Church of St Catherine

Church of St Catherine

An Anglican parish church of 12th-century origins, substantially altered in the 13th and 15th centuries, and restored in 1870-71 by Henry Hall. The building is constructed of ham stone ashlar with stone slate roofs between stepped coped gables, some behind low parapets, and follows a cruciform plan comprising a two-bay chancel, five-bay nave, west tower, north porch linked by lobby to the north transept, and south-east vestry.

The chancel was largely rebuilt in 1870 in 14th-century style, featuring wide angled corner buttresses, a plinth, and eaves course. The east window is of early Geometric style with three lights under a label with curl stops; similar windows appear in the side walls. The south side accommodates an 1864 vestry matching the chancel style, with a two-light south window in the gable and a plain east door.

The south transept, probably of 15th-century date, has a rebuilt gable with half-height corner buttresses and eaves course. It contains a three-light window of Geometric tracery on the south side, beneath which is a moulded pointed-arched doorway with a square label continued as a string course. To the west stands a single lancet without label, and to the east a four-light flat-headed window without label, featuring ogee-traceried and cusped heads with a central king mullion. The north transept is similar but has two lancets in its east wall.

The nave has been at least partially rebuilt on its south side, with the north possibly being earlier. It features a plinth, bay buttresses, an eaves string with gargoyles, and a shallow plain parapet with moulded coping. The 15th-century style windows comprise traceried three-light designs set in hollowed arched recesses with square-stop labels—four on the south side and two on the north.

The north porch may date from the 12th century. It has large angled corner buttresses, an eaves string, and a stepped coped gable with a cross finial. The doorway is a two-chamfered, only just pointed arch with a simple string and formerly carved stops. Above stands a 14th-century canopied statue niche under a relieving arch and a small 14th-century two-light window. The interior contains a quadripartite vault with ridge ribs and a Tudor rose boss; the inner doorway is simpler with a pointed arch.

The tower rises in three stages, probably of 15th-century date, with offset corner buttresses two stages high featuring diagonal-set shafts over them; no pinnacles remain. A full-height hexagonal stair turret stands at the north-west corner. Thick string courses of quatrefoil panel bands mark each level, though these are partly missing on the south side. The parapet is crenellated. The west doorway is deeply moulded with flanking shafts set diagonally. Traceried panels appear beneath the cill of the four-light sub-arcuated traceried and transomed west window in a hollowed recess, which breaks into stage two. A small rectangular window and clockface are positioned to the north of stage two, while stage three has two-light windows in recesses without labels on all faces.

The interior largely reflects the 1870s restoration work, featuring ashlar wall facings and 19th-century roofs with angel corbels to the trusses. The chancel arch is of 12th-century date with three plain orders and side shafts having scalloped capitals; a squint opens to the south side. The 13th-century transept arches have triple-shaft jambs with original mouldings to capitals on their east sides; the south-east arch bears dog-tooth ornament. Transept windows have rere-arches with labels to the gable windows. The tower arch is 15th-century, tall and double-panelled. The chancel retains some recut 16th-century lettered panels, while the nave contains an ornamented arch to a Norman doorway decorated with X and lozenge motifs that are fire-reddened; one corbel to an organ loft in the north parvise is of 12th-century date. The font in the lobby between the porch and transept is possibly 15th-century, octagonal with a panelled bowl, underbowl, and shaft. The lobby itself features panelled link arches, probably also of 15th-century date.

Monuments include several in the north transept within the Phelips family chapel (the Phelips family were owners of Montacute House). These comprise effigies of David and Ann, died 1484, and Bridget, died 1508, probably on later bases, as well as canopied effigies of Thomas, died 1588, and Elizabeth, died 1598. On the west wall is a garbled monument to Edward, died 1690, featuring coupled Ionic pilasters and a pediment. The chancel also contains a small stone plaque to John House, yeoman, died 1660.

The building was originally the chapel attached to the nearby Priory of St Peter and St Paul (now Abbey Farmhouse), which was established by 1102. The chapel was first mentioned circa 1180, with one of the two structures being burned down around 1207.