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Summary

Large parish church built on the proceeds of the Tavistock cloth trade in the 14th-15th century. It was restored in 1844-5. The base of the tower formed one of the gateways to the Abbey.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II*) 1326157: CHURCH OF ST EUSTACHIUS

Other References/Statuses

• Church of England HER: 5398
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX47SE/9
• Old Listed Building Ref (II): 93399

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• PARISH CHURCH (XIII to XIX - 1300 AD to 1900 AD (Between))

Full description

Historic England, 05/10/2015, Church of St Eustachius, Bedford Square, Tavistock, Devon (Correspondence). SDV359232.

Historic England have received an application to amend the entry for the above building on the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. Assessment will be undertaken of the building and the advice given to the Secretary of State.

Historic England, 10/12/2015, Church of St Eustachius, Plymouth Road, Tavistock, Devon (Correspondence). SDV359433.

Historic England have completed our initial assessment of the above building to consider whether its entry on the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest should be revised.

Historic England has been asked to consider upgrading the Parish Church of Eustachius, Tavistock, Devon, which is currently listed at Grade II. Furthermore, the List Entry is relatively brief and would benefit from enhancement to include addtional information regarding the building.

Appleton, E., 1866, Archaeological Notes on Tavistock and Neighbourhood, 126 (Article in Serial). SDV256410.

Johnstone, G., 1889, An Old Parish Chest, 230-33 (Article in Serial). SDV336091.

In the church there was an old oaken chest full of documents which was transferred to the Grammar School at the time of the restoration of the church. The chest is an ancient iron-bound box, made of rough hewn planks. It now stands under one of the windows of the north chancel aisle. A warden's roll of 1385-6 found in it is the oldest roll in existence, there are other rolls of later dates. Church plate listed in the roll of 1385-6: one cup and cover of silver, with two gilt angels holding a glass receptacle in which the host hung over the altar, four silver chalices and patens, two silver cruets and silver pyx. By 1471 several items had been added: one beryl set in silver with a silver chain to hang it to the pyx on principal feasts. One silver gilt cross with the figures of St. Mary the Virgin and St. John the Evangelist. One box containing hair of St. Mary the Virgin and St. Mary Magdalene. One cup of silver, one little cross, the legacy of John the Hermit and one silver censer. By 1538 two silver candlesticks, a pax with crucifixion, a silver pyx, two silver censers, a silver ship, a great cross of silver-gilt with a crucifixion and the figures of the blessed Mary and St. John the Evangelist, and a chalice had been required. The inventory of church goods in 1561 shows that all the silver except for two chalices had gone. No silver vessels earlier than 1624 now in the church.

Windeatt, E., 1889, Early Nonconformity in Tavistock, 156 (Article in Serial). SDV336105.

Thomas Larkham was buried in December 1669 in the part of the chancel which belonged to the House of Russell. There was an attempt made to prevent his burial in the church.

Radford, G. H., 1890, Lady Howard of Fitzford, 107 (Article in Serial). SDV336103.

Lady Howard was buried on 10th November 1671, probably under the Fitz monument, in the earth. No monument was erected to her memory.

Brushfield, T. N., 1894, The Churchwardens' Accounts of East Budleigh, 367 (Article in Serial). SDV107199.

In 1566-7 the Queen's arms and those of the Earl of Bedford were fixed in stained glass, and painted on the wall. They were removed at the time of the commonwealth and reinstated at the restoration.

Bligh Bond, F., 1903, Devonshire Screens and Rood Lofts. Part II, 489 (Article in Serial). SDV6113.

There was a screen with painted panels representing the Heavenly Hierarchy, and some fragments are believed to be in existence. There is a small portion of the quatrefoil border preserved, but nothing remains in the church.

Reed, H., 1927, Architectural Notes on Some Churches Visited During the Congress., 169-172 (Article in Serial). SDV256355.

Anonymous, 1927, Proceedings of the Congress of the British Archaeological Association at Exeter, 20-22 (Article in Serial). SDV35433.

Late perpendicular style of time of Henry VII. Tower is true Campanile and was never joined to church.

Chanter, J. F., 1927, Sixteenth Report on Church Plate, 120-1 (Article in Serial). SDV239594.

