St Wilfrid's Chapel, Church Norton

Last updated

St Wilfrid's Chapel
Church Norton - geograph.org.uk - 5067.jpg
The chapel from the southwest
St Wilfrid's Chapel, Church Norton
50°45′18″N0°45′55″W / 50.7549°N 0.7652°W / 50.7549; -0.7652 Coordinates: 50°45′18″N0°45′55″W / 50.7549°N 0.7652°W / 50.7549; -0.7652
LocationRectory Lane, Church Norton, Selsey, West Sussex PO20 9DT
CountryUnited Kingdom
Denomination Anglican
History
Former name(s)St Peter's Church
StatusChurch
Founded13th century
Dedication Saint Wilfrid
Dedicated1917 (rededicated to St Wilfrid)
Architecture
Functional status Redundant
Heritage designation Grade I
Designated5 June 1958

St Wilfrid's Chapel, also known as St Wilfrid's Church and originally as St Peter's Church, is a former Anglican church at Church Norton, a rural location near the village of Selsey in West Sussex, England. In its original, larger form, the church served as Selsey's parish church from the 13th century until the mid 1860s; when half of it was dismantled, moved to the centre of the village and rebuilt along with modern additions. Only the chancel of the old church survived in its harbourside location of "sequestered leafiness", [1] resembling a cemetery chapel in the middle of its graveyard. It was rededicated to St Wilfrid—7th-century founder of a now vanished cathedral at Selsey—and served as a chapel of ease until the Diocese of Chichester declared it redundant in 1990. Since then it has been in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust charity. The tiny chapel, which may occupy the site of an ancient monastery built by St Wilfrid, [2] is protected as a Grade I Listed building.

Contents

History

The parish of Selsey is in the far southwestern corner of Sussex and was once an island: the English Channel lies to the east and south, and Pagham Harbour forms the northern boundary and originally had a connection to the sea on the west side as well. Two settlements developed in the parish: the main village (Selsey) and a hamlet called Church Norton (or Norton) about 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) to the northeast, [3] on the "wild shoreline" of Pagham Harbour. [4] [5]

This land is considered the most likely site of Cymenshore, the place where Ælle of Sussex—the first King of the South Saxons—came ashore in 477. [3] Two centuries later, Wilfrid (later canonised as Saint Wilfrid) Christianised the area, using Selsey as his base. He was apparently granted land on the island in the 7th century, [6] upon which he founded a monastery in 681. This later became a cathedral, [6] and 25 bishops served between 681 and 1075. [7] After the Norman conquest the Council of London, in 1075, decreed that the See should be moved from Selsey to, the nearby former Roman settlement of Chichester. [8] The site chosen for the new cathedral was shared with the original St Peter's church, in Chichester. [9]

The church, reduced in size in the 1860s, stands like a cemetery chapel in a large graveyard. St Wilfrids Chapel - geograph.org.uk - 765655.jpg
The church, reduced in size in the 1860s, stands like a cemetery chapel in a large graveyard.

Although the monastery, at Selsey, had disappeared by the 11th century, its site was not eroded by the sea and survived as a "delightfully secluded location" [1] on what had become a peninsula. [3] By the late 12th century, [3] a church occupied the isolated site; some sources suggest it may have replaced a Saxon building, but there is very little evidence for this. [10] The church had an aisled and arcaded nave, chancel, bellcot, porch and tower at its greatest extent. [3] [4] [7] The arcades to the original three-bay nave were the oldest structural element, dating from about 1180. [4] Soon after these were installed, the nave was extended by a further bay. The chancel was added in the early 13th century and had plain lancet windows in the side walls. [1] [3] An east window in the Perpendicular Gothic style was added later, [1] [5] as were windows in the aisles (inserted in the 15th century), and a tower with diagonal buttresses was erected at the west end in the 16th century. [4]

Selsey village grew after 670 acres (270 ha) of common land were enclosed in 1830: new roads and housing were built, and it became a minor seaside resort. Church Norton's remoteness from the centre of population encouraged the construction of a new church on Selsey High Street. [3] The old church, which at this time was still dedicated to St Peter, [3] was partly demolished—only its chancel was left standing—and some of the material was incorporated in the new church, also called St Peter's Church and designed by J.P. St Aubyn. [4] The year in which this happened is given variously as 1864, [2] [3] [5] [11] 1865 [4] [12] [13] [14] and 1866. [7] [15]

Much of the structure was moved to the centre of Selsey and rebuilt as St Peter's Church. St Peter's Church, Selsey (NHLE Code 1026266).JPG
Much of the structure was moved to the centre of Selsey and rebuilt as St Peter's Church.

