Clyst St Mary, Devon
Church of St Mary, Clyst St Mary Devon , one of quite a few villages by the River Clyst
It was recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as 'Bishop's Cliste' and is known for its late 12c bridge along the main route between Exeter and London which although rebuilt in 1310, is still the oldest bridge in Devon
It is probable that the earliest church of St Mary was Saxon, and that it was rebuilt in Norman times - possibly 13c with 15c extensions ; the transepts were added in 1818 & lengthened in 1870 & further extensions in 1840 . Its somewhat remote situation from the village is probably due to its originally having been built as a private chapel for the lord of the manor
and lies in the park of Winslade House.
Of cruciform design with west tower, unusually the church's main axis is, since the 1895 - 6 reordering, north to south and the main altar is at the north end, the former transepts (with crossing) function as nave and chancel; & the former nave and chancel now act as transepts. The tower is encased within the width of the (former) nave which was probably widened at that time.
A clock is set in the north wall. There is also a north-east lean to vestry entered by the north porch.
Inside are ceiled wagon roofs to the present nave and chancel and a boarded wagon roof to old chancel. There is a stone arch to the former chancel & a wooden arch (1895-6) to the present chancel. Three 1870s windows are by Lavers, Barraud and Westlake,
A passage in Arthur Mee's Kings England series says
On Whit Sunday 1549 the first Prayer Book in English was put into use in the churches - not long after 10,000 men from the West Country were marching on Exeter demanding the restoration of the old Mass and the new book suppressed. The rebels overtook Walter Raleigh's father of the same name and "were in such a choler, and so fell in rages with him that if he had not shifted himself into the chapel there and had been rescued by certain mariners of Exmouth with him, he had been in great danger of his life" - the rebels camped on Clyst Heath, fortified the bridge over the river, but were eventually defeated by Italian soldiers under Lord Russell. Clyst t Mary was set on fire, the villagers butchered and Sir William Winslade hanged as a rebel in a lane nearby
Picture with thanks - copyright Rod Allday CCL www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5996078
Clyst St Mary, Devon
Church of St Mary, Clyst St Mary Devon , one of quite a few villages by the River Clyst
It was recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as 'Bishop's Cliste' and is known for its late 12c bridge along the main route between Exeter and London which although rebuilt in 1310, is still the oldest bridge in Devon
It is probable that the earliest church of St Mary was Saxon, and that it was rebuilt in Norman times - possibly 13c with 15c extensions ; the transepts were added in 1818 & lengthened in 1870 & further extensions in 1840 . Its somewhat remote situation from the village is probably due to its originally having been built as a private chapel for the lord of the manor
and lies in the park of Winslade House.
Of cruciform design with west tower, unusually the church's main axis is, since the 1895 - 6 reordering, north to south and the main altar is at the north end, the former transepts (with crossing) function as nave and chancel; & the former nave and chancel now act as transepts. The tower is encased within the width of the (former) nave which was probably widened at that time.
A clock is set in the north wall. There is also a north-east lean to vestry entered by the north porch.
Inside are ceiled wagon roofs to the present nave and chancel and a boarded wagon roof to old chancel. There is a stone arch to the former chancel & a wooden arch (1895-6) to the present chancel. Three 1870s windows are by Lavers, Barraud and Westlake,
A passage in Arthur Mee's Kings England series says
On Whit Sunday 1549 the first Prayer Book in English was put into use in the churches - not long after 10,000 men from the West Country were marching on Exeter demanding the restoration of the old Mass and the new book suppressed. The rebels overtook Walter Raleigh's father of the same name and "were in such a choler, and so fell in rages with him that if he had not shifted himself into the chapel there and had been rescued by certain mariners of Exmouth with him, he had been in great danger of his life" - the rebels camped on Clyst Heath, fortified the bridge over the river, but were eventually defeated by Italian soldiers under Lord Russell. Clyst t Mary was set on fire, the villagers butchered and Sir William Winslade hanged as a rebel in a lane nearby
Picture with thanks - copyright Rod Allday CCL www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5996078