Church plate in parish church. Chalice, Puritan style, stem with good knop and foot with egg and tongue ornamentation, possibly an Elizabethan foot on which a later bowl has been fixed. The marks on it are I F with London hallmarks, the date is indistinct. There is a cover to fit with the inscription 'Wardens of Tavistock E I P E 1634'. A new rim now hides the hallmarks. The other chalice is very similar to the one just described but without the early ornamentation of the base, it has the London hallmarks for 1624. There is also a third chalice which has a hexagonal stem and sexfoil foot, modern medieval style, it bears the inscription 'In pious memory of Henry and Grace Cornish'. London hallmarks for 1867. Flagon, there is a domed lid tankard with the inscription, "The gift of his Grace, the most noble John Duke of Bedford, Sept.22 1761, being the coronation day of King George III and Queen Caroline". The arms are Russell, England and Tavistock. Marks: (Magdalen feline) and London hallmarks for 1877. Alms dishes, plain plate with the inscription 'To the glory of God and in loving remembrance of Mary Lethbridge 1877'. Also another with the inscription 'Ex dono Dawbeny Williams ar. Ecclesiae beatae mariae virginis et sti, rumonis, donum dei et deo in christo panis vitae eternae si dignus es religio protestantium'. Arms: arg. a greyhound passant between three birds. Pewter vessels: a fine pair of pewter flagons with flat lids, with the inscription 'Thomas Poynter and Robert Cudlippe, Churchwardens 1633, Tavistock in Devon'.

Radford, E. L., 1932 - 1933, The Buildings of Tavistock Abbey after the Dissolution, 195 (Article in Serial). SDV249296.

When the abbey was dissolved in 1539, many fittings were bought for use in the parish church.

Reed, H., 1937, Proceedings at the 76th Annual Meeting, 14 (Article in Serial). SDV336033.

One of the largest and oldest of the three churches in England, dedicated to St. Eustace the Martyr. It occupies the site of an older edifice rebuilt by Abbot Champeau in 1318 and consecrated then by Bishop Stapledon. The oldest part of the existing building is the lower masonry of the tower, erected about 1184. The arches of the tower (the cemetery gate of the abbey) provided a thoroughfare in modern times when it was known as Church Bow. Alabaster monument to Sir John Glanville and the arcaded tomb of Sir John Fitz of Fitzford. The church was heavily restored between 1844-1846. The paintings of saints on wood, remains of the rood screen which had been whole in 1562, were swept away. The interior of the building was almost completely gutted. The two monuments to the families Fitz and Glanville, carved in stone were kept and a carved black oak table said to have been a reformation communion table. The old plan of an enclosed chancel and side chapels in the chancel aisles was not preserved. Uniformed rows of oak seats with handsome carved ends were put in. An organ screen and stone pulpit of elegant design were also added.

Alexander, J. J., 1937, Tavistock in the 15th century, 271,273-4,281,284 (Article in Serial). SDV322349.

Alexander examines the development of the church through documentary sources, particularly for the 15th century enlargement of the church and general repairs at that time.

Alexander, J. J., 1938 - 1939, Medieval Altars in Tavistock Church (Article in Serial). SDV336076.

Early Churchwardens' accounts suggest that the church had eight altars in addition to the high altar in Medieval times.

Copeland, G. W., 1942, Eleventh Report of the Plymouth and District Branch, 125 (Article in Serial). SDV145407.

On the west wall of the north aisle are two joined wooden panels which the vicar purchased from an old inn in the town during its demolition. He believes the inn may have had associations with the abbey. The panels show a kind of lily-pot and a bag-piper. Copeland alleges that this is a 'quasi-ecclesiastical' design.

Alexander, J. J., 1942, The Beginnings of Tavistock, 193-4 (Article in Serial). SDV256363.

First church erected on this site in the reign of Henry II. Became a parish church in the 13th century.

Fryer Cornelius, C., 1952, Ancient Churches of the Tavistock Deanery, Devon, 47-72 (Article in Serial). SDV18005.

Spacious Late Medieval church. Original wagon roofs throughout are plaster ceiled. Octagonal font. 14th century tomb. Monuments of 16th and 17th century.

Pevsner, N., 1952, The Buildings of England: South Devon, 275-277 (Monograph). SDV336217.

Pevsner describes church as 15th century and on the large scale. Of the church dedicated in 1318 hardly any part remains. South, or clothworker's aisle, added in 1445. He describes church fittings: font, stained glass, monuments, etc. Mostly perpendicular in style.

