Building record 728/1/1 - Church of St. Bartholomew

Saxon minster of the mid 10th-11th century, altered in the 13th and 14th centuries. The tower was repaired circa 1718, the spire rebuilt 1807, the chancel rebuilt in 1891 when whole church was restored, and the spire again rebuilt in 1957. Built of coursed squared ironstone with limestone dressings, and plain-tile roofs, except to aisles which are of lead. The church consists of a chancel, nave, north and south aisles and chancel chapels, south porch, west tower and vestry.

{1} Church. Saxon (mid C10-C11) C13, C14; tower repaired c.1718, spire rebuilt 1807; chancel rebuilt 1891 by E.F. Law, when whole church was restored; spire again rebuilt 1957. Coursed squared ironstone with limestone dressings, plain-tile roofs, except to aisles - of lead. Chancel, nave, north and south aisles and chancel chapels, south porch, west tower and vestry. 3-bay chancel has 3-light stepped lancet east window and coupled lancets to north and south. Nave has 3-bay clerestory of quatrefoils in square chamfered stone surrounds. Long and short work to angles of Saxon nave visible at west end and to west of easternmost bays of arcades inside. North and south chancel chapels overlap chancel and continue aisles. North aisle has 2-light Decorated east window and 3-light Decorated windows to north. The two windows east of north door are wider and have curvilinear tracery, that to west of door has reticulated tracery. Double hollow-chamfered north doorway with C19 double-leaf door. Chamfered plinth, diagonal offset buttresses, offset buttress between middle and east bays, sill band forming hood mould to north door and plain stone-coped parapet. South aisle has 3-light Perpendicular east window with 4-centred head, 3-light windows to south, Perpendicular with straight head to west of porch, Decorated with curvilinear tracery to east. Hollow-chamfered south doorway with hood mould and double-leaf C19 doors in south porch with double-chamfered doorway and one-light windows north and south. Rainwater heads dated 1891 and similar plinth, sill and buttresses and parapet to north aisle. 4-stage west tower has 2-light window to west with pointed trefoil-headed lights and quatrefoil to head. Small quatrefoil window to south of next stage, a one-light window to west, similar window above. Clock-face in stone diamond surround. 2-light bell-openings with Y-tracery, small quatrefoils to heads and Gibbs surrounds. Coved cornice and recessed spire with 3 tiers of lucarnes rising from battlemented octagonal base. Single-storey vestry of 1923 to north of tower. Most windows have hood moulds. Interior: chancel has piscina with hollow-chamfered head on corbels. Double-chamfered arches to former chancel chapels north and south with polygonal responds; chamfer of arch to north chapel is continuous. Image bracket to north of east window of north chapel. Image brackets with carved heads flank east window south chapel, which has piscina with ogee-arched cusped head. Double-chamfered chancel arch, innermost on corbels. Nave has 2-bay arcades with octagonal piers, polygonal responds and double-chamfered arches. Circular font carved with beaded diamonds, filled with flowers. Pulpit has Jacobean panels. Royal arms of Elizabeth I dated 1592, oil on board. Royal arms dated 1826, carved wood, the gift of W. Edwards. C19 stained glass, east windows and into aisles. Monuments: brass to Lady Greene (Sir Thomas d.1417). Alabaster effigies of Sir Thomas Greene d.1457 and his wife. Brass of Sir Thomas Greene d.1462 inside large recess with moulded 4-centred arched head, on tomb-chest with shields in pointed quatrefoils. Alabaster wall monument to John Hicklinge d.1558 with marble colonettes, slate inscription tablet, apron, obelisks and cartouche with arms. Alabaster wall monument to William Hicklinge d.1606 and his wife Frances d.1603: kneeling couple facing each other at prayer desk, daughter behind her mother, large plumed helmet behind her father in niche with semi-circular superstructure and curtains held open by angels either side. Slate inscription below with arms in apron, obelisks and cartouche to superstructure flanked by pilasters and topped by broken pediment framing arms. (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, 1973, pp.239-10; H.M and J. Taylor, Anglo-Saxon Architecture, Vol.I, pp.261-2).

{4} Mention in an article investigating Anglo-Saxon long-and-short quoins.

{5} Decorated medieval floor tiles are probably from the church although this is not stated. Drawing from 1891

{6} Post medieval tile fragments were recovered from the trial trenches - these may relate to the rebuilding of the chancel in 1891.

{7} {8} A northerly extension to the tower and the west end of the north aisle, dated 1923, were uncovered. This was constructed of stone, brick and concrete over a slate damp-proof course; the whole resting on a foundation of concrete laced with crushed brick. A buttress for the north aisle of the church was offset on unmortared stone foundations. A brick drainage gully lay at foundation level at the foot of an escarpment in the churchyard, designed to prevent water from collecting in the foundations.

