HETHE : CHURCH OF ST EDMUND & ST GEORGE
Church Post Code OX27 8EX
Open to visitors
Visited March 2020
Last trip out before 1st covid lockdown
We continued or March 2020 Oxfordshire churchcrawl with next church photographed was at Hethe, and the church of St Edmund and St George. This is a small village which can be found four and a half miles north of Bicester. This may be a small village but at one point during the mid 19th century, there were three churches here.
As well as the Anglican church, a Roman Catholic church was built here in 1832 to cater to the Roman Catholic population of Hethe and the surrounding villages. As well as this, a small Methodist chapel was built in 1854. This was in use as a chapel until 1955, and is now a private house.
It had been a strange day’s weather; a typical March day in England. We started the day travelling through torrential rain which turned in to snow for a brief time. This emptied the streets, as did the first lockdown which was implemented a few days later! We then alternated between beautiful sunshine, wind and light rain.
The weather when we arrived at Hethe was glorious. The sun was shining down, the shadows were starting to lengthen and we were approaching that wonderful time when the sun reaches that certain spot and all turns golden for a brief time
The church consists of nave with north and south aisles and clerestories, south porch and chancel. There is no west tower here; just a very small west bell turret.
The church here dates back to the 12th century, with a restored door to the south dating from that time. There was much Victorian restoration here in 1859, with the small west bell turret dating from that time.
The church was open. Victorian pews lead down to the large chancel arch, ‘Ye shall reverence my sanctuary’ reads a banner across the top, this being a quote from Leviticus Chapter 26 verse 2. The chancel itself is long and quite plain; and I don’t mean that in a bad way at all. Uncluttered!
A couple of home made banners stand at north and south sides of the chancel. The alter has a cross and candlesticks. There is no reredos. Another peaceful place to spend time in when things are challenging outside!
The east window depicts the crucifixion, with Mary the Mother of Jesus and John occupying their traditional places alongside the cross. Jesus has a blood red nimbus and a small panel below his image bears the monogram IHS, which is the first three letters of Jesus' name in Greek. Mary the Mother of Jesus has Lilies below, which was an often used symbol for purity (there are also some to either side of Jesus' cross) and John is depicted with his traditional symbol, an eagle. Both Mary and John reach out their hands towards Jesus. SALVATOR MUNDI it reads at Jesus’ feet, ‘Saviour of the world’
One other stained glass panel shows Jesus as the Good Shepherd, with a golden haired angel below holding a banner which reads 'To the Glory of God'. There is an altar set up at the east end of tiny, intimate south aisle; a piscina set against the south wall indicates that Mass was celebrated from this alter in pre reformation days.
A ladder with enclosed support goes up to the belfry. It looked a little tight to be honest! I wasn’t tempted to climb it but if I had I would probably have been wedged in there quite badly and would doubtless have to be cut out.
A lot of work was completed here during the Victorian restoration but the tub font is very ancient and could well date back to the founding of the church here. There were books for sale so I texted Gary and he came in to see if there was anything interesting. I always like it when we see the interior of a church together. It is interesting to see his eyes start to glaze over when I start to talk on literally any aspect of church architecture! What a glorious little church! I enjoyed this one very much.
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MIXBURY : CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS
Church Post Code NN13 5RP
Open to visitors
We made our way to Mixbury, a village two and a half miles south east of Brackley. The old English name for this village was mixen burgh, which in modern language amusingly translated as the fortification by the dung heap! The fortification in question was Beaumont castle, which was built in 1100; earthworks to the north of the village being all that now remains.
The sun was starting to set and the shadows were lengthening as we arrived here. This is a lovely church in a delightfully rural setting. The church consists of west tower, nave with north aisle but clerestories to both north and south; south porch, vestry and chancel.
The church here dates back to the 12th century, with the nave and chancel dating back to that time. The north aisle and tower date from the 13th century. There was much rebuilding work here during the 1840’s, including the rebuilding of the chancel arch.
