St Peter's Church, Wintringham
Encyclopedia
St Peter's Church, Wintringham, is a redundant
Anglican
church in the village of Wintringham
, North Yorkshire
, England . It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust
. The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner
described the building as "the most rewarding church in the East Riding
with an exceptional collection of furnishings".
, but the chancel
is Norman
in style. The chancel dates from the 12th century, while much of the rest of the church dates from the 14th century. The east end of the church was rebuilt, and windows were added to the nave
, in the 15th century. The tower, dating originally from the late 14th century, was repaired in 1818. The roofs were restored in 1887 by Oldrid Scott
, and oak fittings were added to the chancel by Temple Moore
in 1889–91. It was vested
with the Churches Conservation Trust in April 2004. The Trust arranged for repairs, which were started in the following year and took two years to complete.
sandstone
with Westmorland
slate
roofs. Its plan consists of a four-bay
nave with north and south aisle
s, a three-bay chancel, and a west tower with a spire. At the eastern end of each aisle is a chapel. The tower has four stages on a plinth
, with angle buttress
es, and string courses between the stages. The west window has three lights and Perpendicular tracery
. The top stage contains paired louvred
bell openings with Decorated tracery. The parapet
is embattled
, decorated and pierced. At the corners are pinnacle
s and water spouts. Under the parapet is a decorated corbel
table. The spire is recessed and octagonal. The church is entered by a south door. At the east end of the church are two two-light Perpendicular windows. There are crosses on the gable
ends of the nave and chancel. Inside the church are a tower arch, a chancel arch and north and south arcades
.
and post-Reformation
periods; otherwise the walls are whitewash
ed. In the south wall of the chancel is a double aumbry
. The chapels are divided from the east ends of the aisle by 15th-century embattled carved screens. On the south wall of the south chapel is a piscina
with a trefoil
ed head, and in the north wall is a niche
. Inside the base of the tower is an arcaded screen dated 1723. Also in the tower is a hatchment
dated 1723 and two painted panels. The lectern
and double-decker pulpit
both date from the 17th century, as do the poppyhead
carvings on the nave pews. Over the pulpit is an octagonal sounding board
with pendant
finial
s. The font
consists of a tub in Norman style with an octagonal painted cover dated 1736. In the north aisle are boards painted with the Ten Commandments
and the Lord's Prayer
, and over the chancel arch is a painted text from Genesis. The stained glass in the tracery of the aisle and nave windows dates from the 15th century and depicts saints.
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 Wintringham
Wintringham
Wintringham is a village and civil parish in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England. It is near the A64 road and east of Malton.The Yorkshire Wolds Way National Trail and the Centenary Way, long distance footpaths pass through the village...
, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, 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 I 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 architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
described the building as "the most rewarding church in the East Riding
East Riding of Yorkshire
The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Yorkshire, is a local government district with unitary authority status, and a ceremonial county of England. For ceremonial purposes the county also includes the city of Kingston upon Hull, which is a separate unitary authority...
with an exceptional collection of furnishings".
History
There is no mention of the church in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, but 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...
is Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
in style. The chancel dates from the 12th century, while much of the rest of the church dates from the 14th century. The east end of the church was rebuilt, and windows were added to 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...
, in the 15th century. The tower, dating originally from the late 14th century, was repaired in 1818. The roofs were restored in 1887 by Oldrid Scott
John Oldrid Scott
John Oldrid Scott was an English architect.He was the son of Sir George Gilbert Scott and Caroline née Oldrid. His brother George Gilbert Scott Junior and nephew Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, were also prominent architects. He married Mary Ann Stevens in 1868, eldest daughter of the Reverend Thomas...
, and oak fittings were added to the chancel by Temple Moore
Temple Lushington Moore
Temple Lushington Moore was an architect working in the Gothic revival style.-Personal life:He was the son of Captain George Frederick Moore and Charlotte Reilly ....
in 1889–91. It was vested
Vesting
In law, vesting is to give an immediately secured right of present or future enjoyment. One has a vested right to an asset that cannot be taken away by any third party, even though one may not yet possess the asset. When the right, interest or title to the present or future possession of a legal...
with the Churches Conservation Trust in April 2004. The Trust arranged for repairs, which were started in the following year and took two years to complete.
