Parish Churches Church Ofstthomasábecket-Dodbrooke

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of 5 History & Heritage 1 South Devon AONB Unit little onchurchbuilding.Manyalterationswerehowever Christians ofthemid-16thtoearly19thcenturiesspent Protestant faith. After thisdate,fewalterationsweremade: which changedEnglandfromtheRomanCatholicto to developupthemid-16thcenturyReformation, between the12thand13thcenturies. They continued Most parishchurchesintheSouthDevon AONB originate Introduction in theSouthDevonAreaofOutstandingNaturalBeauty Parish Churches Church ofStThomasáBecket-Dodbrooke

by medievalmanors.Inmanycases,thenewparish usually tiedtolandholdings,suchasthosecontrolled second duringtheReformationin1530s. They were periods: theﬁrstoccurringin12th-13thcenturies; ecclesiastical parishes,whichcameintobeingintwomain Churches areusuallylocatednearthecentreof Distribution churches ofmedievaloriginintheSouthDevon AONB practices andsocialhistory. There areover40parish contribution toouroverallunderstandingofpastreligious worshipped inthepast. They areimportantfortheir churches cantellusagreatdealaboutthewaypeople ofparish Study ofthearchitecture,layoutandﬁttings involving thecompletereplacementofchurchbuildings. made intheperiodfromcirca1830to1920,sometimes English ruralsettlementsoriginatedinthisperiod. the ownershipandcontroloflandinEngland.Many increase, aftertheNormanConquestof1066-1068altered developed atatimewhenruralsettlementwasonthe for socialaswellreligiouspurposes.Parishchurches The parishchurchactedasacentralplaceofassembly Function parishes suchasStretein1830. such asSalcombein1840,orisolatedsettlementslarge 19th centurytoservetownswhichhadrecentlygrownup, several newchurchesandparisheswerecreatedinthe the manor, whosehousewasusuallynearby. Inaddition, church hadformerlybeenaprivatechapelbelongingto Information Sheets Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty 2 Page

of 5 History & Heritage 1 0 South Devon AONB Unit nave; latertherewasawooden screen. The parishioners century, astonearchwaygaveaccessbetweenitandthe and wherethehighaltarwaslocated.Before15th The activities ofthepriestinchancel. parishioners stoodorlatersattoworshipandobservethe The largestpartofachurchwasits here by the ruined church of St Andrew at South Huish. The layout of a typical South Devon parish church is illustrated How theyworked-internaldetail in theSouthDevonAreaofOutstandingNaturalBeauty Parish Churches the earliestexamples havingapair, projectingtonorthand Transepts architectural qualityofthetwo areas. reason fortheoftenconsiderable difference betweenthe parishioners hadresponsibility forthenave. This isthe was requiredtopayforrepairs tothechancel,while could notgobeyondthispoint. Forthisreason,thepriest St. AndrewChurchPlan W chancel N S usuallydateto the12th-early15thcenturies, waswherethepriestcelebratedmass E Tower 5 Site ofbench nave Bench Porch , wherethe 10m

Bench

Site of bench Nave Aisle population increases. necessary when congregationshadgrowndue to Kingsbridge they couldbeearlier. They wereoften but insomelargerchurches, such asModburyand Aisles conﬁscated bytheC 1547, whenchantriesweresuppressed andtheirassets who wereusuallyburiedbeneath itsﬂoor. This ended in family,at analtarinthechapelonbehalfofdonor’s priest orclerktosing‘chant’ regularmassestoGod usually theLordofManor. They oftenemployeda private Before the16thce transepts havebeenlost. Later alterationstochurchesoftenmeanthatoneorboth a cruciformplan,presumablysymbolicofthecross. south attheeastendofnave. This givesthechurch Transept Site ofBench After 1867 Period 5:C17? Period 4:c.1520-1540 Period 3:c.1480-1520 Period 2:c.1400-1450 Period 1:c.1200-1280

wereusuallyaddedinthe15th and16thcenturies,

chantry chapels

Altar 7 Altar

Squint Rood

ntury, transeptsusuallycontained Screen Pulpit rown. base ? Lady Chapel Chancel , paidforbyawealthyperson, R -Reredos? P -Piscina S -Water Stoup F -Fireplace IB -Imagebracket