I made my way up to the church by way of a path from the west. The square, perpendicular west tower greets the visitor, battlemented and buttressed; church clock facing out in the traditional blue and gold, with a perplexed looking grotesque human face high up on the tower
The church grounds are tree lined on three sides and a row of 18th century gravestones have been re-set in to a straight line running from north to south. The light quality was really good still but was due to fade pretty quickly. This was a beautiful sight! A glorious English village church!
The church was open to visitors, with entry through the south door, which dates from the 12th century, and which has two orders of zig zag design on scalloped capitals.
The east window, which I think was created by Michael O Connor in 1850, is a delight! My favourite window seen during my travels during 2020! I always enjoy wandering around a church, looking at the stained glass; doing a little private Bible study as I go. It is always good to do this when there is a series of panels, telling a story.
This is certainly the case here, where we have a series of nine panels telling the Easter story, from the triumphal entry to Jesus rising from the tomb (with the ascension thrown in for good measure in the tracery!)
The individual panels are as follows. (1) The triumphal entry. Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey, followed by His disciples. Palm leaves cover the floor, and a figure in a tree reaches down towards Jesus. (2) The Last Supper. A standing Jesus offers the communion chalice to John. Judas is missing in this representation. (3) Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus is at prayer, eyes raised upwards towards Heaven. An angel reaches out to Jesus while the disciples are asleep at His feet. A single figure appears through a gateway; the arresting party are imminent!
(4) Jesus’ arrest. This is my favourite panel in this window. Judas, depicted without nimbus, kisses Jesus. Roman soldiers are at hand to arrest Jesus. Peter is depicted grappling on the ground, sword in hand; about to cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant Malchus. (5) Jesus’ trial. Jesus is blindfolded, with hand tied and wearing the crown of thorns. One figure bows down to Him mockingly, while another looks at Him with curiosity. (6) The Crucifixion. Jesus is crucified with Mary and John close by. The background around the cross is blood red. Powerful!
(7) Christ’s body has been taken from the cross and Mary and John are still both present. My gut reaction was ‘Pieta’. According to Wikipedia though, which is never wrong I am sure, it is classed as a pieta when Jesus body is cradled by Mary alone. When other character(s) are included in the scene, it is classed as a Lamentation!
(8) Easter morning and Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome go to the tomb, finding it empty. An angel appears, informing them that He has risen. This is an interesting depiction as the angel is not included. Normally the female figures would be included, along with the angel who would be pointing upwards. Not here though; just the women are included. Why?
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My own thought on this is that in Jesus’ time women were seen as second class and subservient. In the feeding of the 3,000 and 5,000 the women present were not even included in the head count. Jesus was there for the marginalised; from the time of His birth when the first to see Him were the Shepherds, who were just about the lowest in that society of the time. It was women, with the exception of John, who were present at the cross and it was the three women who were the first to be present at the tomb that morning. I feel that the person who decided to just include the women here and leaving out the angel are just emphasising the point that the women on their own were sufficient! They were and are important!
(9).Jesus rises from the dead and kneels on top of the tomb, arms outstretched and wounds visible. He has risen!
High up in the tracery of this window there is also a depiction of the ascension. Christ is central and at the top, eyes closed and arms outstretched; angels on either side. Below are two clusters of people who watch Him ascend. There are five people in a group to the left as we look at it, including Peter, with the customary key to the kingdom of Heaven. There are seven people in a group to the right; this includes on figure that is on his knees in prayer and another who has his head in his hand in disbelief!
Other stained glass here includes a two light window which features the nativity and Jesus' baptism. We have the four Gospel writers depicted, along with St Peter and St Paul. St Peter carries the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven whilst St Paul deviates from the norm a little. He is normally shows holding a sword point downwards, here he holds the sword point upwards. We also have St James the Great and St Jude. St James the Great, called Jacobus here, was the first of the disciples to be martyred, being beheaded. St Jude is also known as Thaddeus and Judas Thaddeus and it is thought that his name was shortened to Jude to avoid confusion with Judas Iscariot who was to betray Jesus. The finely decorated font dates from the 19th century.
