All Saints Church, Weston-on-Avon
Encyclopedia
All Saints Church, Weston-on-Avon is in the small village of Weston-on-Avon
, Warwickshire
, England . The church is a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church
in the diocese of Gloucester
, the archdeaconry of Cheltenham and the deanery of Campden. Its benefice
is combined with those of St Swithin's, Quinton
and St Peter's, Welford.
is possibly older. A chapel dedicated to St Anne was demolished, probably in the 16th century at the time of suppression of chantry
chapels in the 16th century. The south porch was added in the early 18th century and a restoration
was carried out in 1899.
, parts of which are covered in pebbledash, and the dressings are of ashlar
. The roof is tiled. The plan consists of a four-bay nave
, a two-bay chancel, a west tower and a south porch. The tower is short and has no string courses. At the top four corners are gargoyle
s, three of which depict winged monsters, the other a human being playing a recorder
. The west window has four lights with Perpendicular tracery
. The bell-openings have two lights and louvres
. At the corners are diagonal buttress
es and at the northeast of the tower is a stair turret
. At its top is a cornice
and crenellations. The north wall of the nave has a six-light straight-headed window in each bay. Two lights of one of these windows contains stained glass depicting a large number of little ships. Between the windows is a blocked north doorway. The window in the western bay of the south wall has a six-light window similar to those in the north wall. The porch is in the next bay and the windows in the other two bays contain arches filed with glass which used to be the arches between the chapel and the nave. At the east end of the nave wall is a squint
with two trefoil-headed openings. Around the top of the nave is a cornice. The north and east sides are fully crenellated but the crenellations on the south wall are only above the two western bays. The chancel is lower and narrower than the nave and is gable
d. The east window is arched with three lights and Perpendicular tracery. In the north wall of the chancel is a three-light straight-headed window and in the south wall there is a similar window with a priest's door to its west.
is octagonal and dates from the 19th century. The pulpit
and choirstalls date from the early 20th century and the organ from 1960. On the floor to the southeast of the pulpit are medieval encaustic
tiles. In the nave is a 17th century bier
. On the chancel floor are memorial brasses
to Sir John Greville who died in 1546 and Sir Edward Greville who died in 1559, both of whom were Lords of the Manor
of Milcote. On the wall are three early 19th century memorial tablets to members of the Adkins family, also of Milcote. There is a single bell, dating from the mid-15th century, which is inscribed with a cross and the word Gabriel.
Weston-on-Avon
Weston-on-Avon is a village which was recorded in the Domesday Book. Originally in Gloucestershire, it was transferred to Warwickshire in 1931...
, Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
, England . The church is a Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
in the diocese of Gloucester
Diocese of Gloucester
The Diocese of Gloucester is a Church of England diocese based in Gloucester, covering the non-metropolitan county of Gloucestershire. The cathedral is Gloucester Cathedral and the bishop is the Bishop of Gloucester...
, the archdeaconry of Cheltenham and the deanery of Campden. Its benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...
is combined with those of St Swithin's, Quinton
Quinton, Warwickshire
Quinton is a civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England, about six miles south of Stratford. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1503. The parish contains Upper Quinton and Lower Quinton...
and St Peter's, Welford.
History
The earliest documentary evidence of a church on the site is in 1283, although it is likely that there was a church at an earlier date. Most of the present church dates from the mid-15th century, although part of the chancelChancel
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...
is possibly older. A chapel dedicated to St Anne was demolished, probably in the 16th century at the time of suppression of chantry
Chantry
Chantry is the English term for a fund established to pay for a priest to celebrate sung Masses for a specified purpose, generally for the soul of the deceased donor. Chantries were endowed with lands given by donors, the income from which maintained the chantry priest...
chapels in the 16th century. The south porch was added in the early 18th century and a restoration
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...
was carried out in 1899.
Structure
The church is built in blue liasBlue Lias
The Blue Lias is a geologic formation in southern, eastern and western England and parts of South Wales, part of the Lias Group. The Blue Lias consists of a sequence of limestone and shale layers, laid down in latest Triassic and early Jurassic times, between 195 and 200 million years ago...
, parts of which are covered in pebbledash, and the dressings are of ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
. The roof is tiled. The plan consists of a four-bay 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...
, a two-bay chancel, a west tower and a south porch. The tower is short and has no string courses. At the top four corners are gargoyle
Gargoyle
In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque, usually made of granite, with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between...
s, three of which depict winged monsters, the other a human being playing a recorder
Recorder
The recorder is a woodwind musical instrument of the family known as fipple flutes or internal duct flutes—whistle-like instruments which include the tin whistle. The recorder is end-blown and the mouth of the instrument is constricted by a wooden plug, known as a block or fipple...
. The west window has four lights with Perpendicular tracery
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
. The bell-openings have two lights and louvres
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
. At the corners are diagonal buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es and at the northeast of the tower is a stair turret
Turret
In architecture, a turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. Turrets were used to provide a projecting defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification...
. At its top is a cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
and crenellations. The north wall of the nave has a six-light straight-headed window in each bay. Two lights of one of these windows contains stained glass depicting a large number of little ships. Between the windows is a blocked north doorway. The window in the western bay of the south wall has a six-light window similar to those in the north wall. The porch is in the next bay and the windows in the other two bays contain arches filed with glass which used to be the arches between the chapel and the nave. At the east end of the nave wall is a squint
Hagioscope
A hagioscope or squint, in architecture, is an opening through the wall of a church in an oblique direction, to enable the worshippers in the transepts or other parts of the church, from which the altar was not visible, to see the elevation of the host.Hagioscopes were also sometimes known as...
with two trefoil-headed openings. Around the top of the nave is a cornice. The north and east sides are fully crenellated but the crenellations on the south wall are only above the two western bays. The chancel is lower and narrower than the nave and 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. The east window is arched with three lights and Perpendicular tracery. In the north wall of the chancel is a three-light straight-headed window and in the south wall there is a similar window with a priest's door to its west.
Fittings and furniture
The fontBaptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
is octagonal and dates from the 19th century. The 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 choirstalls date from the early 20th century and the organ from 1960. On the floor to the southeast of the pulpit are medieval encaustic
Encaustic tile
Encaustic tiles are ceramic tiles in which the pattern or figure on the surface is not a product of the glaze but of different colors of clay. They are usually of two colors but a tile may be composed of as many as six. The pattern is inlaid into the body of the tile, so that the design remains as...
tiles. In the nave is a 17th century bier
Bier
A bier is a stand on which a corpse, coffin or casket containing a corpse, is placed to lie in state or to be carried to the grave.In Christian burial, the bier is often placed in the centre of the nave with candles surrounding it, and remains in place during the funeral.The bier is a flat frame,...
. On the chancel floor are memorial brasses
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...
to Sir John Greville who died in 1546 and Sir Edward Greville who died in 1559, both of whom were Lords of the Manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
of Milcote. On the wall are three early 19th century memorial tablets to members of the Adkins family, also of Milcote. There is a single bell, dating from the mid-15th century, which is inscribed with a cross and the word Gabriel.