St Mary de Haura Church, Shoreham-by-Sea
Encyclopedia
St Mary de Haura Church is an Anglican church in the ancient "New Shoreham" area of Shoreham-by-Sea
in the district of Adur, one of seven local government districts in the English
county of West Sussex
. It was founded at the end of the 11th century as a large cruciform church which, due to its original scale, has been described as a collegiate church
—a reflection of the port of Shoreham's importance at the time. The former east end of that building survives to form the present church, and much 12th-century work remains. It functions as Shoreham-by-Sea's "town church" for major religious and social events, as well as serving its small town-centre parish. English Heritage
has listed it at Grade I for its architectural and historical importance.
. Claims that it was founded near the place (Cymenshore
) where Ælle of Sussex—the first King of the South Saxons
—came ashore in 477 have been disproved, but it had become a successful village by the time of the Domesday survey
in 1086, supporting a population of 76. In the decade after this, William de Braose, 1st Lord of Bramber
or his son Philip
founded a new settlement to the south, on the estuary
where the Adur flowed into the English Channel
. This may have been a result of William de Braose's failure to gain control of the harbour upstream at Steyning
.
The settlement, named New Shoreham, was planned on a grid pattern of streets based around the High Street. Its harbour quickly became prosperous and successful: it overcame the competition from contemporary inland Sussex ports such as Arundel
and Steyning, and gained royal patronage when King John's
fleet was stationed there in the early 13th century. Its importance was further enhanced by its position as the closest English Channel port to London
.
William the Conqueror
had granted the Rape of Bramber
, one of the six Rapes (subdivisions) of Sussex, to the de Braose family in the 11th century. Shortly afterwards, they founded a new church to serve the new settlement. William de Braose died no later than 1096, which has been suggested as the date of founding, but the first documentary evidence was a deed
dated 1103, referring to Philip de Braose's return from the First Crusade
. At this time, he granted the advowson
of the church to an abbey
in the French town of Saumur
, which held it until about 1250. This abbey had an associated priory at Sele (present-day Upper Beeding
), further up the river Adur, which became the church's patron in 1250. The patronage later transferred to Magdalen College, Oxford
, and in 1948 to the Bishop of Chichester
. Locally, the church had originally been administered from St Nicolas' Church
in Old Shoreham, but it was given its own parish in the late 12th century. The two churches have been part of a united benefice
, served by the same vicar, since 1897, however.
The present building—a large edifice itself, dominating the small-scale buildings of the town— is merely the surviving east section of a much more substantial church, which would have been cruciform
when built by the de Braoses. Although it was never more than a parish church
, it may have been planned as a priory
or collegiate church
, or would have become one if the Port of Shoreham and the de Braose family had retained the power and influence they had in the 12th and 13th centuries. By 1500, however, no male heirs were left and the de Braoses' estates and holdings were broken up; and erosion and changing tidal activity made the port dangerous to sail into and had washed away parts of the grid-pattern town. New Shoreham was therefore left with a church of a much larger scale than it could support—it was described by Edward Augustus Freeman
as "a parish church absolutely without a fellow in England".
As originally built, the church had a tower and a nave
, beyond which was a chancel
with an apse
and east-facing rounded chapels at the east end; the outline of these can still be discerned. Later in the 12th century (probably from the 1170s onwards) everything beyond the nave was replaced with a tall, expansive quire with five bays
, a quadripartite (four-celled) rib vault
, aisles with their own vaulting, a triforium
and a clerestory
. This work took several decades and was undertaken for William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber
, Philip de Braose's son. Flying buttress
es were added to the exterior to support the vaulted aisles soon after they were built—an early usage of this structural technique.
The church had reached its greatest physical extent by about 1225, when this work was completed. Its influence was also at its highest, as it had gained administrative independence from St Nicolas' Church, the de Braoses still wielded considerable power and the Port of Shoreham was thriving: King John
stationed ships there and established a prison
in 1221. New Shoreham even challenged Chichester
's long-established position as the county town
. A vicarage was founded in 1261; it was disestablished in 1897 when the vicarages of Old and New Shoreham were combined in a united benefice.
