brass to Letitia Catesby, made at the time of her husband Robert's death in 1467, is placed on the wall above the pulpit. A wall monument of alabaster in the chancel commemorates Thomas Thornton, who died in 1632, and 19th century marble wall tablets record various owners of Newnham Hall. The architect Mr. Hussey was consulted in 1844 and paid £5 18s 6d, probably Richard Coad Hussey, and was responsible for the Decorated tracery in the north and south aisles.