St Denys' Church, Warminster

Last updated

St Denys', Warminster
The Minster Church of St Denys
Warminster - St Denys - geograph.org.uk - 1188501.jpg
Wiltshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
St Denys', Warminster
Location in Wiltshire
Coordinates: 51°12′31″N2°11′19″W / 51.2086°N 2.1887°W / 51.2086; -2.1887
OS grid reference ST869455
LocationChurch Street, Warminster, Wiltshire
CountryEngland
Denomination Anglican
Website River Were Churches
History
Status Parish church
Dedication Saint Denis of Paris
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Style Perpendicular
Years built14th century (rebuilt), 1887–9 (restored)
Administration
Province Canterbury
Diocese Salisbury
Archdeaconry Sarum
Deanery Heytesbury
Parish Warminster Saint Denys
Listed Building – Grade II*
Reference no.1364460

St Denys' Church (or the Minster Church of St Denys) [1] is the parish church of the town of Warminster, Wiltshire, England, and is the town's oldest church. Begun in the 11th century, rebuilt in the 14th and restored in the 19th, it is a Grade II* listed building.

Contents

History and architecture

Although the 1086 Domesday Book did not record a church or priest, [2] the name Warminster was in use in the early 10th century, implying the presence of a Saxon minster church. [3] By the 12th century the church was dedicated to Saint Denys. [3]

The church stands in the northwest of the town, which has developed away from the site of the Saxon settlement. [4] The present building is built in limestone and is cruciform in plan; its earliest parts are from the 11th century, within the crossing and the base of the tower. There was rebuilding or extensive remodelling in the 14th century, and in the 15th a two-bay south chapel was added for the Maudit family. The low central tower has two stair turrets joined. The nave was rebuilt in 1723–4. [5]

The church underwent thorough restoration by Sir Arthur Blomfield in 1887-9: the nave was again rebuilt, now longer, in Perpendicular style, with ten lights each side in the clerestory; and the chancel was extended west into the crossing. Thus only the tower, the south wall of the chancel and the south porch remain from the earlier church. [5]

In 1881 the peal of bells was increased from six to eight, and all were recast except for the tenor which is dated 1737. [6] The bells were being refurbished and rehung in 2019. [7]

The building was designated as Grade II* listed in 1952. [5]

Interior

The organ, installed in 1792, was built by G. P. England for Salisbury Cathedral but had proved to be insufficiently powerful. [3] The organ case is described by Pevsner as "a delightful piece". [8]

The Historic England listing states that the Victorian restoration "involved an exceptionally elegant and generous refurnishing on High Church principles", with the chancel fittings forming an "exceptional ensemble". [5] These include a reredos and choir stalls by the firm of Harry Hems, together with metal chancel screens and gates, and tiles by William Godwin. Hems also made the nave benches and the octagonal pulpit, which has inlaid marble. [5]

Stained glass of various 19th-century dates includes work of Burlison and Grylls, Henry Holiday and Clayton & Bell. A 1950 window in the south aisle is by Christopher Webb. [5]

Notable vicars

1825 to 1841: William Dalby, who held services at the workhouse for the people of Warminster Common, and instigated the building of Christ Church there in 1831. [3]

1841 to 1859: Arthur Fane (1809–1872; illegitimate son of Henry Fane). Described as talented and zealous by the Wiltshire Victoria County History, [3] he established a reformatory school in 1856, [9] and instigated restoration of St Lawrence's chapel in 1855–6. [3] Through his wife he inherited manors at Boyton (in which church he is buried), [10] and at Sherrington. [11]

1859 to 1897: Sir James Erasmus Philipps, 12th Baronet. During his time the number of Sunday services was increased to three, with an average of 1,400 attending in the evening. He raised the money for the 1880s restoration, as well as instigating the building of St John's Church on the other side of the town, and founding St Boniface Missionary College and a Community of St Denys who ran an orphanage and girls' school. [3]