Over the following centuries, Shoreham's influence declined as its old trade routes (especially to France) were lost and the port was affected by erosion. Minor structural alterations took place, such as the construction of a porch, a rood screen
and an accompanying altar
, but the fabric of the church gradually disintegrated. It worsened during the 17th century, and the original (1130s) nave collapsed in storms in about 1700, reducing the length of the church by about half. The rubble was cleared in the early 18th century, although part of one of the bays survived and has been incorporated into a porch. The quire was altered to form a new nave and chancel.
During the 19th century, some work was undertaken in the interior, including Arthur Loader's replacement of some original Perpendicular Gothic-style aisle windows with Norman-style
equivalents in 1876. The north transept was converted into a memorial for the war dead after the Second World War.
structure with some ashlar
work. Tiles manufactured in Horsham
of local stone cover the roof. A less durable stone was used for interior structures; some of these (for example a door at the west end) were exposed by the collapse of the original nave, and have experienced severe weathering
.
The earliest surviving parts of St Mary de Haura Church are the transept
s and their associated chapels, part of the tower and some of the tower arches with their large scalloped and leaved capitals
; these are believed to date from 1130 at the latest, and possibly from much earlier in the 12th century. Part of one of the six bays of the original nave also remains, although it was restored in the 18th century.
The tower, flanked by transepts, perches on top of the roof at the west end and was built in two stages, both in the 12th century. The lower stage, dating from about 1130, has paired two-light openings in rounded arches on each side; the upper stage has larger three-light openings in pointed arches, and was built in the 1170s. There is also a clock on each side, at the top of the upper stage. Nikolaus Pevsner
called it a "noble composite" and drew comparisons with church towers in northern France
. Inside, the east, north and south tower arches date from about 1130 and have scalloped capitals; the west arch may be later and is taller, and has roll-moulding
and other intricate decoration.
The former quire, with its five bays and low-vaulted aisles, has become the nave and chancel. The tall, four-celled vaulting extends across this space and gives the church a spacious feel. The architectural details of this area are varied, incorporating elements of late Norman and early Gothic
design. For example, the alternating octagonal and round columns in the north aisle are a typical Norman feature, whereas those in the south aisle are more in the early Gothic style. The north aisle's columns have been compared to those of the contemporary Canterbury Cathedral
, although their capitals
are different; and it has been described as "[along] with Canterbury, the most continental of English churches".
on 8 May 1950. Such buildings are defined as being of "exceptional interest" and greater than national importance. As of February 2001, it was one of seven Grade I listed buildings, and 119 listed buildings of all grades, in Adur district.
The parish, which was established in the late 12th century when the church became independent from St Nicolas' Church, is small—the extent of its land area is 116 acres (46.9 ha). It covers the ancient grid-pattern town centre and High Street area, as well as a small section of land on the west side of the River Adur
.
The main service of the week is the Sunday morning Eucharistic service at 11.00am. A Sunday evening service is also held every week; these include traditional Evensong
and ecumenical
services with Shoreham-by-Sea's other churches. Although St Nicolas' Church, inland at Old Shoreham, is older, St Mary de Haura's size and central location makes it the de facto "town church" of Shoreham-by-Sea, and it is the venue for regular events such as Remembrance Sunday
and the services of Holy Week
.
Shoreham-by-Sea
Shoreham-by-Sea is a small town, port and seaside resort in West Sussex, England. Shoreham-by-Sea railway station is located less than a mile from the town centre and London Gatwick Airport is away...
in the district of Adur, one of seven local government districts in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
. It was founded at the end of the 11th century as a large cruciform church which, due to its original scale, has been described as a collegiate church
Collegiate church
In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons; a non-monastic, or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a dean or provost...
—a reflection of the port of Shoreham's importance at the time. The former east end of that building survives to form the present church, and much 12th-century work remains. It functions as Shoreham-by-Sea's "town church" for major religious and social events, as well as serving its small town-centre parish. 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...
has listed it at Grade I for its architectural and historical importance.
History
Old Shoreham was a mostly agricultural village on the east bank of the River AdurRiver Adur
The Adur is a river in Sussex, England; it gives its name to the Adur district of West Sussex. The river was formerly navigable for large vessels up as far as Steyning, where there was a large port, but over time the river valley became silted up and the port moved down to the deeper waters nearer...