Keen, L., 1969, A Series of Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Lead-Glazed Relief Tiles from North Devon, 144-170 (Article in Serial). SDV15342.

Keen notes the post medieval relief tiles from North Devon which can be seen in Tavistock parish church.

Devon County Council, 1975, Tavistock Town Walk, 91 (Article in Monograph). SDV352474.

Timms, S. C., 1976, The Devon Urban Survey, 1976. First Draft, 169 (Report - Survey). SDV341346.

The church is first documented in 1265. A new building was consecrated in 1318 and the south aisle was added in 1445.

Pearce, S. M., 1982, Church and Society in South Devon, AD 350-700, 4 (Article in Serial). SDV336077.

The Bedford Estate map of 1868 shows the approximate position of the abbey complex as it was in 1539 with the parish church standing to the west. The parish church is first referred to in 1183 and the building probably stood on the present site. It is possible that this was also the site of the earlier minster church. An inscribed stone found in West Street suggests that both church and minster may have succeeded to an early Christian graveyard.

Department of Environment, 1983, Tavistock, 5 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV272550.

Church of St Eustachius, 14th and 15th centuries, restored 1844-5. Large parish church built on the proceeds of the Tavistock cloth trade. Built of Hardwick stone with slate roof. Nave, north and two south aisles. West tower of three stages having crenellated parapet with crockets. The base of the tower formed one of the gateways to the Abbey. Gabled south porch with sundial and four centred arch with quatrefoils in spandrels. 15th century octagonal font. Good 19th century stained glass by William Morris, Kempe and others. Bones said to be those of Ordulph, founder of the Abbey (died 1015) now interred here. Monument to John Fyts died 1590 and wife and son died 1605, a large hanging wall monument with recumbent effigies. Monument to John Glanville died 1600, a reclining figure on tomb chest with wife and five children kneeling in front. Tablet to William Browne the poet (born 1591).

Griffith, F. M., 1986, DAP/HO, 1-5 (Aerial Photograph). SDV336078.

The Tavistock and District Local History Society, 1994, About Tavistock: An Historical Introduction and Six Town Walks, 10, 26-27, 35, 39-40 (Monograph). SDV354806.

The parish church dates to the early 13th century. The dedication, to St. Eustachius, is unusual. He was a Roman soldier who converted to Christianity and who was martyred for his faith. The church was rededicated following reconstruction in 1318. Substantial additions were made to the building in the 15th century most notably the 'Clothworkers' Aisle' built from the profits of a flourishing local woollen industry. The tower supports once formed part of one of the gateways into the Abbey precinct.

Exeter Archaeology, 1997, Archaeological Assessment of Tavistock Sewer Overflows Scheme, 3 (Report - Assessment). SDV344347.

The parish church of St Eustachius and the Abbey church co-existed side by side for severla hundred years in Medieval times. The parish church has existed on its present site from at least the early 14th century although most of the present building is of early 15th century date. The graveyard attached to the church is known to have extended further east even as late as the 18th century according to Wynne's map.

Ordnance Survey, 2012, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV348725.

Historic England, 2016, Church of St. Eustachius, Plymouth Road, Tavistock (Correspondence). SDV359535.

Notification of decision to amend the entry for the church. The building is now listed at Grade II*.

Historic England, 2016, National Heritage List for England (National Heritage List for England). SDV359353.

