CHURCHES in The Stour Valley

Dedham Vale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) St Mary the Virgin, Cavendish St Lawrence, Stour Valley and surrounding Towns Peacocks Road, The Green, St Gregory and St George, St Peter and St Paul, Clare Cavendish CO10 8AZ Church Road, Little Waldingfield CO10 0SP Stour Valley Path High Street, Clare CO10 8NY Set beside a thatched Alms House, this Pentlow Late medieval church of Perpendicular style, attractive church includes an elaborate Pentlow Lane, Pentlow CO10 7SP with beautiful carvings, stained glass and Wool Towns A very large, beautiful ‘wool church’ with the heaviest ring of eight bells in . medieval ‘reredos’. On the river itself, one of only three round Tudor red brick porch. www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2115 www.cavendishvillage.uk/facilities/churches towered churches in the Valley. www.boxriverbenefice.com - Highlights www.stourvalley.org.uk www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2117 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6520 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2194

Crown copyright. To Bury St John the Baptist, Boxted St Edmunds Stoke by Clare To Newmarket 16 The Street, Stoke by Clare CO10 8HR 8 St Matthew, St Mary, All rights reserved. © Suffolk County Council. Licence LA100023395 See a castellated tower, one of the Road, Leavenheath CO6 4PT Polstead CO6 5BS smallest pulpits in , and Small, red brick, Victorian church with A unique church with the only elaborate interior decor. a unique set of First World War white original medieval stone spire www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2118 Great grave crosses. remaining in the Stour Valley. Wratting A1141 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2039 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2036 1 Cavendish St Augustine of Kedington 5 Canterbury, Birdbrook 2 St Andrew, The Street, Birdbrook CO9 4BJ To Lower Street, Layham IP7 5LZ One of the oldest churches in , with CLARE LONG Mainly 18-20th century with extensive stained glass and richly carved HAVERHILL MELFORD 5 medieval features, highlights are the spectacular stained woodwork. B111 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6563 Stoke by Clare Great glass and ornamental HADLEIGH ‘reredos’. Sturmer Waldingfield www.achurchnearyou.com/church/1953 SUDBURY St Mary’s, Steeple Bumpstead 3 Church Street, Steeple Bumpstead CB9 7DG 11 See a Norman tower, Tudor bricks, gargoyles 6 St Mary the and many other interesting features. Steeple A1071 Boxford Virgin, Lawford www.stmaryschurch.org.uk Bumpstead Great www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6623 Cornard Church Hill, Lawford CO11 2JX Bulmer Elaborately decorated, with ginger septaria, puddingstone, black flint and three shades of Polstead brickwork. To Ipswich www.lawfordchurch.co.uk Highlights (see numbers on map) 15th century with money from wealthy wool chancel arch. Wall paintings inside include an early traders. It is well known for the incredible depiction of St Francis of Assisi, an unusual nativity medieval stained glass with panels that are over sequence, a dragon and a stained glass window Tw instead 10 Stoke-by-Nayland Great Eastern Main Line 500 years old, including the three rabbits/hares by celebrated artists Wilmshurst and Oliphant. Leavenheath Higham St Peter & St Paul, Kedington window. Wissington (Wiston) CO6 4LX To to Ipswich 1 Incredible furnishings including a three-decker Rectory Gardens, CO10 9DT www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2035 East octagonal Jacobean pulpit with sounding-board, www.longmelfordchurch.com 4 Lamarsh Bergholt clerk’s desk, hat pegs, wig pole and hour-glass 7 Stratford stand. With over 20 monuments to the Barnardiston 10 St Mary, Stoke by Nayland Nayland St Mary family, the church is fondly known as the St Peter’s, Sudbury The tower dominates the landscape of the Bures 13 Cattawade ‘Westminster of Suffolk’ which largely 6 Standing proudly in the heart of Sudbury, St , and can be seen for miles around. A remained untouched by the Victorians. Peter’s dates back to the 14th Century. This unique feature in Suffolk is it’s 15th century carved 9 Boxted Mill Road, Kedington CB9 7NN beautiful Grade I listed building was oak doors in the south porch. The church is well 12 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/1948 decommissioned in 1972 and vested into the care known for the excellent acoustics, and was painted Dedham of the Churches Conservation Trust. It is now an several times by RA. Langham enriching cultural and community venue. School Street, Stoke by Nayland CO6 4QY Great Clare Priory, Clare Market Hill, Sudbury CO10 2EA www.naylandchurches.wordpress.com/stoke-by-nayland Horkesley 2 One of the oldest religious houses in England, www.stpetersudbury.co.uk established in 1248, offering a tranquil spiritual Gainsborough retreat for groups or individuals. A community of 11 St Mary’s, Hadleigh line to Augustinian friars and lay people live here. Day 7 St Stephen’s Chapel, Bures Set beside the grand Deanery Tower, St Mary’s visitors are welcomed to enjoy the picturesque The small thatched Chapel (c1215) is on the is a large and long church, showcasing probably the Marks Tey To Great Eastern Main Line grounds, ruins, shrine and the modern church hill where tradition has it Edmund King and Martyr earliest surviving spire in Suffolk. Hadleigh’s wool to Colchester and extension. was crowned as a boy on Christmas Day 855. After wealth built architecture of real character such as Ashen Road, Clare CO10 8NX the it became farm cottages, a plague St Mary’s, the Guildhall and Deanery Tower. St James, Nayland www.clarepriory.org.uk hospital (1739) then a barn. Restored in 1930s, The Deanery, Church Street, Hadleigh IP7 5DT High Street, Nayland CO6 4JE re-consecrated in 1940, visitors can see De Vere www.stmaryshadleigh.co.uk/index.php/st-mary-s The altarpiece painting by John Constable St Peter & St Paul, family tombs, stained glass and medieval graffiti. St Mary the Virgin, Belchamp Walter Outside, the Old Bures Dragon is seen carved into RA remains in the place for which it was Little Horkesley 3 With outstanding medieval wall paintings the hill opposite. Check website before visiting - it 12 St. Mary’s, Dedham commissioned. Little Horkesley CO6 4DB dating from the early 14th century, visitors can is on private ground with access by permissive You can find John Constable’s painting of The Holy Innocents, www.achurchnearyou.com/church/1967 Founded c1127, the church was also see fine Victorian ‘reredos’ (an ornamental footpath. Ascension inside the church, and the church is destroyed by enemy action in 1940 screen behind the altar), paintings by GW Bures CO8 5LD featured in many of his landscape paintings as it is Lamarsh a short distance across the water meadows from and reconsecrated in 1958. Brownlow, and a peal of eight bells adapted for www.bures-online.co.uk/chapel/chapel_barn.htm Henny Road, Lamarsh CO8 5EU www.littlehorkesley.com chiming. Flatford. The church we see today is a 15th century St Andrew’s, Wormingford Belchamp Walter CO10 7AT rebuild of the earlier medieval church, with walls This picturesque church is one of www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6511 St Peter & St Paul, Lavenham