Well, that was it for the next three months, with the first national covid lockdown being implemented three days later. This trip was on the Friday with Boris locking us down on the following Monday. Freedoms that we had experienced without question were taken away for a while. The camera was retired as we quite rightly hunkered down and waited for the worst to pass.
WOODSTOCK : CHURCH OF ST MARY MAGDALENE
Church Post Code OX20 1SJ
Open to visitors
We approached Woodstock, no, not the iconic 1960’s music festival, but the Oxfordshire town! It was mid March 2020, and what was to be our last churchcrawl before covid really hit; the UK being locked down for the first time a few days later.
The day had started with a visit to Burford; we then worked through the rest of the churches in the Burford Benefice before aiming towards Woodstock, a town of 3,100 at the last census, which can be found eight miles north west of Oxford.
In Anglo Saxon, Woodstock means ‘clearing in the woods’. There is a great deal of history here with Woodstock mentioned at the time of the Domesday Survey in 1086. This area was popular with royalty during medieval times, with Woodstock Palace being used by several medieval kings. This was destroyed during the English Civil War, with the remains being cleared and Blenheim Palace being built on the site. Winston Churchill was born there in 1874 and is buried at nearby Bladon, which we had visited immediately prior to this.
A measure of the historic interest at Woodstock can be seen by the fact that there are no fewer than 166 Grade I and II listed structures in the town!
A friend who has family in the area suggested that Woodstock would be a good place to visit, as the church was very beautiful and was liable to be open. So it proved to be on both counts!
The church of St Mary Magdalene dates back to the reign of Henry I, who was monarch from 1100 until 1135. It was built for the convenience of the court during royal visits to the royal hunting lodge close by, this new church being closer than neighbouring Bladon. The church is in the centre of the bustling town, a public footpath leading immediately past the west of the tower.
The best views of the exterior is to be had from the south, an immediate gut reaction on looking at the west tower was that it looked Georgian, which proved to be the case. Evidence of the age of the structure itself though can be seen by a fine Norman doorway to the south, with two orders of zig zag decoration, which dates back to the 12th century. This would probably date to the formation of the church here; what medieval royals would have entered through this door? Such history!
The church consists of west tower, nave with north and south aisles and clerestories and chancel. The west tower dates from 1785, and is pinnacled with a single lancet window at the belfry stage. A church clock in the traditional blue and gold is set on to all four sides of the tower.
Standing in the grounds, looking at the church from the south, the onlooker can see some very lovely buildings, to the north of the church, which I suspect are 18th century. One of these has two very large and ornate chimneys. Fond memories of a bus journey in Norfolk once; going through Walsingham from memory, where I overheard a conversation about someone who travelled the country photographing ancient chimneys. At the risk of sounding even more boring that you already think I am, what a lovely thing to do!
The church was open to visitors, with entry being through a door on the west face of the tower. A small image niche over this door has a statue of St Mary Magdalene, after who this church is dedicated. She is depicted carrying a jar of pure nard, an expensive perfume which she used to anoint Jesus’ feet shortly before His crucifixion.
It was bright and welcoming inside. There are no pews here, with modern wooden stacking chairs leading to the chancel arch. There was a very pleasing light quality here. This was a church interior that I immediately liked very much! The nave walls are ‘busy’ with several wall tablets
There are a large number of carved human heads to be seen on the capitals in the south aisle. These are both male and female, with most being of well to do folks. One male figure wears a crown; a female figure looks regal with a headdress which I am sure that someone who knows that kind of thing could date accurately. Towards the east though there are carvings of the less well to do. One figure has a large forehead with worry lines; another laughing figure has his face screwed up. Several of these figures have damaged noses, possible signs of the reformers at work! One figure with tongue stuck out appears to have had the tongue removed!
I wonder if this was a snapshot of those people who were around here at the time that the south aisle was erected back in the 13th century.
