Building record 679/3/1 - Church of St. Michael

Church built in the 13th century with additions in the 14th and 15th centuries, rebuilt in 1858 by William White. Built of coursed squared ironstone with some limestone banding, slate roofs to chancel and porch, copper to the nave and aisles. The church consosts of a chancel, nave, north and south aisles, south porch, and west tower.

{1} Church. C13, C14 and C15, rebuilt 1858 by William White. Coursed squared ironstone with some limestone banding, slate roofs to chancel and porch, copper to nave and aisles. Chancel, nave, north and south aisles, south porch, west tower. 2-bay chancel has 2-light east window with plate tracery, smaller 2-light window to south-east, one-light window to south-west, both with plate tracery and small lancet window to north. Hollow-chamfered priest's door to south. Vestry to north with similar west door and small cinquefoil-headed east window. Chancel has quoins and high stepped chamfered plinth continuing over doors and stone-coped gable with kneelers. Nave has 2-bay clerestory with straight-headed one-light windows with cut spandrels and cinquefoiled lights. North aisle has 2-light east window with Decorated style tracery, a 3-light window to north-east and one-light windows to north-west and west, all with cinquefoil-headed lights. North doorway with raised hollow chamfer and ridged plank door. South aisle has similar windows to those of north aisle except for 2-light Decorated style window to south-west. South doorway has hollow-chamfered jambs, imposts and 6-panel double-leaf doors. South porch has hollow-chamfered doorway, quatrefoil windows east and west, chamfered plinth and stone-coped gable. Clerestory and aisles have overhanging moulded timber eaves with rafters continued as brackets. Moulded sill band to south aisle. 3-stage west tower has C19 Caernarvon-arched west door with one-light cinquefoil-headed window above with deep hollow-chamfered splays, one-light window to south of middle stage with stone louvres and cast-iron clock face above. 2-light bell-openings and battlemented parapet. Windows all have hood moulds except those to clerestory and porch. Interior: chancel has arch-braced collar truss roof. Double-chamfered chancel arch with polygonal responds. Nave has 4-bay arcades with polygonal responds, octagonal piers with moulded bases and capitals and double-chamfered arches, except for west bay of north aisle. The stonework of this bay is limestone and has double-chamfered arch, outer chamfer on polygonal responds and capitals, with solid masonry pier betweeen this bay and next bay east. Pointed trefoil-headed piscina in south aisle. Nave has Perpendicular style roof. Seating incorporates cut-down box pews. C19 stained glass to east and north chancel windows. Coloured glass and patterned leading to heads of most windows. Royal arms painted on tin plate over west door. Charity board over door to tower. (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, 1973, p.118).

{4} Undated photo;

<1> Clews Architects, 1980s, Database for Listing of Historic Buildings of Special Architectural Interest: Northamptonshire, 12/54 (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> Photographs of buildings in Bradden (Photographs). SNN111892.

<5> Historic England, Undated, St Michael's Church, Bradden, BF107252 (Archive). SNN115893.

Record last edited

Dec 17 2024 9:40AM