. Claims that it was founded near the place (Cymenshore
Cymenshore
Cymenshore is the place in Southern England where according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Ælle of Sussex landed in 477 AD and battled the Welsh with his three sons Cymen, Wlencing and Cissa.-Historical context:The account of Ælle and his three sons landing at Cymenshore, in the Anglo Saxon...
) where Ælle of Sussex—the first King of the South Saxons
Kingdom of Sussex
The Kingdom of Sussex or Kingdom of the South Saxons was a Saxon colony and later independent kingdom of the Saxons, on the south coast of England. Its boundaries coincided in general with those of the earlier kingdom of the Regnenses and the later county of Sussex. A large part of its territory...
—came ashore in 477 have been disproved, but it had become a successful village by the time of the Domesday survey
Domesday 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...
in 1086, supporting a population of 76. In the decade after this, William de Braose, 1st Lord of Bramber
William de Braose, 1st Lord of Bramber
William de Braose , First Lord of Bramber was previously lord of Briouze, Normandy. He was granted lands in England by William the Conqueror soon after he and his followers had invaded and controlled Saxon England.- Norman victor :De Braose was given extensive lands in Sussex by 1073...
or his son Philip
Philip de Braose
Philip de Braose, 2nd Lord of Bramber was an Anglo-Norman nobleman and Marcher Lord.-Early career:His father, William de Braose had participated in the victory at the Battle of Hastings in support of William the Conqueror. He had been rewarded with a barony and lands in Sussex and the Welsh Marches...
founded a new settlement to the south, on the estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
where the Adur flowed into the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. This may have been a result of William de Braose's failure to gain control of the harbour upstream at Steyning
Steyning
Steyning is a small town and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It is located at the north end of the River Adur gap in the South Downs, four miles north of Shoreham-by-Sea...
.
The settlement, named New Shoreham, was planned on a grid pattern of streets based around the High Street. Its harbour quickly became prosperous and successful: it overcame the competition from contemporary inland Sussex ports such as Arundel
Arundel
Arundel is a market town and civil parish in the South Downs of West Sussex in the south of England. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester. Other nearby towns include Worthing east southeast, Littlehampton to the south and Bognor Regis to...
and Steyning, and gained royal patronage when King John's
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
fleet was stationed there in the early 13th century. Its importance was further enhanced by its position as the closest English Channel port to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
William the Conqueror
William I of England
William I , also known as William the Conqueror , was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II...
had granted the Rape of Bramber
Rape of Bramber
The Rape of Bramber is one of the rapes, the traditional sub-divisions unique to the historic county of Sussex in England. Bramber is a former barony, originally based around the castle of Bramber and its village, overlooking the river Adur.-History:...
, one of the six Rapes (subdivisions) of Sussex, to the de Braose family in the 11th century. Shortly afterwards, they founded a new church to serve the new settlement. William de Braose died no later than 1096, which has been suggested as the date of founding, but the first documentary evidence was a deed
Deed
A deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, or affirms or confirms something which passes, an interest, right, or property and that is signed, attested, delivered, and in some jurisdictions sealed...
dated 1103, referring to Philip de Braose's return from the First Crusade
First Crusade
The First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...
. At this time, he granted the advowson
Advowson
Advowson is the right in English law of a patron to present or appoint a nominee to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a process known as presentation. In effect this means the right to nominate a person to hold a church office in a parish...
of the church to an abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
in the French town of Saumur
Saumur
Saumur is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France.The historic town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgueil, Coteaux du Layon, etc...
, which held it until about 1250. This abbey had an associated priory at Sele (present-day Upper Beeding
Upper Beeding
Upper Beeding is a village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It is located at the northern end of the River Adur gap in the South Downs four miles north of Shoreham-by-Sea and has a land area of 1877 hectares...
), further up the river Adur, which became the church's patron in 1250. The patronage later transferred to Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
, and in 1948 to the Bishop of Chichester
Bishop of Chichester
The Bishop of Chichester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chichester in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the Counties of East and West Sussex. The see is in the City of Chichester where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity...
