Church Of St Michael

Church of St Michael

This is a parish church of 12th-century origin with significant rebuilding in the early 14th and 15th centuries, and a substantial restoration carried out in 1844. It is constructed in coursed squared stone and ashlar with graduated stone slate and lead roofs. The church comprises a west tower, nave, north and south aisles, a south porch, a chancel with south aisle and small north aisle, and a north vestry.

The west tower rises from a 12th-century first stage, with three upper stages in Perpendicular style. The first stage has two small chamfered single-light openings on its south side. A wide band marks the transition to the second stage, which is blank, and another wide band appears at the third stage, which contains paired cusped lancets now blocked to their base. The belfry stage has two large shallow-arched openings placed next to each other, each containing a 2-light opening with cusped pointed-arched heads and a transom. At belfry level the corners are cut back to form small diagonal buttresses. A band and embattled parapet complete the tower top. The west window sits within a segmental-headed opening but has a flat head with two cusped lights. Clock faces appear on the west and east sides below the belfry. A small lean-to stair tower with a four-centre arched lintel to its doorway is attached to the north side of the tower.

The nave, dating from the early 14th century and later, consists of three bays. The south porch projects from the left bay of the south aisle and has an offset angle buttress to its left. The porch is gabled with offset angle buttresses and features a pointed-arched moulded doorway. Inside, the inner south door is 12th-century with three orders of colonnettes, waterleaf capitals, and several roll mouldings in the arch; it has a board-studded face. An offset angle buttress divides the nave south aisle from the chancel aisle. The nave south aisle contains two 3-light flat-headed cusped traceried windows set in segmental-headed surrounds. The north aisle to the nave has three 2-light Perpendicular cusped windows also in segmental-headed surrounds. The south aisles have a plain parapet. The clerestory features three 2-light ogee-headed cusped windows on both sides, set in chamfered flat-headed surrounds, with a plain parapet above. Corner clasping buttresses support the structure, and the east end is finished with a gable cross and pinnacles, with a similar 3-light window above the chancel.

The chancel is of early 14th-century date. Its south aisle has three bays with offset angle buttresses to the east. On the left is a 19th-century 2-light pointed-arched window with hoodmould and cusped curvilinear tracery. A small basket-arched priests' door sits to the right. The central window comprises two lights in a pointed arch with hoodmould and cusped tracery, and the window to its right is also of two lights in a pointed arch with hoodmould and curvilinear tracery. The north chancel aisle has one bay with a pointed-arched 2-light cusped window, beyond which lies the vestry to the east. The south aisle's 4-light east window has a pointed arch and cusped reticulated tracery. The chancel east window features a pointed arch with hoodmould and three lights with cusped curvilinear tracery incorporating quatrefoils in the head. The north vestry is of two stages with an offset diagonal buttress to the east. It contains a 17th-century 2-light mullion window to the east, and above it another 2-light mullion window with round-arched heads.

The interior nave arcades consist of three bays with keeled quatrefoil piers featuring fillets between the shafts, above which sit octagonal capitals. The arches are pointed and moulded. The chancel arch is similar, as are the arches to the chancel north aisle, though the south chancel arch is of 1844 date. The tower arch is similarly detailed. A font cover of 1352 is a tall wooden structure elaborately traceried and crocketed with a pinnacle. A wooden reredos in the north chapel is late 16th-century and Dutch in origin, comprising five small screens and decorative panels. The north aisle contains a portion of Roman mosaic discovered at the Villa in Well in 1859, and a large painted coat of arms to George I dated 1731.

Monuments include a plain tomb chest of 1526 to Lady Dorothy Nevill, and a tomb chest to Sir John Nevill Lord Latimer of 1596, featuring a recumbent effigy with the back panel now positioned to the side showing inscription and arms. In the north chapel is a cartouche with convex inscription circa 1700 to John Milbanke. The roofs to the nave and chancel are probably of 17th-century date.