All Saints Church, West Stourmouth
Encyclopedia
All Saints Church, West Stourmouth, is a redundant
Anglican
church in the civil parish
of Stourmouth
, Kent, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
. The church stands in the settlement of West Stourmouth, some 4 miles (6 km) north of Wingham
to the southeast of the A28 road
.
. Alterations were made in the late 12th century. The church was damaged in an earthquake in 1382, and was subsequently rebuilt. Windows were replaced in the 14th and 15th centuries. The church was restored
in 1845, when the seating was reorganised. It has been redundant since 1979.
with stone dressings and tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a nave
with north and south aisle
s, a chancel
, a south porch, and a west tower. The tower is weatherboarded
with a shingled
spire, and is supported by two 17th-century massive brick buttress
es. Between the buttresses is a porch, above which is a 15th-century two-light window. The south aisle has a brick parapet
and contains three two-light ogee
-headed 14th-century windows. The south porch is gable
d with corner buttresses. The east wall of the chancel was rebuilt in the 19th century, and contains a Decorated style window. In the south wall are two lancet window
s, and there is a similar window on the north side. Only the lower half of the north aisle survives, and it contains two hipped
dormer
s.
panelling
, a piscina
and choir stalls, all dating from the 17th century. The base of a rood screen
with four panels is still present. Also dating from the 17th century are an octagonal pulpit
and box pew
s. In the chancel is a brass
dated 1472. There are fragments of 15th-century glass in the south window of the chancel. Also in the church are the royal arms
of George III
.
Redundant church
A redundant church is a church building that is no longer required for regular public worship. The phrase is particularly used to refer to former Anglican buildings in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world...
Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
church in the civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Stourmouth
Stourmouth
Stourmouth is a civil parish in the Dover local government district of Kent, England.Its name comes from the fact that, before the Wantsum Channel was cut off from the sea, the village was at the mouth of the River Stour.-Geography:...
, Kent, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
Churches Conservation Trust
The Churches Conservation Trust, which was initially known as the Redundant Churches Fund, is a charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk, those that have been made redundant by the Church of England. The Trust was established by the Pastoral Measure of 1968...
. The church stands in the settlement of West Stourmouth, some 4 miles (6 km) north of Wingham
Wingham, Kent
Wingham is a civil parish and English Kent village situated along the ancient coastal road, now the A257, from Richborough to London and close to Canterbury. It has existed since the Stone Age but only became established as a village in Roman times. The Domesday book tells us that during Saxon...
to the southeast of the A28 road
A28 road
The A28 is a trunk road in southern England. It runs south-west from the seaside resort of Margate in Kent via Westgate and Birchington, reaching open countryside at Sarre. The road continues via Upstreet and Hersden to Sturry, and on to the cathedral city of Canterbury...
.
History
The main fabric in the church is SaxonAnglo-Saxon architecture
Anglo-Saxon architecture was a period in the history of architecture in England, and parts of Wales, from the mid-5th century until the Norman Conquest of 1066. Anglo-Saxon secular buildings in Britain were generally simple, constructed mainly using timber with thatch for roofing...
. Alterations were made in the late 12th century. The church was damaged in an earthquake in 1382, and was subsequently rebuilt. Windows were replaced in the 14th and 15th centuries. The church was restored
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
in 1845, when the seating was reorganised. It has been redundant since 1979.
Exterior
The church is constructed in flintFlint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
with stone dressings and tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
with north and south aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
s, a chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, a south porch, and a west tower. The tower is weatherboarded
Weatherboarding
Weatherboarding is the cladding or ‘siding’ of a house consisting of long thin timber boards that overlap one another, either vertically or horizontally on the outside of the wall. They are usually of rectangular section with parallel sides...
with a shingled
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
spire, and is supported by two 17th-century massive brick buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es. Between the buttresses is a porch, above which is a 15th-century two-light window. The south aisle has a brick parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
and contains three two-light ogee
Ogee
An ogee is a curve , shaped somewhat like an S, consisting of two arcs that curve in opposite senses, so that the ends are parallel....
-headed 14th-century windows. The south porch is gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d with corner buttresses. The east wall of the chancel was rebuilt in the 19th century, and contains a Decorated style window. In the south wall are two lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s, and there is a similar window on the north side. Only the lower half of the north aisle survives, and it contains two hipped
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
dormer
Dormer
A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used, either in original construction or as later additions, to create usable space in the roof of a building by adding headroom and usually also by enabling addition of windows.Often...
s.
Interior
The chancel has dadoDado (architecture)
In architectural terminology, the dado, borrowed from Italian meaning die or plinth, is the lower part of a wall, below the dado rail and above the skirting board....
panelling
Panelling
Panelling is a wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials....
, a piscina
Piscina
A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. Roman Catholics usually refer to the drain, and by extension, the basin, as the sacrarium...
and choir stalls, all dating from the 17th century. The base of a rood screen
Rood screen
The rood screen is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, or wrought iron...
with four panels is still present. Also dating from the 17th century are an octagonal pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
and box pew
Box pew
Box pew is a type of church pew that is encased in panelling and was prevalent in England and other Protestant countries from the 16th to early 19th century.-History in England:...
s. In the chancel is a brass
Monumental brass
Monumental brass is a species of engraved sepulchral memorial which in the early part of the 13th century began to partially take the place of three-dimensional monuments and effigies carved in stone or wood...
dated 1472. There are fragments of 15th-century glass in the south window of the chancel. Also in the church are the royal arms
Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
The Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom is the official coat of arms of the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. These arms are used by the Queen in her official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom, and are officially known as her Arms of Dominion...
of George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
.
See also
- List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in South East England