. Locally, the church had originally been administered from St Nicolas' Church
St Nicolas' Church, Shoreham-by-Sea
St Nicolas' Church is an Anglican church in Old Shoreham, an ancient inland settlement that is now part of the town of Shoreham-by-Sea in the district of Adur, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. It was founded on a riverside site by Anglo-Saxons at the...
in Old Shoreham, but it was given its own parish in the late 12th century. The two churches have been part of a united benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...
, served by the same vicar, since 1897, however.
The present building—a large edifice itself, dominating the small-scale buildings of the town— is merely the surviving east section of a much more substantial church, which would have been cruciform
Cruciform
Cruciform means having the shape of a cross or Christian cross.- Cruciform architectural plan :This is a common description of Christian churches. In Early Christian, Byzantine and other Eastern Orthodox forms of church architecture this is more likely to mean a tetraconch plan, a Greek cross,...
when built by the de Braoses. Although it was never more than a parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
, it may have been planned as a priory
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
or collegiate church
Collegiate church
In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons; a non-monastic, or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a dean or provost...
, or would have become one if the Port of Shoreham and the de Braose family had retained the power and influence they had in the 12th and 13th centuries. By 1500, however, no male heirs were left and the de Braoses' estates and holdings were broken up; and erosion and changing tidal activity made the port dangerous to sail into and had washed away parts of the grid-pattern town. New Shoreham was therefore left with a church of a much larger scale than it could support—it was described by Edward Augustus Freeman
Edward Augustus Freeman
Edward Augustus Freeman was an English historian. His reputation as a historian rests largely on his History of the Norman Conquest , his longest completed book...
as "a parish church absolutely without a fellow in England".
As originally built, the church had a tower and 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...
, beyond which was a 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...
with an apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
and east-facing rounded chapels at the east end; the outline of these can still be discerned. Later in the 12th century (probably from the 1170s onwards) everything beyond the nave was replaced with a tall, expansive quire with five bays
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:...
, a quadripartite (four-celled) rib vault
Rib vault
The intersection of two or three barrel vaults produces a rib vault or ribbed vault when they are edged with an armature of piped masonry often carved in decorative patterns; compare groin vault, an older form of vault construction...
, aisles with their own vaulting, a triforium
Triforium
A triforium is a shallow arched gallery within the thickness of inner wall, which stands above the nave of a church or cathedral. It may occur at the level of the clerestory windows, or it may be located as a separate level below the clerestory. It may itself have an outer wall of glass rather than...
and a clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
. This work took several decades and was undertaken for William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber
William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber
William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber was a 12th-century Marcher lord who secured a foundation for the dominant position later held by the Braose family in the Welsh Marches. In addition to the family's English holdings in Sussex and Devon, William had inherited Radnor and Builth, in Wales, from...
, Philip de Braose's son. Flying buttress
Flying buttress
A flying buttress is a specific form of buttressing most strongly associated with Gothic church architecture. The purpose of any buttress is to resist the lateral forces pushing a wall outwards by redirecting them to the ground...
es were added to the exterior to support the vaulted aisles soon after they were built—an early usage of this structural technique.
The church had reached its greatest physical extent by about 1225, when this work was completed. Its influence was also at its highest, as it had gained administrative independence from St Nicolas' Church, the de Braoses still wielded considerable power and the Port of Shoreham was thriving: King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
stationed ships there and established a prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
in 1221. New Shoreham even challenged Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
's long-established position as the county town
County town
A county town is a county's administrative centre in the United Kingdom or Ireland. County towns are usually the location of administrative or judicial functions, or established over time as the de facto main town of a county. The concept of a county town eventually became detached from its...
. A vicarage was founded in 1261; it was disestablished in 1897 when the vicarages of Old and New Shoreham were combined in a united benefice.
Over the following centuries, Shoreham's influence declined as its old trade routes (especially to France) were lost and the port was affected by erosion. Minor structural alterations took place, such as the construction of a porch, a rood screen
Rood screen
The rood screen is a common feature in late medieval church architecture. It is typically an ornate partition between the chancel and nave, of more or less open tracery constructed of wood, stone, or wrought iron...
and an accompanying altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
, but the fabric of the church gradually disintegrated. It worsened during the 17th century, and the original (1130s) nave collapsed in storms in about 1700, reducing the length of the church by about half. The rubble was cleared in the early 18th century, although part of one of the bays survived and has been incorporated into a porch. The quire was altered to form a new nave and chancel.
