Building record 1244/1/1 - Church of St. Peter & St. Paul

13th-15th centuries. Repaired 1770-4. Restored 1864 by E.F. Law and 1887-92 by Edward Swinfen Harris. Coursed squared limestone, plain-tile roof to chancel, lead roofs to body of church. Chancel, nave, north aisle and west tower.

{1} Church. C13, C14 and C15. Repaired 1770-4. Restored 1864 by E.F. Law and 1887-92 by Edward Swinfen Harris. Coursed squared limestone, plain-tile roof to chancel, lead roofs to body of church. Chancel, nave, north aisle and west tower. Chancel has 3-light east window with reticulated tracery and hood mould and a C19 stepped triple lancet window to north and south. Priest's door of 1864 to north. Early English style with shafts and foliage capitals. C13 ornamental string-course at level of springing of central lancets, partly renewed and carried over windows as hood mould and over blocked side-lights of original east window either side of present window. Nave has 3-light windows to south with C19 geometrical tracery and hood moulds. 3 quatrefoil clerestory windows to north only, with square chamfered stone surrounds and plain stone-coped parapet to south with central datestone inscribed 1586. North aisle has 3-light east window with C19 Decorated tracery, 3-light windows to north with late C19 Perpendicular tracery and 4-centred heads, and small 2-light west window with Y-tracery and pointed trefoil-headed lights; all have hood moulds. Blocked chamfered north door with imposts and toothed hood mould. 4-stage tower has many-moulded west door. 3-light window above with C19 Perpendicular tracery and 2-light west window to next stage with Decorated tracery and quatrefoil to head, all with hood moulds. 2-light bell-chamber openings with cinquefoil-headed lights, quatrefoils to heads and hood moulds. Diagonal off-set buttresses, battlemented parapet and turret to south-east angle with ridged pyramidal stone roof. Weather-vane and gilded copper weathercock, possibly medieval. Chamfered plinths to tower and chancel, irregularly sited off-set buttresses to nave and aisle, and chamfered wood eaves to north side of nave and north aisle. Interior: chancel has aumbry. Double-chamfered chancel arch with continuous outer arch and polygonal responds with moulded bases and capitals innermost. Nave has C13 5-bay arcade with quatrefoil piers, moulded bases and capitals, double-chamfered arches and toothed hood moulding. Part-blocked tower arch with C18 door to vestibule in tower; round-arched door with moulded wood surround and keyblock. C19 roof to chancel. Plaster ceiling to north aisle. 5-bay roof to nave, formerly hidden by C18 coved plaster ceiling. Roof has arch-braced ties, wall-posts on corbels and king posts. Two trusses to east half of roof have stop-moulded ties, raised principals and side-struts from ties to principals. Those to west probably late C16 or early C17 with bar stops to ties and side-struts to principal rafters. Monuments: small wall monument with brass inscription plate in moulded stone surround to Reverend William Bradshawe, d.1601, and his wife Barbara. Wall monument, oil on board in Japanned wood frame to Henry Longueville, d.1713, and 3 wall monuments signed by William Cox of Northampton, to Harriet Kantchbull, d.1767, to Reverend Pulter Forester, rector of Cosgrove and Passenham, d.1778, and to Reverend Richard Wadsworth, d.1781. All have obelisk backgrounds and cartouches of arms, that to Pulter Forester with inscription on open book. (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire: p159)

{3} Originally an early C13th building, the parish church of Cosgrove was badly over-restored in 1770-4.

{8} Undated photo; and photo dated 29/10/93;

{9} Reverend Mr Mansel has one of the finest tulip gardens in the county. (Uncertain where the Rectory was in the C18th).

{11} The medieval heraldic glass is not original to the church as confirmed by their identifiaction as the arms of families from East Anglia and Hertfordshire, having no affiliations with Cosgrove.

{12} Painting of coats of arms in stained glass, dated 1882, also notes on the stained glass;

<1> Clews Architects, 1980s, Database for Listing of Historic Buildings of Special Architectural Interest: Northamptonshire, 16/10 (checked) (Digital archive). SNN102353.

<2> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest ("Greenback"), F11 (unchecked) (Catalogue). SNN45262.

<3> Pevsner N.; Cherry B., 1973, The Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, p.159 (unchecked) (Series). SNN1320.

<4> Bridges J., 1791, The History and Antiquities of Northamptonshire, p.287-88 (unchecked) (Book). SNN77325.

<5> Glynne S., 1859, Church Notes of Sir Stephen Glynne, 40 p.6 (unchecked) (Manuscript). SNN39492.

<6> 1986, Untitled Source, (unchecked) (Uncertain). SNN47019.

<7> Richmond H., 1988, Survey of Northamptonshire Parish Churches, (unchecked) (Unpublished Report). SNN1195.

<8> Various, Various, Photographs of buildings in Cosgrove (Photographs). SNN111598.

<9> Morton J., 1712, The Natural History of Northamptonshire, p.494 (unchecked) (Book). SNN10113.

<10> Undated, St Peter and St Paul's Church, Cosgrove, BF053026 (Archive). SNN113736.

<11> Marks R., 1998, Stained Glass Of Northamptonshire, p. 44-45 (Book). SNN101533.

<12> Dryden H.E.L., 1842-1895, Dryden Collection, DR/25/71/1, 2 (Archive). SNN115.

Record last edited

Dec 17 2024 4:19PM