According to Edward Heron-Allen a meeting was held in the vestry of the old church, on 1 July 1864, with eight people and the rector in attendance. [16] The purpose of the meeting was to authorise the raising of £600 towards the expenses of the removal of the church. [16] The remainder of the cost, £3000, was to be paid by the Lady of the manor, a Mrs Vernon-Harcourt. [lower-alpha 1] [16] Mrs Vernon-Harcourt [lower-alpha 1] also presented the village with a site for the new church. [16] However, the scheme was opposed by some as they did not want to see the disappearance of a fine old Early-English church; it was therefore agreed that the old church, apart from the chancel, should be moved to the new site stone by stone. [16] On 24 November 1864, the churchwardens and overseers borrowed £600 required to make up the cost of removal under an act of Parliament, and the removal was started. [16] The building work was completed in 1865, and the new church reconsecrated on 12 April 1866. [16]

Structural elements and fittings moved from Church Norton to the new parish church included a Norman-era font, [19] pillars, arches and three bays of pointed-arched arcading from the nave, [4] [7] [14] a bell cast in 1844 by Mears & Co. of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, [3] and some Eucharistic objects from the 16th to the 18th centuries. [13] The arcading had chamfering and scallop-shaped capitals. [4] Initially the rectory continued to be at Norton, but in 1902 it was sold and a new one built on land adjoining the relocated church. This work was completed in 1903. The name of the old rectory was changed to Norton Priory. [20]

The old church functioned as a cemetery chapel for the next few decades, standing in the middle of its graveyard. In 1906, it was fitted out with some internal fixtures from the recently demolished St Martin's Church at Chichester, including a font, [3] and in 1917 the church was rededicated to St Wilfrid by the Bishop of Chichester. [14] By this time the chapel was within the parish of the new St Peter's Church, [14] Some services continued, and stained glass was added in 1969 and 1982. [11] In 1990, the chapel was declared redundant by the Diocese of Chichester, [21] and services ceased except for special occasions. [15]

The church was the subject of a poem by Rudyard Kipling. Eddi's Service , from the 1910 book Rewards and Fairies , describes how Eddi the priest was determined to celebrate Midnight Mass one stormy Christmas Eve despite no parishioners attending. "I must go on with the service/For such as care to attend" he announced; and when the candles were lit for the start of the service, an old donkey and a "wet, yoke-weary bullock" wandered into the church and stayed until dawn broke, listening to Eddi preaching. [2] [22] The tale is apocryphal—and may have been based on a traditional story local to the Manhood Peninsula [2] —but Wilfrid's own chaplain during his ministry at Selsey was Eddius Stephanus (Stephen of Ripon), which inspired the name of the priest. [14]

Marriage Act

When the removed church was re-consecrated in April 1866, due to an oversight it was not consecrated properly to carry out marriages. The omission was not discovered until 1904, by which time 196 marriage services had taken place. These services although canonically correct were not strictly legal. To rectify the situation an Act of Parliament was required. In 1906 an order was made to finally validate all the marriages celebrated between 12 April 1866 and 25 February 1904. [23]

Architecture and fittings

Originally the church had an aisled nave with a four-bay arcade (three bays dating from the 1180s and another added about 50 years later), a porch and a 16th-century tower with diagonal buttresses. [4] [7] This was never finished and stood only 8 feet (2.4 m) high. [3] The remaining chancel of the church is a simple Early English Gothic building with original lancet windows in the north and south walls. [1] [5] The three-light east window dates from the 15th century and is Perpendicular Gothic in style. [1] [4] [5] Traces of the former chancel arch and the responds of the arcades are still visible on the west wall. [3] [15] The fact that the church is "divided into two halves and standing in two different places" has led to it being described as "one of the oddest in England". [15]

The St Wilfrid's Chapel piscina in the right recess St. Wilfrid, Church Norton 2010.jpg
The St Wilfrid's Chapel piscina in the right recess

There are two recesses in the south wall, one of which is used as a piscina. [4] [5] Another ancient fixture that remains is a roughly executed [15] carving of John Lewis (or Lews) [3] and his wife Agnes, dated 1537. In the form of a triptych, it shows them kneeling and facing a central panel which has now been defaced beyond recognition but which would have shown a Crucifixion or Trinity scene. [4] It occupies a recess in the north wall and is carved from Caen stone. [5] Next to it, another carving depicts St George and the "gruesome martyrdom" of St Agatha. [5] [11] [12] Ian Nairn described its style as characteristic of the area and its date: "combining kneeling figures with purely Gothic and purely religious subjects". [1]