Church of St. Eustachius. Date first listed 7th September 1951. Date of most recent amendment 6th April 2016.
Summary of Building
A parish church of medieval origin, restored in 1844-5 by John Hayward.
Reasons for Designation
The church of St Eustachius, Tavistock, a C14 church rebuilt in the C15 and adapted later including a major restoration in 1844-5 by John Hayward, is listed at Grade II* for the following principal reasons: * Architectural interest: reflecting the high status of this former stannary town and wealthy trading centre, the church has a dominant Gothic presence at the heart of the town with characteristic and high quality architectural features and quality Victorian work by the notable architect John Hayward; * Historic interest: as an early-C14 parish church with earlier origins in a major English market town with direct historic links to the adjacent abbey remains, itself of earlier Saxon origins, and for its many associations with important figures in the locality over its history including the Dukes of Bedford; * Degree of survival: the church survives intact and with the main phases of its historic evolution legible in the fabric of the building; * Artistic interest: the church also contains many quality works of stained glass by Morris and Company, Kempe Studios and others. Features of the 1845 restoration include a Caen stone pulpit, an oak organ screen and carved pew ends; * Historic fittings: these are extensively of high quality. Of particular interest are the C14 water stoup, C15 roof bosses, the early-C17 Glanville and Fitz monuments, and the mid-C17 rainwater goods to the tower; * Group value: the church has a prominent position at the centre of the historic town, with a close relationship to the site of its associated abbey precinct, the civic administrative centre of the town, and a number of other listed buildings, some at a higher grade, to provide a coherent group.
History
The parish church of St Eustachius has early-C14 origins and has been rebuilt, enlarged and enriched on the proceeds of the Tavistock cloth trade since then.
A church dedicated to St Eustachius was established on this site by 1265, and possibly as early 1193. It was replaced with a new church in 1318 by Abbot Robert Champeaux of the Benedictine Abbey of Our Lady and St Rumon, which stood immediately to the south. The Abbey was founded by Ordulf, Earl of Devon, by charter of King Edgar in 981. It was subsequently sacked by Danish invaders and rebuilt. The north/south passageway through the west tower of the church provided the main access point between the abbey precinct and the town, and the thoroughfare is shown in an early-C19 engraving of the church. There are references to further building work to the church in 1352 and 1380.
In the early to mid-C15, the church was partly rebuilt and enlarged with a new chancel at the east end. An additional south aisle was built in 1445-47, known as the ‘clothworkers aisle’ it was a bequest from Constance Coffyn, widow of three Tavistock cloth merchants. The tower was also raised around this time and the south porch built. The church acquired a number of ornaments, fittings and furniture during the C14 and C15, as shown in contemporary inventories, some of which remain in the nave including a font, parish chest and wagon chest. The Abbey was vacated at the Dissolution and fell into ruin. From the C16 a number of memorial tombs and tablets were installed to the interior and exterior of the church, some of fairly extravagant detail reflecting the wealth in the town. A clock is mentioned in the Churchwardens’ Accounts of 1540, and the current clock was installed in 1769, paid for by public subscription and by a donation from the 4th Duke of Bedford. The Duke also donated 8 of the 10 bells that remain in use, and which were replacements for earlier bells. The church is recorded as having a ring of bells since the early C15. The Duke’s bells were cast by Thomas Bilbie of Cullompton and were re-cast and re-hung in 1925 by John Taylor of Loughborough. In addition, there is a late-C18 or early-C19 bell cast by Thomas Mears of London Foundry (Whitechapel).
Between the C17 and C19 further works appear to be limited to repairs (including rainwater goods of 1616), further ornamentation (a mid-C19 sundial above the south door) and additional memorials. A major restoration by John Hayward took place in 1844-5, which saw the construction of a new organ bay in the north aisle and vestries built to the south of the chancel. Also there were new pews, pulpit, organ and case and other fittings. Later in the C19 and early C20 new windows were installed, including work by Morris and Co. (the window is in memory of J.H. Gill of Bickham Hall, father of William Morris’s brother-in-law, and was designed by Morris and Burne-Jones) and Kempe Studios. In the late C20 and early C21 some minor alterations have taken place and a new south door installed.
Details
A parish church of C14 and C15 date, built on earlier foundations and restored 1844-5 by John Hayward.
MATERIALS: constructed of Hurdwick stone with granite or elvan stone dressings and slates, lead flashings, and a lead roof to the tower. The early church columns are of elvan (green) stone, and those in the C15 clothworkers aisle of Dartmoor granite. The roofs have timber ribs and bosses. The rainwater goods are cast iron and lead.
PLAN: a five-bay nave, north and south aisles, with a three-bay chancel and north and south chapels. It has an additional five-bay south aisle with a porch at the west end. The west tower is of 3 stages.
