All Saints' Church, Oakham
Encyclopedia
All Saints' Church, Oakham is a parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....

 in the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...

 in Oakham
Oakham
-Oakham's horseshoes:Traditionally, members of royalty and peers of the realm who visited or passed through the town had to pay a forfeit in the form of a horseshoe...

, Rutland
Rutland
Rutland is a landlocked county in central England, bounded on the west and north by Leicestershire, northeast by Lincolnshire and southeast by Peterborough and Northamptonshire....

.

History

The spire of Oakham parish church dominates distant views of the town for several miles in all directions. The impressive tower and spire, built during the 14th century in the "Decorated Gothic" style, are slightly earlier in date than most of the rest of the exterior of the building, which (apart from some Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...

) is in the "Perpendicular Gothic" style. Oddly, the south doorway and its porch seem to be the oldest parts of the church, the doorway probably dating from the early 13th century with the porch having been added later that century.

In the light, spacious interior there is more evidence of the mature Decorated style of the 14th century. The tall, slender columns of the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...

 have intricately carved capitals
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...

 showing animals, birds, figures, foliage and scenes from the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

 including Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve were, according to the Genesis creation narratives, the first human couple to inhabit Earth, created by YHWH, the God of the ancient Hebrews...

, the Expulsion from the Garden of Eden, the Annunciation
Annunciation
The Annunciation, also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary or Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Virgin Mary, that she would conceive and become the mother of Jesus the Son of God. Gabriel told Mary to name her...

 and the Coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...

 of the Virgin Mary. There is also a fine Green Man
Green Man
A Green Man is a sculpture, drawing, or other representation of a face surrounded by or made from leaves. Branches or vines may sprout from the nose, mouth, nostrils or other parts of the face and these shoots may bear flowers or fruit...

.

It is a grade I listed building. It was restored in 1857 to 1858 by Sir George Gilbert Scott
George Gilbert Scott
Sir George Gilbert Scott was an English architect of the Victorian Age, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches, cathedrals and workhouses...

.

Parish status

Oakham Parish Church is in a team ministry with:
  • St. Andrew's Church, Hambleton
  • St. Edmund's Church, Egleton
  • All Saints' Church, Braunston
  • St. Peter's Church, Brooke
  • St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, Langham
  • St. Andrew's Church, Whissendine
  • Holy Trinity Church, Teigh
  • Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Ashwell
  • St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, Market Overton

Bells

There is a ring of eight bells cast by Gillett & Johnston
Gillett & Johnston
Gillett and Johnston is a clock and formerly bell manufacturing business in Croydon, England.-History:William Gillett started a clock making business on Union Road in Croydon, England in 1844. Charles Bland became a partner in 1854 and the company became known as Gillet and Bland. In 1877, Arthur...

 in 1910, and a priest's bell of 1840.

Organ

An organ by Brindley & Foster
Brindley & Foster
Brindley & Foster was a pipe organ builder based in Sheffield who flourished between 1854 and 1939.-Background:The business was established by Charles Brindley in 1854. He was joined by Albert Healey Foster in 1871 and the company acquired the name Brindley & Foster.Charles Brindley was born in...

 was installed in 1872 in the Lady Chapel. It was enlarged in 1896. In 1937, Roger Yates improved and electrified it, and moved it to the north west corner of the Church, with the console in the Trinity Chapel. This organ was removed in 1994.

The new two manual pipe organ dates from 1996 and is by the builder Kenneth Tickell and Company. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.

Organists

  • Russell Arthur Missin
    Russell Arthur Missin
    Russell Arthur Missin was an English cathedral organist, who served in Newcastle Cathedral.-Background:He was born in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire on 15 July 1922...

     1950 - 1956 (later organist of Newcastle Cathedral
    Newcastle Cathedral
    St Nicholas's Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Its full title is The Cathedral Church of St Nicholas Newcastle upon Tyne...

    ).
  • Derek Thomas 1958-?
  • Ivan Linford 1996-1999
  • Kevin Slingsby 2005 - current
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