The 20th-century stained glass consists of a 1969 window by Carl Edwards, commemorating women and featuring an image of the now demolished All Saints Cathedral in Cairo, and a 1982 piece by Michael Farrar-Bell which portrays the nature reserve at Pagham Harbour and its animals and birds. [5] [11]

The church today

St Wilfrid's Chapel was listed as a Grade I listed building on 5 June 1958. [12]

The Diocese of Chichester declared the chapel redundant on 1 November 1990. [21] It was placed into the care of the Redundant Churches Fund (now the Churches Conservation Trust) from that date, [21] and is now one of five former churches in West Sussex administered by the charity; the others are at Chichester, North Stoke, Tortington and Warminghurst. [24]

As of 2006, services were still held irregularly at the church, in particular on the feast day of Saint Wilfrid (12 October). [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

Selsey Abbey

Selsey Abbey was founded by St Wilfrid in AD 681 on land donated at Selsey by the local Anglo-Saxon ruler, King Æðelwealh of Sussex, Sussex's first Christian king. The Kingdom of Sussex was the last area of Anglo-Saxon England to be evangelised.

St Margarets Church, Ifield Church

St Margaret's Church is an Anglican church in the Ifield neighbourhood of Crawley, a town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is the ancient parish church of the village of Ifield; the medieval settlement was expanded to form one of the New Town of Crawley's 13 neighbourhoods, and the church's modern parish now serves several other neighbourhoods as well.

St Peters Church, Selsey Church in West Sussex, United Kingdom

St Peter's Church is the Parish Church of Selsey, West Sussex and dates from the 13th century. The Church building was originally situated at the location of St Wilfrid's first monastery and cathedral at Church Norton some 2 miles north of the present centre of population.

St Peters Church, Preston Village, Brighton Church in Brighton and Hove, United Kingdom

St Peter's Church is a former Anglican church in the Preston Village area of Brighton, in the English city of Brighton and Hove. The 13th-century building, standing on the site of two older churches, was restored in the late 19th century and again after a serious fire in 1906. It was the parish church of Preston until 1908, when the newly built St John the Evangelist's Church gained this status. The Diocese of Chichester declared St Peter's redundant in 1990, and it is now owned by the Churches Conservation Trust. It has Grade II* listed status, reflecting its architectural and historical importance.

Church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin, Sompting Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

The Church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin, also known as St Mary the Virgin Church and St Mary's Church, is the Church of England parish church of Sompting in the Adur district of West Sussex. It stands on a rural lane north of the urban area that now surrounds the village, and retains much 11th- and 12th-century structure. Its most important architectural feature is the Saxon tower topped by a Rhenish helm, a four-sided pyramid-style gabled cap that is uncommon in England. English Heritage lists the church at Grade I for its architecture and history.

St Georges Church, Trotton Church in United Kingdom, United Kingdom

St. George's Church is an Anglican church in Trotton, a village in the district of Chichester, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. Most of the structure was built in the early 14th century. However, some parts date to around 1230, and there is evidence suggesting an earlier church on the same site. In 1904, a largely intact and unusually detailed painting was found on the west wall depicting the Last Judgment as described in Matthew 25:31–46.

Holy Trinity Church, Cuckfield Church in West Sussex , England

Holy Trinity Church is an Anglican church in the village of Cuckfield in the district of Mid Sussex; one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. It was founded in the 11th century and was in the possession of Lewes Priory by 1090. The present structure dates from the mid-13th century but was extended in the 14th century and heavily altered and restored during the Victorian period, with much interior work by Charles Eamer Kempe and stained glass by both Kempe and the Clayton and Bell firm. The church's spire was replaced in 1981 following a fire. Former chapels of ease in outlying hamlets have closed, and the church now serves a large rural area in the centre of Sussex. It is protected as a Grade I listed building.

St Marys Church, Slaugham Church in West Sussex , England

St Mary's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Slaugham in Mid Sussex, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. The 12th- and 13th-century church, restored in the Victorian era, serves a large rural area of the Sussex Weald, covering three villages as well as the ancient settlement of Slaugham. It also controlled the church in the market town of Crawley—now one of the area's largest towns—for the first few centuries of its existence. A locally important family built a private chapel in the church in the 17th century, and a series of memorials to deceased family members are considered to be excellent examples of their type. English Heritage has listed the building at Grade II* for its architectural and historical importance.

