Church Of St Mary Magdalene

ST62SE CHARLTON HORETHORNE CP STOWELL

2/50 Church of St. Mary Magdelene

24.3.61 II

Church. Mostly rebuilt in 1912/13 by F. Bligh Bond. Local stone cut and squared, with ashlar dressings; Welsh slate roof between coped gables. Partly C15 tower, remainder in an Art Nouveau version of C15 Gothic. Nave continous with chancel 3 bays each, West tower, South porch, North East vestry. East end has plinth, 5-light segmental arched window with diamond stops to label, vent and cross finial to gable. On South side a buttress divides chancel and nave; chancel has two 2-cusped light flat headed windows without labels, and between them an elliptical arched doorway under ogee label with foliated window : nave has a 2-light pointed arch window with C15 style tracery and arched label with diamond stops, above which is a stepped false gable, then a flat headed window as in the chancel; projecting South porch with 4-centred moulded archway, corner buttresses; the inner door in a Norman style - to the West a small single light window. The North side has a projecting vestry with lean-to roof, having 4-centre arched doorway and single light window, with octagonal chimney stack on square base; nave has arched 2-light windows as on South side, but without labels or false gables. Tower of C15, but considerably remodelled in 1748 and restored in 1929; in 2 stages, with plinth, angled corner offset buttresses to most of first stage, string courses, plain shallow parapet with corner sweeps and obelisk pinnacles; pitched roofed; square plan staircase turret on North East corner with small slit window : to West face stage 1 a moulded pointed arched doorway without label, and above a small 2-light pointed arched window with arched label, then a small plaque under a hood mould inscribed 'WM/LH/1748'; to each face of stage 2 a semi-circular arched plain window in simple surround with impost blocks and keystones, fitted with wood baffles. Inside fairly simple; 4-slope barrel roof of timber ribs with plaster panels, coloured over chancel; chancel has choirstalls incorporating old material, one bench end dated 1670, another to match dated 1913; timber chancel screen in C15 style; good early C20 stained glass in East window; Nave has stone pulpit of C15 style with steps up set in outer wall, with elliptical arch and ogee label over preaching position and small window to the recess, front of pulpit richly carved : font octagonal, plain on square broached base, probably C13; tower arch probably late C15. First recorded rector 1269.

Listing NGR: ST6869922362