St John the Baptist's Church, Hellington

St John the Baptist's Church, Hellington
St John the Baptist's Church, Hellington
	St John the Baptist's Church, Hellington, from the southeast
	St John the Baptist's Church, Hellington Location in Norfolk
	Coordinates: 52°34′34″N1°24′46″E / 52.5761°N 1.4128°E
OS grid reference	NZ 274 513
Location	Hellington, Norfolk
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	Churches Conservation Trust
History
Dedication	Saint John the Baptist
Architecture
Functional status	Redundant
Heritage designation	Grade I
Designated	5 September 1960
Architectural type	Church
Style	Norman, Gothic
Specifications
Materials	Flint and brick with limestone dressings; Roofs slated and tiled

Last updated February 23, 2019

St John the Baptist's Church is a redundant Anglican church standing to the south of the village of Hellington, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building,^[1] and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.^[2]

Redundant church is a phrase particularly used to refer to former Anglican church buildings no longer required for regular public worship in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world.

Hellington is a hamlet and civil parish in the South Norfolk district of the county of Norfolk, England. In the 2001 census, it contained 24 households and a population of 69.

Norfolk is a county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the northwest, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea and, to the north-west, The Wash. The county town is Norwich. With an area of 2,074 square miles (5,370 km²) and a population of 859,400, Norfolk is a largely rural county with a population density of 401 per square mile. Of the county's population, 40% live in four major built up areas: Norwich (213,000), Great Yarmouth (63,000), King's Lynn (46,000) and Thetford (25,000).

History

St John's Church originated in the 12th century. Most of the fabric in the church dates from this century and from the 14th century. The roofs currently present were added later.^[1]

Architecture

Exterior

The church is constructed in flint and brick with limestone dressings. The roofs of the nave and chancel are slated, and the porch roof is tiled. Its plan is simple, consisting of a nave with a south porch, a chancel, and a west tower. The tower is round and dates from the 12th century. The two-light bell openings were inserted in the 14th century. The parapet is from a later date, and is embattled. The south porch was added in the 14th century, and has been much patched and repaired since. On each side of the entrance are diagonally-set niches, and there are the remains of another niche in the gable above the entrance. On the west and east sides of the porch are three open arches. The south doorway is Norman in style with a round-headed arch. It is "very elaborate".^[1] The arch is carried on three orders of shafts, with capitals decorated with scallops and volutes. The arch also has three orders, decorated with fillets between them. The windows in the nave and chancel date from the 14th century and contain a variety of Decorated motifs. The east window has five lights and, above it, the gable carries a cross. In the north wall of the nave is a two-light square-headed window, and a Norman doorway with two orders of shafts. The north wall of the chancel, which has been re-built in brick, is supported by pilaster-buttresses, and a larger buttress at the southeast corner.^[1]

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 often has a glassy or waxy appearance. A thin layer on the outside of the nodules is usually different in colour, typically white and rough in texture. From a petrological point of view, "flint" refers specifically to the form of chert which occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Similarly, "common chert" occurs in limestone.

Limestone Sedimentary rocks made of calcium carbonate

Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is often composed of the skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, foraminifera, and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃).

The nave is the central part of a church, stretching from the main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type building, the strict definition of the term 'nave' is restricted to the central aisle. In a broader, more colloquial sense, the nave includes all areas available for the lay worshippers, including the side-aisles and transepts. Either way, the nave is distinct from the area reserved for the choir and clergy.

Interior

The tower arch is round-headed, and the chancel arch has a pointed arch. In the chancel is a 14th-century piscina with two arches. There are some fragments of medieval glass in the south chancel window. The font is octagonal, its bowl being decorated with quatrefoil panels.^[1] The stained glass in the east window dates from the middle of the 19th century, and was made by J. and J. King of Norwich.^[3]

A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, 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. They are often made of stone and fitted with a drain, and are in some cases used to dispose of materials used in the sacraments and water from liturgical ablutions. They are found in Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, and a similar vessel is used in Eastern Orthodox churches.

