Listed Building: Church of St. Mary (1192452)

Parish church. Largely C14 and C15, but with origin of c.1200 and heavily restored 1873 by Sir A. Blomfield. Coursed limestone rubble and ashlar, with some ironstone, lead roofs. West tower and spire, nave and aisles, south porch chancel, north vestry. 2-stage west tower has plinth course set back buttresses with set-offs. Bell stage has 2-light Decorated windows (that to south lengthened). Frieze with ballflower and heads, gargoyles at angles. Castellated parapet. South side of tower has clock above small square window with leaded glazing. West side has C19 door, and a single-light spire with 2 tiers of lucarnes. Nave, aisles and chancel have plain parapets. South side: C19 porch enclosing roll-moulded round entrance arch of 2 orders, on plain columns with bell capitals. C19 door. Aisle has string course, 2 2-light Perpendicular windows divided by buttress, and a tiny "low side" window of 2 lights. 3 2-light Perpendicular clerestory windows. East end of south aisle has 3-light Perpendicular window and 3 C19 commemorative tablets (damaged). 5-light C19 Decorated style, East window. C19 north-east vestry. North aisle from east to west has a 2-light Perpendicular window, a 2-light square-headed window with ogee lights and a blocked pointed-arched doorway. West end of north aisle has a 2-light Perpendicular or Perpendicular style window crossing a blocked round-headed arch with a straight joint to right. West end of south aisle is similar though the remains of the arch are more fragmentary and it dies into one straight joint. Interior: 3-bay Perpendicular nave arcade with quatrefoil piers. Clerestory windows continue as recessed panels down to string course Decorated tower arch of 3 chamfered orders. Nave roof arch braced from cabels to very slightly cambered tie beam. Purlins, ridge piece and rafters chamfered. South aisle roof strutted off cambered tie beams. North aisle roof C19. Chancel arch similar to those of nave arcade. Chancel interior mostly of 1873 by Blomfield, but retains lancet in very deep splayed opening to north (now into vestry). North aisle contains a good set of monuments: to Sir Edward Montague, d.1557, a tomb-chest with recumbent figure, to another Sir Edward Montagu, d.1602, an elaborate canopied monument with 2 recumbent effigies, and an architectural tablet to a third Sir Edward Monague, d.1644, as well as a fragment of Norman carved stonework set into the wall above an aumbry. C19 font, fittings and stained glass (the east window commemorating Reverend John Lucas Sutton, d.1871, and his family). (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire: pp449-50)

Record last edited

Dec 19 2022 1:41PM