The chancel was heavily restored in the late 1870’s. The alter is plain and simple, with just two candles on it; the reredos has Christ in majesty as the focal point, Jesus depicted with red nimbus with burst of fire radiating outwards from Him. Angels bow down in worship at each side.
The east window depicts five scenes from the Easter story, with the crucifixion centre. The panel far left sees Jesus at prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, an angel reaching out towards Him; disciples asleep at His feet. To the right of this, Jesus is tied up and brought before Herod prior to His trial.
The panel second from the right depicts the scene after Jesus’ body has been taken from the cross. Joseph of Arimathea helps to prepare Jesus for burial, the crown of thorns lies at the side of Jesus’ body. The panel far right is set on Easter morning. Jesus has risen and appears to Mary Magdalene.
The glass here is of very good quality, though there is nothing of any great age! One two light window shows two scenes from the life of Jesus; both of which were concerned with water. In one, Jesus reaches out to Peter, who has started to sink after his failed attempt at walking on water. In the other, Jesus is asleep on board ship during a storm. The frightened disciples wake Jesus up to quell the storm.
The church grounds are interesting, but didn’t throw out anything of great interest. Several chest tombs here, dating back to the early to mid 18th century.
KIRTLINGTON : CHURCH OF ST MARY
Church Post Code OX5 3HA
Open to visitors
We moved onwards, to Kirtlington, a village six and a half miles west of Bicester. This was fast turning in to one of the most enjoyable churchcrawl for some time. The church of St Mary The Virgin was the 12th church visited and the 11th to be open.
This was another village of great historic importance; the Portway, a possibly pre Roman road which ran from London to Exeter ran through the village. There was an important royal manor here during the time of Edward The Confessor, whose death in 1066 instigated a three way fight for the English crown. There was a church here at the time of the Domesday Survey in 1086, but by that time, things were in Norman Hands.
The church of St Mary consists of central tower, nave with north and south aisles and clerestories, chancel and south porch. The tower looks to be Norman but is from the 19th century but built in the Norman style. The present church dates from the early 12th century, with the church extended during the 13th and 14th centuries. The tower was rebuilt in 1853. As you will read, I was particularly fond of the chancel here, and it was no surprise to find out that it was rebuilt by George Gilbert Scott in 1877, the year before his death.
Moving inside; and what a pleasing sight. The sun was streaming in through the windows in the south aisle, multi coloured reflections through the stained glass window at the east end were being cast on to the church organ at the east end of that aisle.
Taking an initial look around the interior, I was interested to see a re-set tympanum arch set above the vestry door. This dates from the 11th or 12th century and features a tree with foliage. A wall painting of St George slaying the dragon looks to have been over painted at some point in time but is still easily identifiable. The dragon is definitely slayed; lying on its back with its legs in the air!
There is some fine stained glass here, although again nothing of any great age. The five light east window has Christ crucified at the centre, with the four Gospel writers at either side. Below this are five further panels with the nativity, the flight from Egypt, Jesus as the Good Shepherd, Jesus’ baptism and Jesus comforting a small child. Angels are at prayer high up in the tracery.
The alter is plain and simple; just a cross on the alter. The chancel was spot lit and the light quality was exceptional. This is a place to sit and think. No worship bands here, no stage, no theatrics; no need! We went in to a three month lockdown soon after my visit here. When the go ahead was given for them to reopen for private prayer, I hope that this church was able to open, and I hope that it was used for this purpose. Time spent in peace and calm whilst things were challenging outside!
Another three light window shows Christ in majesty at the centre. This is on two levels with the risen Christ, robed and with wounds visible, surrounded by blue sky, Roman soldiers asleep below. To the left as we look at it is John the Baptist, who holds a globe which contains the Agnus Dei, the Lamb of God. To the right is St Luke.
A depiction of the annunciation is of interest. The angel Gabriel appears to Mary, golden haired and with wings unfurled; pointing upwards towards heaven with a curiously long finger. Mary, with long flowing golden hair looks distinctly un-Jewish, the characterisation being tailored towards those looking on; as the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove shines down on her.