EXTERIOR: the aisles have large four-light windows with simple Perpendicular tracery and buttresses with offsets between them. The east end has a row of three gables, all with five-light windows. At the south-east corner the mid-C19 gabled vestries are of lower height and the north end of the clothworkers aisle has an opening reduced to two lights. The gabled south porch has an mid-C19 sundial above a four-centred arch door with quatrefoils in the spandrels. The east end of the north aisle has a mid-C19 projection for an organ, and at the west end is a small round-arched C14 stoup in the wall. The west tower has setback (B type) buttresses. The door and window openings have double rows of round arches over four-centred heads. A heavy, moulded band wraps around the tower at midway of door height above a plinth. The west face has a large four-light window above the door. At upper level is a clock to each face with traceried openings and ventilators above. The top of the tower has crenellated parapets and tall pinnacles to all four corners with square crockets. The hopper heads to the tower are dated 1661.
INTERIOR: the nave and aisles have tall, slender arcades with four-centred moulded arches with C15 carved bosses to the wagon roofs (including one with the regional motif of three hares). The clothworkers aisle is more embellished with some details relating to the guild. The mid-C19 pews have elaborately carved ends, one in the south aisle having a tiny ivory church mouse set within it. There are decorative cast-iron vents in the nave floor, which is covered in stone flags and setts. There is tiling to the chapels and the baptistry. The vestries have wood block floors and a C19 chimneypiece.
Bones, said to be those of Ordulf, founder of the Abbey (d.1015) are interred here, and there is an inscribed stone floor slab at the south end of the nave: ORDULF/ FOUNDER OF TAVISTOCK ABBEY/ 981. To the left, a further slab is inscribed in memory of other past abbots whose remains were found nearby and reinterred at the church: ABBOTS/ OF/ TAVISTOCK ABBEY/ RE-BURIED/ 2000. By the south door is the baptistry with a C15 octagonal font with shields in quatrefoils and a C14 oak iron-bound wagon chest, trapezoid in shape. In the nave is a carved Caen stone pulpit of 1846. Next to it, in the north aisle, is an organ and case of 1845, with carved statues of 1879, by J.W. Walker and Sons of London. The pipes and mechanisms are contained behind the case. To the left of the case, in the north wall, is a sealed ogee-arched recess, probably associated with a C14 chapel to John Dabernon and his wife. There is a C19 decorative screen separating the nave from the west tower. To each side, in the tower wall, are narrow doors to stairs leading to the aisle roofs.
The west tower has a narrow stone winder stair to a ringing chamber, bell chamber, belfry and roof. The doors are of oak. The church bells include eight of the C18, recast in 1925, and at least one bell by Thomas Mears of London Foundry (Whitechapel) of the late C18 or early C19. In the bell chamber is an automated winding and ringing mechanism, partly in a glazed timber compartment.
There is a variety of C19 stained glass across the church. The north aisle east window is by Morris & Co. (1876) and features evangelists, prophets, scenes from the life of Christ, and angels playing musical instruments. Below and to the right is an early door, probably of C14 date. The north aisle second from the east is by Kempe Studios, the third by Fouracres of Plymouth and the fourth by Dixon (the Carpenter window). The south aisle east window is by William Wailes and Co. (the Terrell window), second from the east by Ward and Hughes, the third form the east by Fouracres. The east window of the clothworkers aisle is by Powell, the first from the east by Mayer of Munich, the second by Bacon and the third by Clayton and Bell. The central east window of 1949 is by James Powell of Whitefriars Glass Company, and to each side of it are tablets inscribed with the commandments placed in highly decorated Caen stone niches. Other chancel windows are by Fouracres. The oldest window dates from the 1830s and is in the west tower, and by Ward and Hughes.
Monuments in the church include a large standing wall-monument in the north chapel to John Fytz (d.1590) and wife and son (d.1605), with recumbent effigies on a tomb chest behind columns. The son kneels behind. In the south chapel wall is an alabaster monument to John Glanville (d.1600) and wife. Glanville lies half-reclining in a tomb chest with his wife kneeling in front along with five children (their heads removed). There are a number of memorial tablets across the church (and exterior) including above the south door, to B. Carpenter (d.1782) and his family.

Unknown, Unknown, St. Eustachius' Church Tavistock: Pictorial Guide (Leaflet). SDV354808.

Alexander, J. J. (revised by Finberg, H. P. R.), Unknown, Tavistock Parish Church (Pamphlet). SDV363234.

Detailed history of town, parish and parish church. The church was dedicated to St Eustace in 1318. It was enlarged and almost completely rebuilt in the second quarter of the 15th century. It was restored in the 1840s and further restoration took place in 1903. In 1925 the bells of 1769 were recast and rehung. Interior features include the remains of a 14th century tomb, the chapel of St Mary Magdalene which has some 15th century bench ends and a stained glass window by William Morris and the Lady Chapel with the tomb of Sir John Glanvill dated 1600.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV4597 - Assessment of Tavistock Sewer Overflow Scheme

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