St John the Baptists Church, Clayton Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

St John the Baptist's Church is the Church of England parish church of the village of Clayton in Mid Sussex District, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. The small and simple Anglo-Saxon building is distinguished by its "remarkable" and extensive set of wall paintings, dating from the early 12th century and rediscovered more than 700 years later. Much of the structural work of the church is 11th-century and has had little alteration. The church, which stands in the middle of a large churchyard and serves the small village of Clayton at the foot of the South Downs, is part of a joint parish with the neighbouring village of Keymer—an arrangement which has existed informally for centuries and which was legally recognised in the 20th century. English Heritage has listed the church at Grade I for its architectural and historical importance.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Warminghurst Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is a former Anglican church in the hamlet of Warminghurst in the district of Horsham, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. The present building, which is no longer used for worship, has 13th-century origins, but a church may have existed on the site in the 11th century or earlier. Often administered in connection with other churches in the rural area of West Sussex in which it was built–churches at nearby Steyning, Ashington and Thakeham were all involved with it at various times–its congregations declined and closure came first in the 1920s and then for good in 1979, when it was declared redundant. Unlike many ancient churches in Sussex, it was not subject to restoration in the mid-19th century: its interior has been called "the finest example in Sussex of how many must have looked before the Victorian restorers". After a period in which the Early English Gothic stone-built church fell into dereliction, prompting one Sussex historian to lament its "unloved" appearance, it was taken into the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. English Heritage has listed the church at Grade I for its architectural and historical importance.

St Mary the Virgins Church, North Stoke Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

North Stoke Church, rededicated in 2007 to St Mary the Virgin after its medieval dedication was unexpectedly rediscovered, is a former Church of England parish church in the riverside hamlet of North Stoke in the Horsham District of West Sussex. The partly 11th-century cruciform building, set in an almost deserted village in a loop of the River Arun, is mostly unrestored and stands on an ancient earthwork which has pre-Christian origins. The building has architectural features and internal fittings spanning hundreds of years, including some very old stained glass and wall paintings, although there are few memorials compared with other Sussex churches of a similar age. The church, "movingly eloquent of centuries of remote Sussex agricultural life", is no longer used for worship: it was declared redundant in 1992, after which it was entrusted to the Churches Conservation Trust. English Heritage lists the church at Grade I for its architectural and historical importance.

St Mary Magdalenes Church, Tortington Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

St Mary Magdalene's Church is the former Anglican parish church of the hamlet of Tortington in the district of Arun, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. Founded in the 12th century to serve a priory and villagers in the riverside location, it has experienced little change despite a 19th-century restoration. Its ancient chancel arch and doorway have remarkable carvings with "grotesque, boggle-eyed monsters", rare beakhead figures and chevron ornamentation. Standing in a picturesque setting behind a farm, the flint and Caen stone building was used for worship until 1978, when it was declared redundant. It is now cared for by the Churches Conservation Trust, and English Heritage has listed it at Grade II for its architectural and historical importance. The church is dedicated to Jesus' companion Mary Magdalene.

St Botolphs Church, Hardham Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

St Botolph's Church is the Church of England parish church of Hardham, West Sussex. It is in Horsham District and is a Grade I listed building. It contains the earliest nearly complete series of wall paintings in England. Among forty individual subjects is the earliest known representation of St. George in England. Dating from the 12th century, they were hidden from view until uncovered in 1866 and now "provide a rare and memorable impression of a medieval painted interior". The simple two-cell stone building, with its original medieval whitewashed exterior, has seen little alteration and also has an ancient bell.

St Marys Church, West Chiltington Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

St Mary's Church is the Grade I listed Anglican parish church of West Chiltington, a village in the Horsham district of West Sussex, England. The 12th-century building, described as a "showpiece" and "the most attractive part" of the Wealden village, retains many features of historical and architectural interest. These include an exceptionally long hagioscope or squint from the south aisle into the chancel, a porch which may be Sussex's oldest, and a well preserved and extensive scheme of wall paintings. In the Sussex volume of The Buildings of England, Ian Nairn says that the appearance of the church gives "a very happy, unexpected effect, like a French village church".

