Church of St Cyriac and St Julitta, Swaffham Prior
Encyclopedia
The Church of St Cyriac and St Julitta, Swaffham Prior, is a redundant
Anglican
church in the village of Swaffham Prior
, Cambridgeshire
, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
. The church stands in an elevated position above the village street, the B1102 road, some 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Cambridge
. It is less than 100 feet (30 m) from the adjoining Church of St Mary, and both churches share the same churchyard.
to Saints Cyriac and Julitta (Quiricus and Julietta), Saint Julitta being the mother of Saint Cyriac. Both this church and the adjacent church of St Mary were established by the early 13th century. Initially separate parish
es, their benefice
s were united in 1667. In 1743 the nave
and chancel
of St Cyriac's were restored, but by 1783 the church was in a dilapidated state, and services were being held in St Mary's. By the 1790s the roof of St Cyriac's was collapsing, and it was overgrown with ivy. However in 1779 the tower of St Mary's had been struck by lightning, and in 1802, when builders were working on the tower, part of it collapsed. It was then decided to demolish St Cyriac's church, other than the tower, and rebuild it.
Work began in 1806 to designs by Charles Humfrey of Cambridge. The cost of the work was over £3,100 (£ as of ), and the church was re-consecrated
in 1809. Towards the end of the century, work was carried out to restore St Mary's. St Mary's was re-opened in 1903, and it then became the sole parish church
. The fabric of St Cyriac's was left to decay, and by the 1960s its ceiling was collapsing. Its tower was restored in 1959–60, and in 1974 the Redundant Churches Fund, the forerunner of the Churches Conservation Trust, spent £10,000 (£ as of ) on repairing and restoring the rest of the church. Since then, it has been used occasionally for exhibitions and concerts.
and flint
with limestone
dressings. The rest of the church is in gault brick with stone dressings. The roof is slate
d. Its plan consists of a three-bay
nave with north and south aisle
s, north and south transept
s, a chancel, and a west tower. The tower is in three stages with buttress
es. The lower two stages are square, and the top stage is octagonal. At the northeast angle is a staircase. The tower is set on a plinth
with a frieze
decorated in a chequerboard pattern in brick and stone. In the bottom stage of the tower is a west doorway, and above this is a three-light window. The top stage contains two-light bell openings on each face. The parapet
is decorated with flushwork
. At the west end of the church is a gallery. The ring
consists of six bells, all cast in 1791 by John Briant.
Redundant church
A redundant church is a church building that is no longer required for regular public worship. The phrase is particularly used to refer to former Anglican buildings in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world...
Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
church in the village of Swaffham Prior
Swaffham Prior
Swaffham Prior is a village in East Cambridgeshire, England.Lying 5 miles west of Newmarket, and two miles south west of Burwell, the village is often paired with its neighbour Swaffham Bulbeck, and are collectively referred to as 'The Swaffhams'. Swaffham Prior was often known as Great Swaffham in...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
Churches Conservation Trust
The Churches Conservation Trust, which was initially known as the Redundant Churches Fund, is a charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk, those that have been made redundant by the Church of England. The Trust was established by the Pastoral Measure of 1968...
. The church stands in an elevated position above the village street, the B1102 road, some 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. It is less than 100 feet (30 m) from the adjoining Church of St Mary, and both churches share the same churchyard.
History
The church has a dual dedicationDedication
Dedication is the act of consecrating an altar, temple, church or other sacred building. It also refers to the inscription of books or other artifacts when these are specifically addressed or presented to a particular person. This practice, which once was used to gain the patronage and support of...
to Saints Cyriac and Julitta (Quiricus and Julietta), Saint Julitta being the mother of Saint Cyriac. Both this church and the adjacent church of St Mary were established by the early 13th century. Initially separate parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
es, their benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...
s were united in 1667. In 1743 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...
and chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
of St Cyriac's were restored, but by 1783 the church was in a dilapidated state, and services were being held in St Mary's. By the 1790s the roof of St Cyriac's was collapsing, and it was overgrown with ivy. However in 1779 the tower of St Mary's had been struck by lightning, and in 1802, when builders were working on the tower, part of it collapsed. It was then decided to demolish St Cyriac's church, other than the tower, and rebuild it.
Work began in 1806 to designs by Charles Humfrey of Cambridge. The cost of the work was over £3,100 (£ as of ), and the church was re-consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
in 1809. Towards the end of the century, work was carried out to restore St Mary's. St Mary's was re-opened in 1903, and it then became the sole 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....
. The fabric of St Cyriac's was left to decay, and by the 1960s its ceiling was collapsing. Its tower was restored in 1959–60, and in 1974 the Redundant Churches Fund, the forerunner of the Churches Conservation Trust, spent £10,000 (£ as of ) on repairing and restoring the rest of the church. Since then, it has been used occasionally for exhibitions and concerts.
Architecture
The tower is constructed in clunchClunch
Clunch is a term for traditional building material used mainly in eastern England and Normandy. It is a term which encompasses a wide variety of materials, often locally variable....
and flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
with limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
dressings. The rest of the church is in gault brick with stone dressings. The roof is slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
d. Its plan consists of a three-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
nave with north and south aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
s, north and south transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
s, a chancel, and a west tower. The tower is in three stages with buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es. The lower two stages are square, and the top stage is octagonal. At the northeast angle is a staircase. The tower is set on a plinth
Plinth
In architecture, a plinth is the base or platform upon which a column, pedestal, statue, monument or structure rests. Gottfried Semper's The Four Elements of Architecture posited that the plinth, the hearth, the roof, and the wall make up all of architectural theory. The plinth usually rests...
with a frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
decorated in a chequerboard pattern in brick and stone. In the bottom stage of the tower is a west doorway, and above this is a three-light window. The top stage contains two-light bell openings on each face. The parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
is decorated with flushwork
Flushwork
-Description:In architecture, flushwork is the decorative combination on the same flat plane of flint and ashlar stone. It is characteristic of the external walls of medieval buildings, most of the survivors being churches, in parts of Southern England, but especially East Anglia...
. At the west end of the church is a gallery. The ring
Ring of bells
"Ring of bells" is a term most often applied to a set of bells hung in the English style, typically for change ringing...
consists of six bells, all cast in 1791 by John Briant.