Church Of St Mary

Parish church dating from around 1350 and later periods, with a chancel designed by Nathaniel Ireson of Wincanton in 1743, possibly built on older foundations. The church is constructed from local stone cut and squared, with Doulting stone dressings, shallow lead-covered roofs and Welsh slates to the North tower.

The building follows a 6-cell plan with a 3-bay chancel, a nave with North and South aisles of 5 bays each, and Eastern extensions of 1 bay to the aisles forming a vestry and organ chamber. There is a West entrance tower and a North tower.

The chancel features a plinth, slim offset corner buttresses, and an open parapet with piers. There is no East window, but to the North and South are 2-light semi-circular arched windows with roundels over in plain pointed arch surrounds. A blocked segmental arched recess appears on the South side.

The North aisle dates from around 1350 and is plinthed with angled corner and offset bay buttresses and a crenellated parapet. It contains a 3-light pointed arch window with mid-15th century tracery. The South aisle and nave are of similar character, dating from the 15th century, with parapets of openwork and pinnacles. In the centre of the South aisle is a low moulded pointed arch doorway with a 16th-century door featuring a central wicket gate.

The North Tower, built around 1350, stands in the centre of the North aisle. It is three stages high with no plinth, angled corner buttresses, a string course, crenellated parapet and corner gargoyles. A square stair turret on the South West corner is taller than the tower itself. The North doorway comprises two chamfered orders in a pointed arch. To the West is a low 16th-century window, with 19th-century plain windows above on all three sides. Stage 2 has a 19th-century 2-light window in a recess to the North face. Stage 3 features 15th-century traceried 2-light windows under pointed arches without labels, on all faces.

The West Tower, built in 1445-46, rises in four stages. It is tall with a plinth, offset corner buttresses ending in pinnacles for most of its height, string courses, and ornamented crenellated parapets with quatrefoils and a decorated band below. Gargoyle heads appear to the sides. The West entrance is a 4-centre moulded arch doorway under a square label with foliage decoration to the spandrels. Immediately above is a 6-light 15th-century style traceried window whose pointed arch breaks into the next stage. Stage 2 has 3 canopied statue niches (the centre set higher) on the West, and 2-light 15th-century traceried windows in recesses with labels and cill courses to the North and South. Stage 3 has similar windows on all sides, with a clockface set under the West window. The 4th stage has sets of three 2-light mullioned and transomed windows as arcading, with dividing pinnacled pilasters.

The interior features fine 18th-century plasterwork to the chancel, including an ornamental ribbed ceiling vault on Classical corbels with bosses. A fine 3-bay reredos displays Corinthian pilasters, a full entablature and pediment to the centre bay, with plaster swags and drops to the panels. An 18th-century altar rail and boxed choirstalls are present, along with a screen in the high 4-centre chancel arch matching these features but dated 1938.

The nave arcades have almost triangular 4-centre arches on slim 4-hollow piers, with wide but low clerestorey windows dating from between 1506 and 1523. The roof is of tie beam and king-post construction with traceried infill of the same date. The aisle roofs match this construction. Blind 15th-century windows appear at the East end of the aisles, with remains of stairways to North aisle and nave rood lofts; similar traces exist on the South side.

A crypt lies beneath the chancel dating from around 1350.

Among the church's fittings are a cinquefoil cusped piscina to the South aisle, a wood pulpit of early 17th-century date on a stone base, 17th-century bench ends in the nave, a large possibly 13th-century chest with two lids, a Charles II hatchment board, and the 1620 chancel screen now fitted across the tower arch.

The monuments include one to Sir Maurice Berkeley (died 1581), featuring recumbent effigies of himself and two wives in an Easter sepulchre-type recess with double round arched front, Corinthian pilasters and strapwork panels. A monument to Captain the Honourable William Berkeley (died 1733, erected 1749) by P. Scheemakers shows a draped urn with flags on a heavy plaque. Another broken pediment plaque with urn and base swags commemorates William Berkeley (died 1741). A black marble monument with segmental pediment and bronze bust and decoration, possibly by Le Sueur, honours William Godolphin (died 1636). In the nave is a much weathered chest tomb of early 15th-century date with quatrefoil panels.