St Nicholas' Church, Brandiston
Encyclopedia
St Nicholas' Church, Brandiston, is a redundant
Anglican
church in the village of Brandiston
, Norfolk
, England. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
. It stands next to Brandiston Hall.
was originally the nave
, and it still contains some 12th-century fabric. The rest of the north aisle and the nave date from the 14th century. The chancel
and south porch were added in the 15th century. By the 18th century the chancel had been demolished. In the 19th century the octagonal top was added to the tower. The church was substantially restored
in 1844.
rubble
with limestone
dressings. The roofs are tiled. Its plan is simple, consisting of a nave with a north aisle, the eastern end of the nave acting as the chancel, a south porch and a west tower. The lower part of the tower is round, with an octagonal top stage. The west wall of the nave has a three-light window. In the south wall are three large windows, one in Decorated style, the other two Perpendicular. Supporting the east wall are two brick buttress
es.
Inside the church is a three-bay
arcade
supported on quatrefoil piers
, with double-chamfer
ed arches. The nave ceiling is plastered. All the fittings and benches date from the 19th century. The windows in the south wall of the nave contain some medieval
stained glass.
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 Brandiston
Brandiston
Brandiston is a small village and civil parish in the county of Norfolk, England, about two miles south-east of the small market town of Reepham, five miles south-west of the larger town of Aylsham and 10 miles north-west of the city of Norwich. For the purposes of local government, it falls within...
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, 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...
. It stands next to Brandiston Hall.
History
The oldest standing part of the church is the lower part of the tower, which dates from the 12th century. The present north aisleAisle
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...
was originally 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 it still contains some 12th-century fabric. The rest of the north aisle and the nave date from the 14th century. 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...
and south porch were added in the 15th century. By the 18th century the chancel had been demolished. In the 19th century the octagonal top was added to the tower. The church was substantially 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...
in 1844.
Architecture
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...
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 roofs are tiled. Its plan is simple, consisting of a nave with a north aisle, the eastern end of the nave acting as the chancel, a south porch and a west tower. The lower part of the tower is round, with an octagonal top stage. The west wall of the nave has a three-light window. In the south wall are three large windows, one in Decorated style, the other two Perpendicular. Supporting the east wall are two brick buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es.
Inside the church is 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:...
arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
supported on quatrefoil piers
Pier (architecture)
In architecture, a pier is an upright support for a superstructure, such as an arch or bridge. Sections of wall between openings function as piers. The simplest cross section of the pier is square, or rectangular, although other shapes are also common, such as the richly articulated piers of Donato...
, with double-chamfer
Chamfer
A chamfer is a beveled edge connecting two surfaces. If the surfaces are at right angles, the chamfer will typically be symmetrical at 45 degrees. A fillet is the rounding off of an interior corner. A rounding of an exterior corner is called a "round" or a "radius"."Chamfer" is a term commonly...
ed arches. The nave ceiling is plastered. All the fittings and benches date from the 19th century. The windows in the south wall of the nave contain some medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
stained glass.