St Mary the Virgin's Church, Fawley
Encyclopedia
St Mary the Virgin's Church, Fawley, is located in centre of the village of Fawley
, Buckinghamshire
, England. It is an active Anglican
parish church
on the deanery of Wycombe, the archdeaconry of Buckingham, and the diocese of Oxford
. Its benefice has been united with those of five other local churches to form the benefice of Hambleden Valley. The church has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building.
and chancel
. The tower was added during the following century, and raised to its present height in the 16th century. The chancel was rebuilt in 1748. In 1882–83 the church was restored
and extended by the Lancaster
architects Paley and Austin. This included the addition of transept
s and a north vestry
.
with stone dressings and tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a two-bay
nave, north and south transepts, a chancel with a north vestry
, and a west tower. The tower has angle buttress
es, and a west doorway over which is a two-light window. On the north and south sides are lancet window
s. Towards the top of the tower is a moulded
corbel
table. There are semicircular single-light windows above and below the corbel table. At the summit of the tower is a shallow gable
and a moulded parapet
. Along the sides of the nave are two-light windows. In the transepts are single-light windows on the east and west sides, and two-light windows on the north and south sides. The chancel has a south blocked doorway, and a large east window. Above the east window is a plaque inscribed with a date.
, and its east bay
is decorated with Ionic
pilaster
s. Also in the chancel is panelling that was made for Canons, the home of the Dukes of Chandos
. Also from Canons are the communion rails, the pulpit
and the reading desk. The marble
font
dates from 1884. Stained glass in the nave and transepts is by Clayton and Bell
, and by Heaton, Butler and Bayne
. In the vestry is a memorial window designed by John Piper
and Patrick Reyntiens
, dated 1976. Elsewhere is armorial
glass that was formerly in the earlier house on the site now occupied by Phyllis Court
in Henley-on-Thames
. In the south transept is a monument dating from the early 17th century, and in the nave is a cartouche
dating from about 1718. On the inside of the tower arch are two painted texts dating from 1637. The single-manual
organ was built in 1917 by the Positive Organ Company.
. The Freeman Mausoleum is dated 1750 and was designed by James Freeman of Fawley Court as a family tomb. It consists of an octagonal base on a plinth
, with a rusticated
drum surmounted by a dome. There is an inscription on the south face of the base, and an entrance with an iron gate on the north face. In the drum are two small oval windows. The design of the mausoleum is based on that of Cecilia Metella on the Appian Way
near Rome. It has been designated as a Grade II* listed building. The Mackenzie Mausoleum is dated 1862 and was built for the Mackenzie of Fawley Court. It is constructed in Aberdeen granite, is square in plan, and has a shallow stepped pyramidal roof. On the north side is the entrance with a frieze
bearing an inscription. Around the entrance are pilasters carrying a pediment
, with a carved hourglass in the tympanum
. The mausoleum is listed at Grade II.
Fawley, Buckinghamshire
Fawley is a village and civil parish in Wycombe district in the south-western corner of Buckinghamshire, England. It is on the boundary between Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, about seven miles west of Great Marlow and north of Henley-on-Thames....
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, England. It is an active 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...
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....
on the deanery of Wycombe, the archdeaconry of Buckingham, and the diocese of Oxford
Diocese of Oxford
-History:The Diocese of Oxford was created in 1541 out of part of the Diocese of Lincoln.In 1836 the Archdeaconry of Berkshire was transferred from the Diocese of Salisbury to Oxford...
. Its benefice has been united with those of five other local churches to form the benefice of Hambleden Valley. The church 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.
History
The church originated in the 12th century as a simple naveNave
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 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...
. The tower was added during the following century, and raised to its present height in the 16th century. The chancel was rebuilt in 1748. In 1882–83 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...
and extended by the Lancaster
Lancaster, Lancashire
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire, England. It is situated on the River Lune and has a population of 45,952. Lancaster is a constituent settlement of the wider City of Lancaster, local government district which has a population of 133,914 and encompasses several outlying towns, including...
architects Paley and Austin. This included the addition of 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 a north vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
.
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 stone dressings and tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a two-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, north and south transepts, a chancel with a north vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
, and a west tower. The tower has 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 a west doorway over which is a two-light window. On the north and south sides are lancet window
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
s. Towards the top of the tower is a 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...
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. There are semicircular single-light windows above and below the corbel table. At the summit of the tower is a shallow 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...
and a moulded 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...