Structure
The church is constructed in local calcareousCalcareous
Calcareous is an adjective meaning mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate, in other words, containing lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of scientific disciplines.-In zoology:...
sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
with Westmorland
Westmorland
Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
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...
roofs. Its plan consists of a four-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, a three-bay chancel, and a west tower with a spire. At the eastern end of each aisle is a chapel. The tower has four stages 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 angle buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es, and string courses between the stages. The west window has three lights and Perpendicular 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:...
. The top stage contains paired louvred
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
bell openings with Decorated tracery. 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 embattled
Battlement
A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles. These cut-out portions form crenels...
, decorated and pierced. At the corners are pinnacle
Pinnacle
A pinnacle is an architectural ornament originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire...
s and water spouts. Under the parapet is a decorated corbel
Corbel
In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger". The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or...
table. The spire is recessed and octagonal. The church is entered by a south door. At the east end of the church are two two-light Perpendicular windows. There are crosses on the gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
ends of the nave and chancel. Inside the church are a tower arch, a chancel arch and north and south arcades
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....
.
Fittings and furniture
On the walls are areas of painting dating from the medievalMiddle 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...
and post-Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
periods; otherwise the walls are whitewash
Whitewash
Whitewash, or calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, or lime paint is a very low-cost type of paint made from slaked lime and chalk . Various other additives are also used...
ed. In the south wall of the chancel is a double aumbry
Aumbry
In the Middle Ages an aumbry was a cabinet in the wall of a Christian church or in the sacristy which was used to store chalices and other vessels, as well as for the reserved sacrament, the consecrated elements from the Eucharist. This latter use was infrequent in pre-Reformation churches,...
. The chapels are divided from the east ends of the aisle by 15th-century embattled carved screens. On the south wall of the south chapel is a 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...
with a trefoil
Trefoil
Trefoil is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism...
ed head, and in the north wall is a niche
Niche (architecture)
A niche in classical architecture is an exedra or an apse that has been reduced in size, retaining the half-dome heading usual for an apse. Nero's Domus Aurea was the first semi-private dwelling that possessed rooms that were given richly varied floor plans, shaped with niches and exedras;...
. Inside the base of the tower is an arcaded screen dated 1723. Also in the tower is a hatchment
Hatchment
A hatchment is a funeral demonstration of the lifetime "achievement" of the arms and any other honours displayed on a black lozenge-shaped frame which used to be suspended against the wall of a deceased person's house...
dated 1723 and two painted panels. The lectern
Lectern
A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, usually placed on a stand or affixed to some other form of support, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon...
and double-decker pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
both date from the 17th century, as do the poppyhead
Poppyhead (carving)
Poppyhead is a form of carving of the end of a bench or a choir stall. The carving consists of leaves and flowers, which are usually in the form of a fleur-de-lys....
carvings on the nave pews. Over the pulpit is an octagonal sounding board
Sounding board
A sound board, or soundboard, is the surface of a string instrument that the strings vibrate against, usually via some sort of bridge. The resonant properties of the sound board and the interior of the instrument greatly increase loudness over the string alone.The sound board operates by the...
with pendant
Pendant
A pendant is a loose-hanging piece of jewellery, generally attached by a small loop to a necklace, when the ensemble may be known as a "pendant necklace". A pendant earring is an earring with a piece hanging down. In modern French "pendant" is the gerund form of “hanging”...
finial
Finial
The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed decoratively to emphasize the apex of a gable or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods...
s. The font
Baptismal 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:...
consists of a tub in Norman style with an octagonal painted cover dated 1736. In the north aisle are boards painted with the Ten Commandments
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
and the Lord's Prayer
Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
, and over the chancel arch is a painted text from Genesis. The stained glass in the tracery of the aisle and nave windows dates from the 15th century and depicts saints.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in North YorkshireGrade I listed buildings in North YorkshireThere are approximately 372,905 listed buildings in England and 2.5% of these are Grade I. This page is a list of these buildings in the county of North Yorkshire, by district.-Craven:-Hambleton:-Harrogate:-Middlesbrough:-Redcar & Cleveland:...
- List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in Northern England