Parish

Since 1290 or earlier, the chapel of St Lawrence in the market place has been a chapel-of-ease to St Denys. The people of the town bought the chapel in 1574, giving it the status of a non-royal peculiar outside the jurisdiction of the Church of England. Since then has been administered by feoffees (trustees) on behalf of the town, and they invite the vicar to hold services. [12]

From the mid-13th century or earlier, the church at Corsley (2+1⁄2 miles (4.0 km) northwest) was a chapelry of Warminster parish; by 1415 Corsley parish was fully independent. [13]

As the town's population grew in the 19th century, two churches were built: Christ Church in 1831 to serve the south of the town, and St John's in 1865 in the southeast. [3] Christ Church gained its own parish in 1863, [14] and in 1956 the area around St John's was added to Bishopstrow parish, [15] thus the present St Denys parish covers parts of the north and west of the town. [16] A group ministry was established in 1974 to cover all three Warminster churches, Bishopstrow and Upton Scudamore; [17] this continues today as the River Were benefice, although Christ Church is now separate. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warminster</span> Market town in Wiltshire, England

Warminster is a historic market town and civil parish in south-west Wiltshire, England, on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. The parish had a population of 18,173 in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Wiltshire</span> Former local government district in Wiltshire, England

West Wiltshire was a local government district in Wiltshire, England, between 1974 and 2009, when it was superseded by Wiltshire Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishops Cannings</span> Human settlement in England

Bishops Cannings is a village and civil parish in the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire, England, 3 miles (5 km) north-east of Devizes. The parish includes the village of Coate and the hamlets of Bourton, Horton and Little Horton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dilton Marsh</span> Human settlement in England

Dilton Marsh is a village and civil parish in the far west of the county of Wiltshire, in the southwest of England. The village is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) southwest of the centre of the town of Westbury; Dilton Marsh remains a distinct settlement with its own character and community, bounded and separated from Westbury Leigh by the Biss Brook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reading Minster</span> Church in Reading, England

Reading Minster, or the Minster Church of St Mary the Virgin, is the oldest ecclesiastical foundation in the town of Reading, Berkshire, England. Although eclipsed in importance by the later Reading Abbey, Reading Minster regained its status after the destruction of the Abbey and is now an Anglican parish church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Blomfield</span> English architect

Sir Arthur William Blomfield was an English architect. He became president of the Architectural Association in 1861; a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1867 and vice-president of the RIBA in 1886. He was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied Architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishopstrow</span> Human settlement in England

Bishopstrow is a small village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, on the southeastern edge of the town of Warminster. The village is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the town centre, south of the old Warminster to Salisbury road, formerly the A36, now the B3414.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boyton, Wiltshire</span> Human settlement in England

Boyton is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It lies in the Wylye Valley within Salisbury Plain, about 6 miles (10 km) south-east of Warminster and 13 miles (21 km) north-west of Salisbury. The parish includes the village of Corton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upton Scudamore</span> Human settlement in England

Upton Scudamore is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village lies about 1.8 miles (3 km) north of the town of Warminster and about the same distance south of Westbury. The parish includes the hamlet of Halfway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chapmanslade</span> Human settlement in England

Chapmanslade is a village and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, in the southwest of England. The parish is on the county border with Somerset and includes the hamlets of Huntenhull Green, Short Street and Thoulstone. The village lies about 3.5 miles (6 km) from each of three towns: southwest of Westbury, northwest of Warminster, and east of Frome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corsley</span> Human settlement in England

Corsley is a hamlet and civil parish 3 miles (5 km) west of Warminster in Wiltshire, England. The parish is on the county border with Somerset; the Somerset town of Frome is about 3 miles (5 km) to the northwest. The largest settlement in the parish is Corsley Heath, which is on the A362 Warminster-Frome road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stockton, Wiltshire</span> Human settlement in England

Stockton is a small village and civil parish in the Wylye Valley in Wiltshire, England, about 8 miles (13 km) southeast of Warminster. The parish includes the hamlet of Bapton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christ Church, Warminster</span> Church in Warminster, England