During the 19th century, some work was undertaken in the interior, including Arthur Loader's replacement of some original Perpendicular Gothic-style aisle windows with Norman-style
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...
equivalents in 1876. The north transept was converted into a memorial for the war dead after the Second World War.
Architecture
The church is a pale stone and cobbled 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...
structure with some ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
work. Tiles manufactured in Horsham
Horsham
Horsham is a market town with a population of 55,657 on the upper reaches of the River Arun in the centre of the Weald, West Sussex, in the historic County of Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester...
of local stone cover the roof. A less durable stone was used for interior structures; some of these (for example a door at the west end) were exposed by the collapse of the original nave, and have experienced severe weathering
Weathering
Weathering is the breaking down of rocks, soils and minerals as well as artificial materials through contact with the Earth's atmosphere, biota and waters...
.
The earliest surviving parts of St Mary de Haura Church are the transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
s and their associated chapels, part of the tower and some of the tower arches with their large scalloped and leaved capitals
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...
; these are believed to date from 1130 at the latest, and possibly from much earlier in the 12th century. Part of one of the six bays of the original nave also remains, although it was restored in the 18th century.
The tower, flanked by transepts, perches on top of the roof at the west end and was built in two stages, both in the 12th century. The lower stage, dating from about 1130, has paired two-light openings in rounded arches on each side; the upper stage has larger three-light openings in pointed arches, and was built in the 1170s. There is also a clock on each side, at the top of the upper stage. 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...
called it a "noble composite" and drew comparisons with church towers in northern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Inside, the east, north and south tower arches date from about 1130 and have scalloped capitals; the west arch may be later and is taller, and has roll-moulding
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...
and other intricate decoration.
The former quire, with its five bays and low-vaulted aisles, has become the nave and chancel. The tall, four-celled vaulting extends across this space and gives the church a spacious feel. The architectural details of this area are varied, incorporating elements of late Norman and early Gothic
English Gothic architecture
English Gothic is the name of the architectural style that flourished in England from about 1180 until about 1520.-Introduction:As with the Gothic architecture of other parts of Europe, English Gothic is defined by its pointed arches, vaulted roofs, buttresses, large windows, and spires...
design. For example, the alternating octagonal and round columns in the north aisle are a typical Norman feature, whereas those in the south aisle are more in the early Gothic style. The north aisle's columns have been compared to those of the contemporary Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
, although their capitals
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...
are different; and it has been described as "[along] with Canterbury, the most continental of English churches".
The church today
St Mary de Haura Church was listed at Grade I by English HeritageEnglish Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
on 8 May 1950. Such buildings are defined as being of "exceptional interest" and greater than national importance. As of February 2001, it was one of seven Grade I listed buildings, and 119 listed buildings of all grades, in Adur district.
The parish, which was established in the late 12th century when the church became independent from St Nicolas' Church, is small—the extent of its land area is 116 acres (46.9 ha). It covers the ancient grid-pattern town centre and High Street area, as well as a small section of land on the west side of the River Adur
River Adur
The Adur is a river in Sussex, England; it gives its name to the Adur district of West Sussex. The river was formerly navigable for large vessels up as far as Steyning, where there was a large port, but over time the river valley became silted up and the port moved down to the deeper waters nearer...
.
The main service of the week is the Sunday morning Eucharistic service at 11.00am. A Sunday evening service is also held every week; these include traditional Evensong
Evening Prayer (Anglican)
Evening Prayer is a liturgy in use in the Anglican Communion and celebrated in the late afternoon or evening...
and ecumenical
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
services with Shoreham-by-Sea's other churches. Although St Nicolas' Church, inland at Old Shoreham, is older, St Mary de Haura's size and central location makes it the de facto "town church" of Shoreham-by-Sea, and it is the venue for regular events such as Remembrance Sunday
Remembrance Sunday
In the United Kingdom, 'Remembrance Sunday' is held on the second Sunday in November, which is the Sunday nearest to 11 November Armistice Day. It is the anniversary of the end of hostilities in the First World War at 11 a.m...
and the services of Holy Week
Holy Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
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