England in the Middle Ages concerns the history of England during the medieval period, from the end of the 5th century through to the start of the Early Modern period in 1485. When England emerged from the collapse of the Roman Empire, the economy was in tatters and many of the towns abandoned. After several centuries of Germanic immigration, new identities and cultures began to emerge, developing into kingdoms that competed for power. A rich artistic culture flourished under the Anglo-Saxons, producing epic poems such as Beowulf and sophisticated metalwork. The Anglo-Saxons converted to Christianity in the 7th century and a network of monasteries and convents was built across England. In the 8th and 9th centuries England faced fierce Viking attacks, and the fighting lasted for many decades, eventually establishing Wessex as the most powerful kingdom and promoting the growth of an English identity. Despite repeated crises of succession and a Danish seizure of power at the start of the 11th century, by the 1060s England was a powerful, centralised state with a strong military and successful economy.

A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism.

Related Research Articles

Holy Trinity Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Blatherwycke, Northamptonshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands in the grounds of the demolished Blatherwycke Hall.

St Gregory's Church is a redundant Anglican church in Fledborough, Nottinghamshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands at the end of a lane, in meadows near the River Trent.

St John the Baptist's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Wakerley, Northamptonshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands in an elevated position overlooking the Welland Valley.

St Michael and St Martin's Church is a historic Anglican church in Eastleach Martin, Gloucestershire, England under the care of The Churches Conservation Trust. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. The church stands close to the River Leach which divides Eastleach Martin from its twin village of Eastleach Turville. Eastleach Turville's Church of St Andrew stands only 180 metres away from the Church of St Michael and St Martin.

St Peter's Church is a redundant Church of England parish church in Claydon, Suffolk, England. It is a Grade I listed building, and is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It overlooks the Gipping valley.

All Saints' Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Icklingham, Suffolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands in the highest point in the village, adjacent to the A1101 road between Mildenhall and Bury St Edmunds. This was formerly the ancient trackway of Icknield Way, and Icklingham is close to an important junction on this trackway.

St Marys Church, Moulton Church in Norfolk, England

St Mary's Church is a redundant Anglican round-tower church near the village of Moulton St Mary, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands some 4 kilometres (2 mi) to the south of Acle in an isolated position adjacent to a farm.

St Benedict's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Haltham-on-Bain, Lincolnshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands between the River Bain and the A153 road connecting Horncastle with Coningsby.

St Margaret's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Hales, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands in open fields to the south of the village and to the east of the A146 road.

St Gregory's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Heckingham, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands on a small hill overlooking the River Chet.

St Andrew's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Sapiston, Suffolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands at the end of a track to the south of the village, adjacent to Grange Farm and near to a ford crossing the Black Bourne stream. The church served what became a deserted medieval village

St Nicholas' Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Buckenham, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands among fields to the north of the River Yare.

St Michael's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the hamlet of Coston, in the civil parish of Runhall, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands in an isolated position.

All Saints Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Little Wenham, Suffolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It stands in an isolated position close to Little Wenham Hall, about 0.6 miles (1 km) to the northwest of Capel St. Mary.

St John the Baptist's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Stanton, Suffolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. Only the tower is intact, the body of the church being roofless. The remains of the church stand to the west of the village.

All Saints Church, West Harling, is a redundant Anglican church in the civil parish of Harling, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands in an isolated position on the edge of Thetford Forest.

St Andrew's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Buckland, Hertfordshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands at the highest point in the village to the east of Ermine Street, now the A10 road, between Royston and Buntingford.

All Saints Church is a partly redundant Anglican church in the village of Newton Green, Suffolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. The chancel is still in use for worship, but the nave, porch and tower are redundant and vested in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands towards the north of the village, some two miles east of Sudbury.

The Church of St John the Baptist, Maddermarket, is a redundant Anglican church in the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.

St John the Baptist's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Yarburgh, Lincolnshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The village lies away from main roads, some 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Louth.

References

1 2 3 4 5 Historic England, "Church of St John the Baptist, Hellington (1169361)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 19 December 2013
↑ Church of St John the Baptist, Hellington, Norfolk, Churches Conservation Trust , retrieved 2 December 2016
↑ Hellington: St John the Baptist, Corpus Vitrearum Medii Aevi (CVMA) of Great Britain, retrieved 8 January 2011

External links

Photographs of the exterior and interior from Norfolk Churches

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.

[hg-1] 1 2 3 4 5 Historic England, "Church of St John the Baptist, Hellington (1169361)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 19 December 2013

[cct-2] Church of St John the Baptist, Hellington, Norfolk, Churches Conservation Trust , retrieved 2 December 2016

[3] Hellington: St John the Baptist, Corpus Vitrearum Medii Aevi (CVMA) of Great Britain, retrieved 8 January 2011