Information Sheets Altar altar Site R? R? of

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of 5 History & Heritage 1 South Devon AONB Unit Stained glasswindows small gods,presidedoverbyasupremedeity. echoed theCelticandRomanreligions,whichhadmany local one,towhomtheywerededicated.Inthisway, they addition toMary, mostchurcheshadasaint,sometimes as Christhasbeenprayedtosincethe16thcentury. In intercession withGodonyourbehalf,inthesameway as MarywereprayedtobeforetheReformationmake a publicchapeldedicatedtotheVirgin Mary. Saintssuch contain chantrychapels,butthatonthesouthwasusually the roodscreenbroughtacrossthem. They couldalso Chapels priest toenterandleavethechurch. chancel, orinthiscase,theLadyChapel. This wasforthe Another smalldoorisoftenfoundonthesouthsideof Devon churches,mostofwhicharestillrung. examples ofbellsfromthe15thto18thcenturiessurvivein a smallnumberofbells,fourbeingtypicalnumber. Many examples. Despitethisgrandeur, mostexamplesonlyhad at Stokenham,Chivelstoneand Totnes beingclassic buttresses werebuiltinthemidtolate15thcentury, those were uncommon.Very tall taperingtowerswithmultiple period oftowerbuildingwasthe15thcentury, whenspires to datefromthelater13thor14thcentury, butthemain AONB. Those atMalboroughandModburyarethought spires, severalofwhichsurviveintheSouthDevon onwards, sometimesbeingadornedwithpinnaclesor Bell towers in theSouthDevonAreaofOutstandingNaturalBeauty Parish Churches were giveninLatin, unintelligibletomostpeople. used inteaching scripture,atatimewhenchurch services from thebiblewereshownand arethoughttohavebeen Manor, orpictures ofangelsorsaints.Sometimes,scenes decorative glass,showingthe shieldsoflocalLordsthe zealots inthe16thand17thcenturies. They couldcontain 19th centuryasmanyweredeliberately brokenbyreligious wereoftenfoundattheeastendofaisles,with wereaddedtochurchesfromthe13thcentury side of the church, opposite the font. door is sometimes found on the north of the Manor and his family. A small enter by, and sometimes by the Lord on special occasions for the choir to their wedding; it would also be used bride and groom would pass prior to had a west door, through which the at a later date. Most churches also sometimes had a porch added to it entrance for all the parishioners. This wall of the nave, which was the main function. All had a door in the south doors, A church could have up to four less favoured side for that reason. the church was always seen as the banished that way. The north side of in order that the Devil could be door be left open during christenings An old superstition required that this areraresurvivalsfrombefore the each having a different

often hadimagesof colours. Lowerpanels were paintedinbright window tracery, and in imitationofchurch often lavishlycarved removed. Screenswere when mostwere until theReformation, (the ‘rood’)wasfixed of thePassionChrist carved representation nave andchancel,a screen betweenthe aisles. Above therood in theendsof chancel fromchapels and chancel,parclosescreens,whichdividedthe Screens century bythe Puritans. for fairsandrevels, althoughthiswasstopped inthe17th due tocenturiesofburials.Graveyards wereoftenused great heightofgraveyardsabove thesurroundinglandis century, replacingwoodenones whichdonotsurvive. The outside, stonememorialsbeginning inthelate17th Most ofthecommonpeoplewere buriedinthe centuries. the 17thcenturyandwerecommonin18th19th carved stone sometimes withanengravedbrassinsert,orevena dead personwascommemoratedbyaninscribedslab, or chapels,sometimesinvaultsbeneaththefloor. The Tombs in SouthDevonchurches,suchasthatatMilton. red sandstonetubfontsfromthelater12thcenturysurvive remaining indicatorofanearlierchurch.Severalcarved wholly rebuiltatalaterdate,thefontisoftenonly nave oppositethesouthdoor. Whenchurcheshavebeen water, andwasnormallyplacedonthenorthsideof The benefactors. 15th centuryonwardsandwereoftenfundedbylocal to thispractice.Pewsbeganbeaddedfromthelate people. The phrase‘theweakestgotothewall’ refers than afewbenchesagainstthewallsforelderlyorinfirm Originally, churcheswouldhavehadno South Poolisshownhere. has not. A photographofthewell-preservedroodscreenat side ofthechurch,andthisoftensurviveswhenscreen occasions. A stonestaircaseaccessedthegalleryfromone to singonspecial choirboys wouldstand a gallery, onwhich vaulted tosupport their upperpartswere saints onthemand font ofwealthypeoplewereoftenplacedinthechancel wasusedforchristeningsandstorageofholy included theroodscreenwhichdividednave effigy . Wall memorialsbegantoappearin Screen inSouthPoolChurch Information Sheets seats other graveyard Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty 4 Page

