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Summary

Font and part of chancel 14th century, latter includes some late 15th - early 16th century detail, tower and north aisle are 15th century. Heavily restored in 19th century.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1141427: HARLOR HEADSTONE APPROXIMATELY 10 METRES SOUTH OF PORCH OF CHURCH OF ST MARY
• Listed Building (II*) 1328734: CHURCH OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Other References/Statuses

• Church of England HER: 4840
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SY09SW/14
• Old Listed Building Ref (II*): 352328
• Royal Albert Memorial Museum Accession Number: 175/2008

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• PARISH CHURCH (XIV to XIX - 1301 AD to 1900 AD (Between))

Full description

National Monuments Record, SY09SW11 (National Monuments Record Database). SDV342548.

Syer Cuming, H. + Scot, V. P., 1878, St Christopher, 130 (Article in Serial). SDV342547.

Aylesbeare Church is one of the few parish churches in England dedicated to St Christopher.

Salmon, J., 1936, St. Christopher in English Medieval Art and Life, 82 (Article in Serial). SDV35410.

Aylesbeare is one of only eight medieval churches dedicated to St Christopher.

Pevsner, N., 1952, The Buildings of England: South Devon, 46 (Monograph). SDV336217.

Architecturally indifferent. Mostly perpendicular, standard of this part of the county. The exterior is cemented, with the cement peeling off.

Department of Environment, 1987, Aylesbeare, 6-7 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV342546.