{13} Closest to the church the works exposed the foundations of the nearest part of the building, a northerly extension to the tower and the west end of the north aisle, dated 1923. This is constructed of stone, brick and concrete over a slate damp-proof course; the whole rests on a foundation of concrete laced with crushed brick.
At the east end of the area a buttress belonging to the north aisle of the church was present at the same approximate level. It was offset on un-mortared stone foundations and the change from dressed wall to undressed foundation indicates that the churchyard level at the time the aisle was constructed was c.100mm below the base of the brick gully and c.300mm below its shoulders

{14} Description of Romanesque font. The tub font stands on a modern cylindrical plinth with a moulded capital and a medieval base. That in turn stands on an octagonal plinth. On the bowl a lattice pattern is defined by bands of nailhead. The semi-lozenges to top and bottom contain fluted foliage. The two rows of full lozenges are carved with squared rosettes of various designs, mostly with large boss-like centres and fluted petals with central ribs. A band of nebuli runs around the base of the decoration, and a band of sawtooth around the top. Damage on the S and N sides of the rim probably result from the removal of a lock. The shallow interior is lead lined. The scotia of the worn base is decorated with sawtooth.

The font is a product of the workshop from St Peter's, Northampton, active in the 1140s and '50s.

{16} Undated photo, also photo dated December 1978.

{17} Saxon work as described See photographs.

{18} St Bartholomews Green's Norton. Saxon remains, namely the long and short work of the north west and south west quoins of a tall and wide nave and the jambs of a window high up the east wall of the nave and originally belonging to a central tower.

{19} Church of St Bartholomew, Saxon (mid 10th-11th century), 13th, 14th century; tower repaired circa 1718, spire rebuilt 1807; chancel rebuilt 1891 when whole church was restored; spire again rebuilt 1957. Coursed squared ironstone with limestone dressings, plain tile roofs, except to aisles which are of lead. Grade I.

{20} Listed as a Saxon Minster.

{22} A number of shields were recorded by various antiquaries, although all that remains are the eyelet fillings in the westernmost window of the nave north aisle.

{23} Ground plan of church by EF Law, 1891.

{24} Photo dated 1897, also numerous tracings and drawings of tiles, shields and monuments, notes and drawings of arms and pedigree, notes on restoration including fundraising, other drawings and sketches with notes and measurements, plan, painting;

<1> Clews Architects, 1980s, Database for Listing of Historic Buildings of Special Architectural Interest: Northamptonshire, 11/85 (checked) (Digital archive). SNN102353.

<2> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest ("Greenback"), F08 (unchecked) (Catalogue). SNN45262.

<3> Pevsner N.; Cherry B., 1973, The Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, (unchecked) (Series). SNN1320.

<4> 2005, The Archaeological Journal (162), p.200 (checked) (Journal). SNN107450.

<5> Dryden H.E.L., 1842-1895, Dryden Collection, Parish Files (checked) (Archive). SNN115.

<6> Hayward S., 2002, St Bartholomew's Church, Greens Norton, Northamptonshire, Archaeological trial excavation, (checked) (Report). SNN102237.

<7> Chapman P. (Editor), 2008, Archaeology in Northamptonshire in 2007, p.298-9 (checked) (Article). SNN106430.

<8> Horne B. (Editor), 2008, South Midlands Archaeology: CBA Group 9 Newsletter (38), p.40 (checked) (Journal). SNN106282.

<9> Potter, J.F., 2010, A Geological Review of Some Early Churches in the Northamptonshire Area, (unchecked) (Article). SNN107495.

<10> Glynne S., 1859, Church Notes of Sir Stephen Glynne, 40 p.8-9 (unchecked) (Manuscript). SNN39492.

<11> WRANGHAM HAR, 1968, ST. BARTHOLOMEW, GREENS NORTON, (unchecked) (Uncertain). SNN47601.

<12> Driver J.T., 1999, Sir Thomas Green (c.1400-1462), Parliamentary Knight for Northamptonshire in the 'Parliament of Bats' (1426), p.7-14 (unchecked) (Article). SNN102526.

<13> Soden I., 2007, Archaeological Watching Brief at St. Bartholomew's Church, Greens Norton, Northamptonshire, p.3 (checked) (Report). SNN108026.

<14> King's College, London, 2017, A corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland, site/557 (Website). SNN110894.

<15> Bailey, B, Pevsner, N, and Cherry, B, 2013, The Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, p. 305-6 (Book). SNN111989.

<16> Photographs of buildings in Greens Norton (Photographs). SNN112586.

<17> Colquhoun, FD, 1970, Field Investigator's Comments, F1 FDC 13-JUL-70 (Notes). SNN111540.

<18> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, Ministry of Housing and Local Government list, Towcester Rural District, 1949, p. 19 (Report). SNN112993.

<19> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, District of South Northamptonshire, 14/12/1987, p. 41-2 (Report). SNN112993.

<20> Blair, J, 1994, Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire, p. 57 (Book). SNN114064.

<21> Historic England, Undated, St Bartholemew's Church, Greens Norton, BF107327 (Archive). SNN115785.

<22> Marks R., 1998, Stained Glass Of Northamptonshire, p. 94 (Book). SNN101533.

<23> Lambeth Palace Library, Incorporated Church Building Society Archive, ICBS09484 (Digital archive). SNN115761.

<24> Dryden H.E.L., 1842-1895, Dryden Collection, DR/25/126/1-44 (Archive). SNN115.

Record last edited

Dec 17 2024 9:39AM