. Along the sides of the nave are two-light windows. In the transepts are single-light windows on the east and west sides, and two-light windows on the north and south sides. The chancel has a south blocked doorway, and a large east window. Above the east window is a plaque inscribed with a date.
Interior
In the chancel is a moulded corniceCornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
, and its east 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:...
is decorated with Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s. Also in the chancel is panelling that was made for Canons, the home of the Dukes of Chandos
Duke of Chandos
The title Baron Chandos has been created twice in the Peerage of England. It was first created in 1337 when Roger de Chandos was summoned to parliament. It became extinct on his death....
. Also from Canons are the communion rails, the 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...
and the reading desk. The 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...
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:...
dates from 1884. Stained glass in the nave and transepts is by Clayton and Bell
Clayton and Bell
Clayton and Bell was one of the most prolific and proficient workshops of English stained glass during the latter half of the 19th century. The partners were John Richard Clayton and Alfred Bell . The company was founded in 1855 and continued until 1993...
, and by Heaton, Butler and Bayne
Heaton, Butler and Bayne
Heaton, Butler and Bayne is the name of an English firm who produced stained glass windows from 1855 onwards.-History:Clement Heaton originally founded his own stained glass firm in 1852, joined by James Butler in 1855. Between 1859-61 they worked alongside Clayton and Bell and were joined by...
. In the vestry is a memorial window designed by John Piper
John Piper (artist)
John Egerton Christmas Piper, CH was a 20th-century English painter and printmaker. For much of his life he lived at Fawley Bottom in Buckinghamshire, near Henley-on-Thames.-Life:...
and Patrick Reyntiens
Patrick Reyntiens
Patrick Reyntiens, OBE, is an English stained glass artist.He is notable for his work on Liverpool's Roman Catholic Cathedral and on the new Coventry Cathedral in collaboration with the artist John Piper...
, dated 1976. Elsewhere is armorial
Roll of arms
A roll of arms is a collection of coats of arms, usually consisting of rows of painted pictures of shields, each shield accompanied by the name of the person bearing the arms...
glass that was formerly in the earlier house on the site now occupied by Phyllis Court
Phyllis Court
Phyllis Court is a private members club in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England, situated by the River Thames.The Club was founded in 1906 and is located in a Georgian-style building set within its own elegant grounds, close to the town centre...
in Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about 10 miles downstream and north-east from Reading, 10 miles upstream and west from Maidenhead...
. In the south transept is a monument dating from the early 17th century, and in the nave is a cartouche
Cartouche (design)
A cartouche is an oval or oblong design with a slightly convex surface, typically edged with ornamental scrollwork. It is used to hold a painted or low relief design....
dating from about 1718. On the inside of the tower arch are two painted texts dating from 1637. The single-manual
Manual (music)
A manual is a keyboard designed to be played with the hands on a pipe organ, harpsichord, clavichord, electronic organ, or synthesizer. The term "manual" is used with regard to any hand keyboard on these instruments to distinguish it from the pedalboard, which is a keyboard that the organist plays...
organ was built in 1917 by the Positive Organ Company.
External features
Associated with the church and close to it are two mausoleaMausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
. The Freeman Mausoleum is dated 1750 and was designed by James Freeman of Fawley Court as a family tomb. It consists of an octagonal base 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 a rusticated
Rustication (architecture)
thumb|upright|Two different styles of rustication in the [[Palazzo Medici-Riccardi]] in [[Florence]].In classical architecture rustication is an architectural feature that contrasts in texture with the smoothly finished, squared block masonry surfaces called ashlar...
drum surmounted by a dome. There is an inscription on the south face of the base, and an entrance with an iron gate on the north face. In the drum are two small oval windows. The design of the mausoleum is based on that of Cecilia Metella on the Appian Way
Appian Way
The Appian Way was one of the earliest and strategically most important Roman roads of the ancient republic. It connected Rome to Brindisi, Apulia, in southeast Italy...
near Rome. It has been designated as a Grade II* listed building. The Mackenzie Mausoleum is dated 1862 and was built for the Mackenzie of Fawley Court. It is constructed in Aberdeen granite, is square in plan, and has a shallow stepped pyramidal roof. On the north side is the entrance with a frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
bearing an inscription. Around the entrance are pilasters carrying a pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
, with a carved hourglass in the tympanum
Tympanum (architecture)
In architecture, a tympanum is the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, bounded by a lintel and arch. It often contains sculpture or other imagery or ornaments. Most architectural styles include this element....
. The mausoleum is listed at Grade II.