and a tower made of local rubble and flint. only three round towered churches Church Road, Wormingford CO6 3AZ 8 This magnificent parish ‘wool church’ attracts Dedham CO7 6DE in the Valley. Refurbished by Victorians, with interesting thousands of worldwide visitors and is set in one of www.dedham-and-ardleigh-parishes.org.uk www.lamarshchurch.org.uk/index-2.html architecture, art history and heritage stories. St John the Evangelist, Twinstead the country’s best preserved medieval ‘wool www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6516 www.wormingford.com 4 With a unique architectural design, being the towns’. The church has cathedralesque propor- only one of four of this type in a rural setting, and tions, very fine cut stone, knapped flint-work and 13 St Mary, built in Victorian times, there is richly decorated carvings in both oak and stone. It is a superb John Constable’s father Golding is buried here geometric tricoloured brickwork inside and out, as example of Perpendicular Gothic architecture. at this predominantly 15th century Grade 1 listed well as attractive stained glass. Church Street, Lavenham CO10 9QT church. Constable married Maria Bicknell, whose St John the Baptist, St Mary the Virgin, Church Road, Twinstead CO10 7NA www.lavenhamchurch.onesuffolk.net; grandfather was rector at St Mary’s. The most www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6521 www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2156 unusual feature of this church is a rare ground Mount Bures Bures level bell-cage, with five bells that are hand-rung St Mary, Great Henny Hall Road, Mount Bures CO8 5AR Church Square, Bures CO8 5AA each week, the heaviest set of five bells in Great Henny CO10 7NW Set beside an ancient Castle Mount, this 14th century church, containing one Holy Trinity, Long Melford St Mary the Virgin, Wissington England, weighing a total of 4.25 tons! See striking stained glass and a special 5 One of the great Suffolk ‘wool churches’, the 9 This small but beautiful Grade I listed Norman The Street, East Bergholt CO7 6TG beautiful Grade 1 building retains many of the finest timber-framed porches tower features in Gainsborough’s famous painting church stands near the River Stour and features a www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2067 18th century ‘broach’ spire clad in cedar. medieval features. in . ‘Mr & Mrs Andrews’. The church was rebuilt in the notable ornamented south door and Norman www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6515 www.mountbures.com www.achurchnearyou.com/church/2191 decoration and restoration of historic Stour Valley Churches features - a good example of this is the – Past & Present porch at St Andrew’s, Wormingford. The heritage of Stour Valley churches Round tower churches are a feature The Wool Trade The gentle valley slopes and meandering across East Anglia, and the Stour Valley The Stour Valley is a well-known centre river are central to the stunning has a few fabulous examples in of the medieval cloth and wool trade, landscape in the Stour Valley, whilst the Lamarsh, Little Bradley and Pentlow. and in the 16th century many of the The purpose of round towers has been a area’s built heritage also has a huge towns were amongst the wealthiest in Church Flint impact. Across the Valley church towers matter of debate with many believing the country. Much of this wealth was and steeples have been used as landmarks they were originally defensive towers, used to build architecturally superior Brick-making developed as a local industry for generations. For hundreds of years, while others argue they were lookout timber framed buildings and churches, (such as at Bulmer). By the 15th century churches in the Stour Valley have been at towers, or beacons. giving a distinctive look to the area red brick was used in high status secular the heart of the community, bringing In the 16th which attracts visitors today. This buildings and can be seen in the external people together and reflecting local century, the textile industry was concentrated along and interior architecture of many industries. Giving a window into the past, Reformation the River Stour and its tributaries, for churches. The Stour Valley gives some of some date back to early medieval times, brought trading access to the sea, and these the finest examples of the Perpendicular some showcase how strong faith and great significant significant churches were built along style of Gothic architecture, with prosperity built many ‘wool churches’ - changes to the the rivers. Riverside mills processed cathedralesque scale and characteristic exceptionally large and magnificent region’s the wool and locally designed working design of vertical lines. churches with lavish architecture - while religious barges, known as Stour Lighters, others mark significant historical buildings and navigated the Stour. milestones such as Queen Victoria’s saw the Diamond Jubilee. destruction of Prosperity from the wool trade has left St Gregory & many religious a legacy of magnificent churches which Visitors from near or far are invited to St George, Pentlow symbols. dominate the landscape and often experience the beautiful landscapes and Ornate seem to dwarf the settlements they charming towns and villages, admire roodscreens were painted over and now serve. Rich merchants and gentry, incredible architecture and artworks, find saintly faces were scratched out. who financed their construction, are Luckily, some stained-glass windows a dragon and join a cultural event. With commemorated within the buildings in Holy Innocents, Lamarsh so much to explore, walking and cycling survived simply because of the vast elaborate memorials which also testify offer fabulous ways to discover the expense of replacing them with plain to their wealth. In fact, where a parish Churches in the Stour Valley. The Suffolk glass. Holy Trinity, Long Melford, has had several extremely wealthy people, Historic Churches Trust began in 1983 one of the best examples of 15th the whole church might be rebuilt, as Explore More what is now a national one-day sponsored century stained glass windows in the at Lavenham and Long Melford. High This guide features a selection of churches in the Stour Valley, each with cycle ride each autumn, so you can Ride country. Fast forward 300 years and quality and skilled craftsmen were Victorian investment in medieval its own special characteristics and and Stride your way around the important for the spectacular flintwork, fascinating stories to tell. Please plan Stour Valley. churches added new elements, intricate carvings, glorious wall ahead and check visiting arrangements paintings and beautiful stained glass. to ensure each church is open for you to explore. There is a wealth of information available online about churches in the Stour Valley. The following websites are a good starting point if you're looking to learn more: • www.simonknott.co.uk • www.essexchurches.info • www.angelsandpinnacles.org.uk • www.achurchnearyou.com • www.roundtowers.org.uk • www.shct.org.uk • www.friendsofessexchurches.org.uk Left: St Peter & St Paul, Kedington © www.britainexpress.com. Right: Three Hares Medieval Stained Glass © Chris Chapman, St Peter and St Paul, Lavenham The Three Hares Project. This glass can be seen at Holy Trinity, Long Melford.