of 5 History & Heritage 1 South Devon AONB Unit AONB? churches intheSouthDevon Where canIvisitparish died out,andseveralcongregationsstillcontinue. severe persecution in the 16th and 17th centuries, never and 19thcentury. The RomanCatholicchurch,despite number ofdifferent churchesandchapelsinthe18th towns. Kingsbridge(seebelow)hadaremarkable often grewupinindustrialareas,suchasportsand the Protestantchurch,hencetheirtitle.Suchchapels ways, theydidnot‘conform’ totheestablishedwaysof instead ofthetraditionaleast-west.Intheseandother mixing duringservices.Somearealignednorth-south galleries assomedidnotapproveofwomenandmen biblical textspaintedontheirwalls,andwithupper Non-Conformist chapelsaretypicallyveryplain,with here, suchastheBaptistsandPlymouthBrethren. common inSouth-West England,manysectsbeginning of worshippinggrewup. Between the17thandearly20thcenturies,otherways Other typesofchurch one atGalmpton,1kmtothesouth. was madetoabandontheoldchurchandbuiltanew no majorchangestookplaceuntil1866,whenthedecision replaced Latininchurchservices1549.Otherthanthis, of givingsermonsbeganatthistime,afterEnglish In theearly17thcentury, apulpitwasadded:thepractice tower atthistime,toincreasethenumberofbellsthree. to theVirgin Mary. An additionalstoreywasaddedtothe the chancelandanewLadychapelalongside,dedicated painted timberroodscreendividedthenaveandaislefrom celebrating thisbyaddingasouthaisle. A carvedand added. Intheearly16thcenturyitgainedparochialstatus, century thenorthtranseptandwestbelltowerwere halfofthe13thcentury.chancel, intheﬁrst Inthe 15th It beganasasimplemanorialchapel,withnaveand church development. South Devon AONB, andisusedhereasacase-studyin South Huishistypicalofmanysmallparishchurchesinthe a parishfell. The developmentofSt Andrew’s Churchat although inafewcasestheyshrank,ifthepopulationof Typically, churchesgrewinsizeandcomplexityovertime, &development History in theSouthDevonAreaofOutstandingNaturalBeauty Parish Churches The followingchurches arewellworthavisit: displayed inaprominent location,suchasthe porch. there areusuallycontactdetails forkeyholders but somearekeptlockedfor security reasons,although and manymoreoutsideit. All arepubliclyaccessible, There aremorethan42parish churchesinthe AONB, Non-conformist chapels are

District Council,Licence No.100022628/2006 © CrownCopyright. All rightsreserved.South Hams How togetthere used intheritessurroundingfestivalofEaster. the northwall,whichisknownasanEasterSepulchre, screen. Inthechancelisanunusualtomb,recessedinto been gluedtothespandrelsbetweenarchesof at somepointandtheremainsofitscarvedworkhave has 22ﬁnepaintingsofsaints,buttheroodloftfailed stretching acrossthenaveandtwoaisles. The lowerpart rebuilt intheearly16thcentury, withaﬁneroodscreen buttressed type,buttheremainderofchurchwas tower ismid-late15thcentury, ofthetaperedmultiple- early Christiangraveyardofthe5th-7thcentury AD. The a circularenclosurevisibleonoldmaps,whichmaybean The siteishowevermuchearlier;thechancelcentringon Stokenham until1530,whenitgainedfullparochialrights. This delightfullittlechurchwasachapelintheparishof church. GridReferenceSX783388 Point. Parkingispossibleonthelanejusteastof Chivelstone isjustoff thelanefromStokenhamtoStart St Sylvester, Chivelstone Information Sheets St. Sylvester Church W Scale: 1:50,000 N S E Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty District Council,LicenceNo.100022628/2006 © CrownCopyright. All rightsreserved.SouthHams 5 Page W

of 5 History & Heritage 1 N St. Andrews Church St. Andrews S E South Devon AONB Unit parking ontheroadside.GridReferenceSX695411 Cross. The churchisalmostimmediatelyontheright,with Malborough toHopeCoveroad,andturnleftatWaterlears Take thelanenorthfromGalmptonCrosson How togetthere Churches. Itisaverybeautifulandpeacefulplace. The siteisadministeredbytheFriendsofFriendless its graveyardontheedgeofhamletSouthHuish. The ruinsofthechurch,rooﬂesssince1866-67,standin in theSouthDevonAreaofOutstandingNaturalBeauty Parish Churches St Andrew, SouthHuish

Scale: 1:50,000 Where canIfindoutmore? Information CentreontheQuay available fromKingsbridge Tourist dating to1702. The leaﬂetis surviving BaptistchapelinDevon, chapels, includingtheearliest and anumberofnon-conformist Edmund, theRomanCatholicchurch including theparishchurchofSt a selectionofplacesworship, District Council,takesyouround producedbySouthHams walk leaﬂet, Kingsbridge Town Walk private (noncommercial)use www.southdevonaonb.org.uk Itmaybereproducedfor the SouthDevon Area ofOutstandingNaturalBeauty-see 2005 andisoneofaseriesaboutthespecialfeatures most ofhislife. This websheetwasproducedinMarch historian andhaslivedworkedinSouthDevonfor AIFA. Heisafreelancearchaeologist&architectural This factsheetwaswrittenbyRobertWaterhouse, BA, About thisfactsheet Archaeology andisamustforstudentsofchurches. by DavidParsonsispublishedtheCouncilforBritish Churches andChapels:InvestigatingPlacesofWorship glossary offeatures. the Shire‘Discovering’ series,containsausefulillustrated Discovering Church Architecture, byMarkChild,No214in currently outofprint. by Warwick Rodwell,publishedbyEnglishHeritage,but Good booksonthesubjectinclude:Church Archaeology, of theinformationinthemvaries. Most churcheshaveaguidebook,althoughtheaccuracy & chapels Kingsbridge churches This guided Information Sheets