Church Of St Andrew

Church of St Andrew, Middleton

This is a parish church with a remarkably long building history spanning from the 11th century to the 19th century. The tower dates to the 11th century with a 13th-century bell stage. The nave arcades are early (north arcade, 12th century) and late 12th century (south arcade). The aisles, tower and chancel arches date to the 13th century. The clerestory and nave roof are 15th-century work. An 18th-century porch was added. The nave was substantially restored and the chancel largely rebuilt in 1886 by architect C Hodgson Fowler. Further re-roofing occurred in 1938.

The building is constructed of coursed rubble sandstone with long and short quoins for the tower. The nave, aisles and chancel are roughly squared sandstone, with rebuilt parts in tooled sandstone and sandstone ashlar. The porch uses herringbone-tooled sandstone with a hammer-dressed gable end. The nave is roofed in lead, the chancel in slate, and the porch in stone slate.

The plan comprises a west tower, a three-bay aisled nave with a south porch, and a chancel. The west tower features a blocked round-arched doorway within a raised surround and with imposts. The outer arch is broken by an inserted vesica-shaped diamond-latticed window. Two similarly glazed stair lights appear on the south tower face. The bell stage is set back over a string course with angle lesenes to the south and west. The bell openings consist of paired pointed lights with a centre shaft, recessed beneath chamfered pointed arches with nook-shafts. On the north face the bell opening is a lancet beneath an ogee hoodmould that continues around the tower. An embattled parapet sits over a corbel table with waterspouts to north and south. Fragments of Anglo-Danish sculpted stone are incorporated in the tower, including a cross head, cross shaft, and a small animal.

The north aisle's west end contains a restored window of two pointed cusped lights. The south aisle's west end has a two-light double-chamfered window with reticulated tracery and a pointed hoodmould on foliate stops. The nave has offset buttresses to the east of the south porch and at each end. The gabled porch features a round-arched entrance with a circular sundial above. The inscription on the sundial is now illegible but is said to have read "1782, we stay not". A 15th-century door of traceried panelling stands in a pointed trefoil-arched doorway of four orders with one pair of nook-shafts, with a coved hoodmould on carved stops. To the east of the porch is a restored two-light window. An eaves corbel table and plain parapet run along the nave. The clerestory windows are square-headed with paired segment-arched lights. A north nave door similar to the south door has two orders with imposts beneath a chamfered hoodmould, and the parapet has no corbel table. The chancel's south side was rebuilt and contains a priest's door flanked by two-light windows with Decorated tracery. The partly-rebuilt north side incorporates a single blocked lancet in a chamfered opening at the centre, over a continuous sill band. East diagonal offset buttresses support the chancel, and a 19th-century five-light window with curvilinear tracery is positioned at the east end.

Interior features include a pointed tower arch of two orders with keeled responds and angle shafts, and moulded capitals bearing traces of painted decoration on the inner order. The north arcade consists of three round arches on columns with square bases and scalloped capitals. The south arcade has three double-chamfered arches on columns with octagonal bases. Responds and one column have uncarved or crocketed capitals. The second column from the west has a rebated square capital with leaf mouldings in the angles and a carved beast's head to the north. The chancel arch resembles the tower arch and incorporates a squint in a rebated surround in the south respond.

The north aisle retains a stone bench and a fireplace set into the east wall, relics from when the aisle served as a school. The south aisle contains a pointed piscina with a head-stopped hoodmould at the east end. The nave has a fine 15th-century roof of seven king-post trusses.

Fittings include an 18th-century octagonal inlaid pulpit with tester, a font with a 16th-century cover, and 15th-century stalls in the chancel with one misericord carved with a man's head and shoulders and another with coats of arms on the sides.

Monuments include two tablets in the north aisle by Skelton of York: one to Charles Hayes (died 1832) and one to Thomas Hayes (died 1838), both of Aislaby Hall. On the chancel north wall stands a marble monument with draped urn, dove and snake, dedicated to members of the family of Reverend Michael Mackereth, Vicar from 1782 to 1828. Within the north wall of the sanctuary is a monument by J Flintoft of York to William Wells (died 1828). A graveslab commemorates Anne Grey, wife of William Grey of Aislaby Hall, who died on 2 December 1715.

The north aisle contains a substantial collection of 10th-century sculpture: two wheelhead crosses and shafts, one carved with a hunter and animals, the other with a warrior and weapons, both featuring interlace; a cross with a debased wheelhead and interlace; and other fragments carved with warriors' heads.