www.wrington.net
Wrington Website
Two for the price of one on this first church crawl of the 2014 season organised by Andrew Densham - to St Michael’s, Brent Knoll,
and St Mary’s East Brent, where we said Compline. As usual, the evening was rounded off very tastefully in the delightful Brent
Knoll Inn.
In both churches, Christopher Marsden-Smedley ensured we didn’t miss features well worth a second look, as well as
contextualising our appreciation of our ecclesiastical surroundings by a few pointers to the wider historical interest of the localities
in which they were situated. So, for example, he noted that the hill upon which St Michael’s stands has been a site of religious
activity since the end of the Stone Age, not long after the building of Stonehenge. A little nearer our own time, we all diligently
decoded the fascinating carvings on the pew ends which included not only some pagan references, but also just what the local
people thought of a particularly grasping Abbot of Glastonbury who is depicted as a fox. The church dates from the 11C. There’s a
Norman doorway, the north aisle was built in the late 15C, and the pulpit was put in place in the 17C. The 3-stage tower dates
from around 1397. The churchyard boasts a modern and discreet solution to the loos-in-churches dilemma.
Click thumbnail to enlarge
St Mary’s church, one of
whose churchwardens very
kindly attended on us, is also
a Grade I listed building,
dating from the 15C, with the
tower and spire being added
around 1400.
There’s a 15C eagle lectern
and a 1634 pulpit.
As part of a restoration in the
19C, the chancel was
designed by William
Butterfield, with a highly
decorated ceiling.
There’s one window entirely
of mediaeval glass, and the
north aisle windows have
restored mediaeval glass
figures of saints, remounted
in Victorian window glass.
A modern pane in one
window of the chancel
contains the initials APW. A
clue to the identity is a wicket
and bails - Archie Wickham
was vicar 1911-1935 and
was a leading player for
Somerset County Cricket
Club.
His name also appears on
the church gates restored in
2005 and dedicated to him.
In the churchyard beyond the
war memorial, a tree, dead at
first glance, sprouts an
extended and oddly shaped
branch.
In front of it, a stone nun lies
in the glass, whiling away
eternity staring into what was
a gorgeous blue sky when
we were there.