Parish Church, 14th century font and part of chancel may be contemporary; tower and north aisle are 15th century; chancel includes some late 15th - early 16th century detail; chancel and roofs restored circa 1840 with new benches and fittings; major renovation of nave and porch rebuilt 1896-7 by E H Harbottle; tower restored in 1924 by Harbottle-Reed. Nave, chancel and aisle of random local stone rubble and aisle has large dressed quoins of red conglomerate stone and cream sandstone; tower of red conglomerate rubble laid to courses with dressed quoins of red conglomerate stone and Beerstone; parts of tower and chancel are roughcast; original detail and tower restoration detail of Beerstone, other restoration detail of Bathstone; slate roofs and nave has crested ridgetiles. The chancel may contain some 14th century fabric but none is evident. The nave is slightly wider and taller. The south wall appears to have been rebuilt in 19th century with the south porch. The north aisle and west tower are largely original. The tower is unusual having opposing north and south doorways, apparently this was needed to provide a way through since the west end was formerly on the churchyard boundary. Perpendicular style throughout. Tall west tower of two stages with low diagonal buttresses and embattled parapet. Semi-octagonal stair turret with tiny plain slit windows. It rises above the main tower with its own embattled parapet. Carved Beerstone gargoyle water spouts survive on three corners. Arch-headed two-light belfry windows with cusped tracery are mostly replacements although the eastern one may be original. On the north side is a small trefoil-headed lancet to the ringing loft, and on the south side is another larger example with its original trefoil head, sunken spandrels and square-headed hood. The west side has a three-light window with Perpendicular tracery; it is mostly replacement work. The north and south doorways however are original; two-centred arches with richly-moulded surrounds and hoodmoulds. The south door is a studded plank door with moulded cover strips and large plain strap hinges; it may be 17th or 18th century. The north door is hidden by a 20th century tool-shed. Most of the south side of the nave was probably rebuilt in the 19th century although the large dressed quoins at the left end and the projecting rood stair turret, at the right end are probably 15th century work The three windows are all 19th century Bathstone, two-lights with ogee heads, Perpendicular-style tracery and moulded hoods. The south porch, left of centre, is also 19th century but reuses some medieval material. It is gabled with the Bathstone apex block bearing the initials BVM (twice) and AE. The kneelers and some of the coping has been replaced with 20th century concrete. The outer arch has reused moulded jambs of volcanic stone but the two-centred arch is 19th century. The east wall includes a reset Beerstone lancet. The rood turret projects square and contains a tiny round-headed lancet made from a single block of stone. The south side of the chancel is roughcast and contains a narrow priests door with two-centred head which was repaired in the 19th century. To left is an early 16th century Beerstone square-headed two-light window. The cinquefoil heads and hoodmould have also been repaired in the 19th century. To right is another similar but this is entirely 19th century and Bathstone. The east end has 19th century corner diagonal buttresses of red conglomerate ashlar, contemporary Bathstone kneelers, coping and apex Latin cross and a Bathstone three-light window with Perpendicular tracery, moulded hood and large carved oak-leaf labels. The north aisle appears to have very little restoration. The walls are random rubble with large dressed quoins. All the windows are Beerstone, three lights with Perpendicular tracery. There are three on the north side with restored buttresses between and one more each end.
Interior. The porch has a cobbled floor and 19th century roof. The south door is restored 15th century work of Beerstone and red sandstone; a flat arch with chamfered surround. The door is probably 17th century; a plank door with scratch-moulded cover strips, original ferramenta including plain strap hinges and a large oak lock housing. Both nave and aisle have plain ceiled barrel-vaulted roofs with 19th century wall plates. There is no chancel arch. A 19th century arch-braced truss drops the roof line to the chancel. Here is a ceiled wagon roof of two main bays, each sub-divided into a series of square panels with carved oak or moulded plaster bosses and a delicate open crestwork wall plate. Because the roof is painted it is impossible to see if any medieval carpentry survives. Tower interior was inaccessible at time of survey. Tall tower arch with a double-chamfered arch ring dying into the plain sides. Three-bay Beerstone arcade between nave and aisle. The piers are moulded (Pevsner's type B) with carved foliate capitals and the cap of the eastern respond includes and angel holding a shield. There is a fourth arch through the thicker wall between the chancel and eastern end of the aisle. The arch is lined with Beerstone ashlar and has two sets of trefoil-headed panels separated and flanked by half-engaged columns with plain caps. The west side is mutilated by a squint cut through from a now-disused rood stair rising in the thickness of the chancel wall from the aisle where there is a Beerstone segmental-headed doorway with a rebated surround and carved foliage in the spandrels. The south nave has a plain flat arched doorway to the disused rood stair there. The north aisle has hollow-chamfered Beerstone rear arches to the windows; elsewhere they are Bathstone. The flag floor includes some 17th and 18th century grave slabs but most are fragmentary. Nineteenth century oak reredos and altar both carved in Gothic style. To right the original piscina given a 19th century Beerstone surround with cusped ogee arch and poppyhead finial. Nineteenth century oak altar rail, Gothic style softwood stalls with poppyhead finials, plain lectern and plain deal benches. The pulpit is a 19th century refurbishment of an 18th century octagonal drum pulpit with fielded panel sides and the front panel enriched with an inlaid marquetry sunburst. Good 14th century Beerstone font with an octagonal bowl with panelled quatrefoils on the sides and carved foliage around the base, octagonal stem and hollow-chamfered base. Seventeenth century oak font cover with a broken ogee profile. Good l7th century oak chest to rear of aisle; its panelled front richly decorate with chip-carving and inscribed with the initials MW.
The mural monuments are all late 18th and l9th century. The grandest, to south of the chancel, in memory of Edward Lloyd Kenyon (died.1843), comprises a Tudor Gothic style Beerstone frame and large white marble panel carved in bas relief as a mother and daughter weeping over the inscribed grave. It is signed 'E B Stephens Sc., Upper Belgrave Place, London'. Plain plaques nearby to the Carwithen family (circa 1905) and the Marker family (circa 1812 and circa 1865). On the north side is another marble monument with Beerstone Tudor Gothic style frame in memory of Henry and Margaretta Marker (died 1811 and 1846). It is flanked by early 20th century memorials to the Bruton family, both white marble with alabaster frames and similar to the First World War memorial in the nave and the Ruth Loram memorial in the aisle (died 1919). Other marble plaques in memory of the Stoke family of Minchen Court (1771-1789), Henry and Mary Pitt (both died 1849), Hugh Bennet of Rosamondford (died 1797), Samuel and Sarah Walker (1834-1830). Some of glass in the north aisle windows maybe 18th century and some fragments of coloured glass in the tracery maybe earlier. Good 19th century stained glass in east window and two late 19th century stained and hammered glass on south side. The font is the only feature earlier than the 15th century. The tower is the best feature of an otherwise unremarkable Perpendicular church which was heavily restored in the 19th century. Other details: LBS 352328.

Cherry, B. + Pevsner, N., 1989, The Buildings of England: Devon, 145 (Monograph). SDV325629.

Dyer, M. J., 2007, Archaeological Monitoring and Recording of New Drainage at St Mary's Church, Aylesbeare, Devon, 4-5 (Report - Watching Brief). SDV342545.

Examination of the fabric during the present monitoring work supports the opinion that the north aisle and its windows are largely original. The walls lean outwards slightly, whereas the buttresses are vertical, demonstrating they are later additions. The use of brick in the footings confirms a later date of construction, probably during the restoration in 1897-9. The pre-restoration plan shows that they replaced an earlier arrangement. The masonry appears to be consistent throughout, apart from a possible difference at the west end of the north wall, where the render that covers the rest of the wall has been removed from around the fourth (western) window, which has possibly been rebuilt but not replaced. Three of the windows in the north wall have triple glazing bars of early date and show definite signs of movement. Their edges are overlain by the render, which is probably pre-19th century in date. Other details: Figures 3 and 5; plates 1-7.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV4521 - Archaeological Monitoring and Recording of new drainage at St Mary's Church, Aylesbeare, Devon

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