| Summary : The chancel arch is 11th century or earlier; early 12th century south arcade; late 12th century north arcade, tower and tower arch; 15th century spire, chancel, clerestorey, battlements and gables; early 17th century vestry and window to north chapel. There is a late 7th-8th century grave marker located in the north side of the chancel. (see SE99SE26 for the Anglian cross in the south aisle). This may have been the site of the community of nuns, who had a church and dormitory at Hackness, recorded by Bede. |
More information : [SE 96919055] St Peter's Church (C of E) [NAT] (1)
Grade C Church of St Peter.
The nave and chancel arch are Saxon. The south arcade is c.1150 and
the north c.1200 as in the tower. The chancel was mostly rebuilt
and the spire and clerestory added in 15th c. The north vestry on a
crypt is probably 16th c. The roofs are 19th c. Notable remains of
Saxon inscribed and carved cross. In the chancel are 14 stalls with
eight carved misericords of 15th c. Lofty late 15th c font cover.
Pulpit 17th c. Several interesting mural monuments. (2)
Church of St Peter (3) one of three churches at Hackness mentioned in
Domesday (1086) has its earliest feature, a chancel arch and interlacecarving on the north impost, dated with some certainty to the second
half of the 8th century by Baldwin Brown. Taylor and Taylor, althoughaccepting the possibility that the impost may have been reused from
an earlier building and that the chancel arch was later, were
influenced by Baldwin Brown's evidence that there were no late - Saxonfeatures in the church, and thought it reasonable to assign the nave
(i.e. chancel arch and south wall with blocked windows, cut by the
later Norman arcade) to the period 800-850 AD. Pevsner however was
more convinced with Bilson's 11th century date for the impost carving.There were conflicting views on the dedication of the existing church.The present patronage is to St Peter but Clapham (8,9) refers to the
church as St Mary the Virgin. The Ordnance Survey amended the
dedication from St Peter (on OS 25' 1887) to St Mary in 1910 (10) and
on the subsequent editions of the OS 25' plans, 1912 and 1928.
Revision of the OS 25' 1973 reinstated the dedication to St Peter.(11)The confusion may arise from the fact that William de Percy granted
to Serlo, Prior of Whitby (see NZ 91 SW 10), the churches of St Mary
(SE 99 SE 52) and St Peter at Hackness circa 1091-2; St Peter's being
where the Benedictine monks of Whitby 'serve God, die and are buried'
during their temporary migration to Hackness at the end of the 11th
century (see SE 99 SE 45). St Peter's Church contains no monastic
features, however, and there is no reason to suggest that the monks
ever built a church here during their migration period. The
indication is that they conducted divine service in one of the then
existing parachial churches here, presumably St Peter's (7) (For 9th
century cross fragments in church see SE 99 SE 26) plan (5).
(3-12)
There is a late 7th-8th century grave marker located in the north side of the chancel. (13) |