Churches in the Stour Valley The Stour Valley is a nationally significant area for historic buildings, positioned on the border between Essex and Suffolk – an area sometimes referred to as Constable Country – under an hour by train from London. Soaring ‘wool churches’ dominate the valley landscape, as strong faith and great prosperity built exceptionally large Churches in and magnificent churches with lavish architecture. Each church has a unique story to tell, providing an inspiration to anyone with an interest in the heritage of these rural communities. the Stour Valley

Visiting the Stour Valley

Please consider travelling sustainably where possible. There are good links to the Stour Valley on the Gainsborough rail line between Marks Tey and Sudbury, and there are bus routes throughout the area. For up to date local public transport timetables, contact Traveline on: www.traveline.info or 0871 200 22 33.

For detailed maps of the area, use Ordnance Survey Explorer Map No’s. 196 (Sudbury, Hadleigh and the Dedham Vale), 210 (Newmarket and Haverhill), 211 ( and ) and 195 (Braintree and ).

Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project Email: [email protected] Tel: 01394 445225 Web: www.dedhamvalestourvalley.org

Leaflet produced August 2020. Improving the Stour Valley for Visitors is a business development project to support high quality visitor products and services, funded by: The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development: Europe investing in rural areas Explore the Stour Valley with a series of guides Front cover image: St Mary, Stoke by Nayland. Back cover image: Holy Trinity, Long Melford © Courtesy of Ian Ibbotson