Christ Church is an Anglican church building serving a parish on the southern side of Warminster, Wiltshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Margaret's, Corsley</span>

St Margaret's, Corsley, is the Church of England parish church of Corsley in Wiltshire, England. In 1968 the church was designated as Grade II listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sutton Veny</span> Human settlement in England

Sutton Veny is a village and civil parish in the Wylye valley, to the southeast of the town of Warminster in Wiltshire, England; the village is about 3 miles (5 km) from Warminster town centre. 'Sutton' means 'south farmstead' in relation to Norton Bavant, one mile (1.6 km) to the north. 'Veny' may be a French family name or may describe the village's fenny situation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Knoyle</span> English village in Wiltshire

East Knoyle is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, in the south-west of England, just west of the A350 and about 9 miles (14 km) south of Warminster and 5 miles (8 km) north of Shaftesbury, Dorset. It was the birthplace of the architect Sir Christopher Wren. The parish includes the hamlets of Holloway, Milton, The Green, Underhill and Upton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St Peter and St Paul, Ormskirk</span> Church in Lancashire, England

The Church of St Peter and St Paul is in the market town of Ormskirk, Lancashire, England. Dating from no later than the 12th century, it is one of only three churches in England to have both a tower and spire, and the only one to have them both at the same end of the church. It is an active Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Liverpool. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teffont Magna</span> Human settlement in England

Teffont Magna, sometimes called Upper Teffont, is a small village and former civil parish in the Nadder valley in the south of the county of Wiltshire, England. For most of its history, Teffont Magna was a chapelry of neighbouring Dinton. In 1934 it was combined with the parish of Teffont Evias, just to the south, to form a united Teffont parish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poulshot</span> Human settlement in England

Poulshot is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. Its nearest town is Devizes, about 2.5 miles (4 km) to the northeast. The parish includes the hamlet of Townsend.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John's Church, Warminster</span> Church in Warminster, England

St John's Church, in full the Church of St John the Evangelist, is a Church of England church in the Boreham area in the south-east of the town of Warminster, Wiltshire, England. It was built in 1865 and is a Grade II* listed building.

References

  1. 1 2 "The Minster Church of St Denys". A Church Near You. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  2. ↑ Warminster in the Domesday Book
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Victoria County History: Wiltshire: Vol 8 pp 117-124 – Warminster: Church". British History Online. University of London. 1965. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  4. ↑ "Church of St. Denys, Warminster". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Historic England. "Parish Church of St Denys (1364460)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "Warminster, St Denys". Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "Restoration of the Minster Bells" (PDF). St Denys the Minster Church. March 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  8. ↑ Pevsner, Nikolaus; Cherry, Bridget (revision) (1975) [1963]. Wiltshire. The Buildings of England (2nd ed.). Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. pp. 544–545. ISBN   0-14-0710-26-4.
  9. ↑ "Victoria County History: Wiltshire: Vol 8 pp 132-134 – Warminster: Schools". British History Online. University of London. 1965. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  10. ↑ Howell, Danny. "Church And Churchyard Memorials At St. Denys, Warminster, Recorded in 1882" . Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  11. ↑ Baggs, A. P.; Freeman, Jane; Stevenson, Janet H. (1995). "Parishes: Sherrington". In Crowley, D. A. (ed.). A History of the County of Wiltshire, Volume 15. Victoria County History. University of London. pp. 234–242. Retrieved 14 March 2023– via British History Online.
  12. ↑ Historic England. "Chapel of St Lawrence (1193945)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  13. ↑ "Victoria County History – Wiltshire – Vol 8: Corsley". British History Online. University of London. 1965. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  14. ↑ "Christ Church, Warminster". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  15. ↑ "No. 40709". The London Gazette . 4 February 1956. p. 906.
  16. ↑ "St Denys parish, Warminster". A Church Near You. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  17. ↑ "No. 46367". The London Gazette. 10 October 1974. p. 8676.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.