St Mary's Church, Capel-le-Ferne
Encyclopedia
St Mary's Church, Capel-le-Ferne, is a redundant
Anglican
church to the northeast of the village of Capel-le-Ferne
, Kent
, 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 church stands in an isolated position adjacent to Capel Church Farm, to the north of the A20 road and 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of Folkestone
.
screen and porch were built, and most of the windows were added during the 15th century. The church was restored
in 1890. It was declared redundant and vested
in the Churches Conservation Trust in 1986.
with tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a nave
, a chancel, a south porch, and a west tower. The tower is in two stages, with a west door, angle buttress
es, two string courses, and a plain parapet
. In the north wall of the nave is a small 12th-century Norman
window and the head of a 14th-century window; otherwise all the windows date from the 15th century.
arcade
with pointed arches carried on octagonal piers
. Between and to the sides of the arches are four corbel
s which formerly supported the rood
screen. Above the arcade the screen is pierced by a large round-headed opening which silhouetted the rood cross. This feature is unique in England. On the east and north walls of the chancel are large moulded
corbels. Also in the chancel are an aumbry
with a semicircular head, a simple sedilia
, and a 13th-century trefoil
-headed piscina
. The font
consists of an octagonal bowl carried on an octagonal stem. In the recess of the Norman north window is painted foliage. There are fragments of medieval
stained glass in the east window. The memorials include a brass
dated 1526, and a white marble
wall plaque to General Sir Charles William Dunbar Staveley
who died in 1896.
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 to the northeast of the village of Capel-le-Ferne
Capel-le-Ferne
Capel-le-Ferne , the name of which derives from the phrase "Chapel in the Ferns", is a village situated near Folkestone, Kent. It has a population of approximately 2400...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, 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 church stands in an isolated position adjacent to Capel Church Farm, to the north of the A20 road and 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of Folkestone
Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
.
History
The church dates from the 12th century. In the following century alterations were made and the tower was added. In the 14th century the chancelChancel
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...
screen and porch were built, and most of the windows were added during the 15th 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...
in 1890. It was declared redundant and 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...
in the Churches Conservation Trust in 1986.
Exterior
St Mary's 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...
with tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a 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...
, a chancel, a south porch, and a west tower. The tower is in two stages, with a west door, 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, two string courses, and a plain 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...
. In the north wall of the nave is a small 12th-century 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...
window and the head of a 14th-century window; otherwise all the windows date from the 15th century.
Interior
Inside the church, the nave is divided from the chancel by a 14th-century stone screen. In the lower part of the screen is a three-bayBay (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....
with pointed arches carried on octagonal 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...
. Between and to the sides of the arches are four 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...
s which formerly supported the rood
Rood
A rood is a cross or crucifix, especially a large one in a church; a large sculpture or sometimes painting of the crucifixion of Jesus.Rood is an archaic word for pole, from Old English rōd "pole", specifically "cross", from Proto-Germanic *rodo, cognate to Old Saxon rōda, Old High German ruoda...
screen. Above the arcade the screen is pierced by a large round-headed opening which silhouetted the rood cross. This feature is unique in England. On the east and north walls of the chancel are large moulded
Molding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
corbels. Also in the chancel are an 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,...
with a semicircular head, a simple sedilia
Sedilia
Sedilia , in ecclesiastical architecture, is the term used to describe stone seats, usually to be found on the south side of an altar, often in the chancel, for the use of the officiating priests...
, and a 13th-century trefoil
Trefoil
Trefoil is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism...
-headed 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...
. 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 an octagonal bowl carried on an octagonal stem. In the recess of the Norman north window is painted foliage. There are fragments of 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 in the east window. The memorials include a brass
Monumental brass
Monumental brass is a species of engraved sepulchral memorial which in the early part of the 13th century began to partially take the place of three-dimensional monuments and effigies carved in stone or wood...
dated 1526, and a white marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
wall plaque to General Sir Charles William Dunbar Staveley
Charles William Dunbar Staveley
General Sir Charles William Dunbar Staveley GCB was a British Army officer.-Early life:He was born at Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, the son of Lt-General William Staveley and Sarah Mather, and educated at the Scottish military and naval academy, Edinburgh.-Career:He was commissioned as second...
who died in 1896.
See also
- List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in South East England