St Andrew's Church, Willingale
Encyclopedia
St Andrew's Church, Willingale, is a redundant
Anglican
church in the village of Willingale
, Essex
, 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 less than 50 yards (46 m) from the adjacent church of St Christopher, and shares its churchyard.
dates from the 12th century, and the chancel
from the 15th century. During the 19th century the church was restored
, and a porch and a vestry
were added.
rubble
, and contains some freestone and puddingstone
. The dressings are in clunch
and re-used Roman
bricks. The roofs are tiled. The plan consists of a nave and chancel, with a south porch and a north vestry. At the west end is a wooden belfry
and spire, both of which are weatherboarded
. The east window dates from the 19th century and has three lights containing Decorated-style tracery
. In the north wall of the chancel are two two-light windows from the 15th century, and between them is a blocked doorway. There are similar windows in the south wall, and a 15th-century doorway. In the north wall of the nave are two 12th-century windows with semicircular heads, and a doorway from the same period. The doorway contains a door with 12th-century scrolled ironwork. In the south wall are three windows in different styles; a 13th-century lancet window
, a 14th-century two-light window, and a small window dating from the 12th century. The south porch is weatherboarded and it leads to a 12th-century doorway with a semicircular head and jambs
in stone and Roman brick. The west window has a semicircular brick head, which probably dates from the 17th century.
dates from the late 14th century. It is decorated with quatrefoil
s in circles, and with panels containing carved roses and heads. In the chancel are 15th-century piscina
e and an oolite
altar slab with carved crosses. Also in the church are memorials dated 1614 in memory of the children of the rector. The organ was made in 1905 by Thomas S. Jones and Son, but had been removed by 1997. The ring
consists of two bells, one of which has a 15th-century inscription.
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 Willingale
Willingale, Essex
Willingale is a village and civil parish in the Epping Forest district, in the county of Essex, England. Other nearby settlements include Miller's Green, Shallow Bowells and Birds Green. Willingale has two churches, one called St Christopher, Willingale. and one called St Andrew's Church.- External...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south 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 less than 50 yards (46 m) from the adjacent church of St Christopher, and shares its churchyard.
History
The naveNave
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...
dates from the 12th century, and the 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...
from the 15th century. During the 19th century the church was restored
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...
, and a porch and a vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
were added.
Exterior
The church is constructed in flintFlint
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...
rubble
Rubble
Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture. This word is closely connected in derivation with "rubbish", which was formerly also applied to what we now call "rubble". Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as brash...
, and contains some freestone and puddingstone
Puddingstone (rock)
Puddingstone, also known as either Pudding stone or Plum-pudding stone, is a popular name applied to a conglomerate that consists of distinctly rounded pebbles whose colors contrast sharply with the color of the finer-grained, often sandy, matrix or cement surrounding them...
. The dressings are in clunch
Clunch
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 re-used Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
bricks. The roofs are tiled. The plan consists of a nave and chancel, with a south porch and a north vestry. At the west end is a wooden belfry
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
and spire, both of which are weatherboarded
Weatherboarding
Weatherboarding is the cladding or ‘siding’ of a house consisting of long thin timber boards that overlap one another, either vertically or horizontally on the outside of the wall. They are usually of rectangular section with parallel sides...
. The east window dates from the 19th century and has three lights containing Decorated-style tracery
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
. In the north wall of the chancel are two two-light windows from the 15th century, and between them is a blocked doorway. There are similar windows in the south wall, and a 15th-century doorway. In the north wall of the nave are two 12th-century windows with semicircular heads, and a doorway from the same period. The doorway contains a door with 12th-century scrolled ironwork. In the south wall are three windows in different styles; a 13th-century lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
, a 14th-century two-light window, and a small window dating from the 12th century. The south porch is weatherboarded and it leads to a 12th-century doorway with a semicircular head and jambs
Door jamb
A doorjamb is the vertical portion of the frame onto which a door is secured. The jamb bears the weight of the door through its hinges, and most types of door latches and deadbolts extend into a recess in the doorjamb when engaged, making the "true" and strength of the doorjambs vitally important...
in stone and Roman brick. The west window has a semicircular brick head, which probably dates from the 17th century.
Interior
The octagonal fontBaptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
dates from the late 14th century. It is decorated with quatrefoil
Quatrefoil
The word quatrefoil etymologically means "four leaves", and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts.-In heraldry:In heraldic terminology, a quatrefoil is a representation of a flower with four petals, or a leaf with four leaflets . It is sometimes shown "slipped", i.e. with an...
s in circles, and with panels containing carved roses and heads. In the chancel are 15th-century piscina
Piscina
A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. Roman Catholics usually refer to the drain, and by extension, the basin, as the sacrarium...
e and an oolite
Oolite
Oolite is a sedimentary rock formed from ooids, spherical grains composed of concentric layers. The name derives from the Hellenic word òoion for egg. Strictly, oolites consist of ooids of diameter 0.25–2 mm; rocks composed of ooids larger than 2 mm are called pisolites...
altar slab with carved crosses. Also in the church are memorials dated 1614 in memory of the children of the rector. The organ was made in 1905 by Thomas S. Jones and Son, but had been removed by 1997. 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 two bells, one of which has a 15th-century inscription.