St Mary Magdalenes Church, Bolney Church in West Sussex, United Kingdom

St Mary Magdalene's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Bolney in Mid Sussex, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. The parish church, which is dedicated to Jesus' companion Mary Magdalene, serves a large rural parish centred on a village straddling the ancient London–Brighton road and apparently dates from about 1100, and an older origin has been suggested. Many structural additions have been made over the centuries—including a tower built solely using the labour of villagers—and at the entrance to the churchyard is a "magnificent" 20th-century lychgate made of local materials including Sussex Marble. The church is protected as a Grade I Listed building.

St Margarets Church, West Hoathly Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

St Margaret's Church is an Anglican church in the village of West Hoathly in Mid Sussex, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. By the late 11th century, a simple single-room stone building existed on the high, open ridge upon which the village developed. A series of medieval expansions doubled its size by the 15th century, and the present building has changed little since then—despite a Victorian restoration overseen by architect R. H. Carpenter. A major addition was the heavily buttressed Perpendicular Gothic west tower, topped with a tall broach spire and containing a peal of ancient bells. The large, steeply terraced churchyard also serves as a public cemetery and has far-reaching views across the Weald. The original dedication to Saint Margaret of Antioch fell out of use for many centuries until a researcher rediscovered it. The church serves a large rural parish which was reduced in size in 1882 when two residents of the hamlet of Highbrook paid for an additional church to be built there. English Heritage has listed it at Grade I for its architectural and historical importance.

St Georges Church, Eastergate Church in West Sussex , United Kingdom

St George's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Eastergate in West Sussex, England. It is the ancient parish church of Eastergate, although since 1992 it has been administered as part of a joint ecclesiastical parish with the churches in neighbouring Barnham and Aldingbourne. As part of this group, the building is still in regular use for worship on Sundays and weekdays. Eastergate village school has links with the church, and pupils regularly attend services.

St Mary and St Peters Church, Wilmington Church in East Sussex , England

St Mary and St Peter's Church is in the village of Wilmington, East Sussex, England. It is an active Anglican parish church on the deanery of Lewes and Seaford, the archdeaconry of Lewes and Hastings, and the diocese of Chichester. Founded in the late 11th century to serve villagers in a rural area at the foot of the South Downs, it also functioned as a priory church for the monks from the adjacent Wilmington Priory, to which it was physically connected. The building has "benefited from sympathetic restoration" over the centuries—including a series of works by prominent architects Paley and Austin in the Victorian era, and internal renovation after a fire in the early 21st century. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

St Peters Church, Henfield Church in West Sussex, United Kingdom

St Peter's Church is a Church of England parish church in the large village of Henfield, West Sussex. Placed on the site of an 8th-century Saxon church also dedicated to St Peter, it was built in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, but was heavily restored and partially rebuilt in the 19th century. English Heritage has listed it at Grade II* for its architectural and historical importance. Services for the parish continue and also cover the parishes of St Giles', Shermanbury and St. Peter's, Woodmancote, which form its united benefice.

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 Caroline Mary (Peachey) Vernon Harcourt (1785-1871), Lady of the Manor was the daughter of John Peachey, 2nd Baron Selsey and lived at West Dean. [17] [18]

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Nairn & Pevsner 1965 , p. 320.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Wales 1999 , p. 57.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Salzman 1953 , pp. 205–210
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Salter 2000 , p. 128.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Whiteman & Whiteman 1998 , p. 138.
  6. 1 2 Vigar 1994 , p. 65.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Vincent 2005 , p. 26.
  8. ↑ Kelly 1994 , pp. 1–10
  9. ↑ Foster 2001 , p. 17.
  10. ↑ Munby 1984 , pp. 317–320
  11. 1 2 3 4 Churches Conservation Trust website 2011
  12. 1 2 3 Historic England. "St Wilfred's Chapel (sic), Rectory Lane, Church Norton, Selsey, Chichester, West Sussex (Grade II) (1026240)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 29 March 2013.
  13. 1 2 Nairn & Pevsner 1965 , p. 319.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Wilkinson 2003 , p. 6.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Coppin 2006 , p. 18.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Heron-Allen 1911 , Chapter XIV.
  17. ↑ "Caroline Mary Vernon Harcourt (née Peachey)". National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  18. ↑ Mee 1988, p. 29
  19. ↑ Pé 1998 , p. 8.
  20. ↑ Mee 1988 , p. 32
  21. 1 2 3 C of E website 2012
  22. ↑ Wilkinson 2003 , p. 7.
  23. ↑ Heron-Allen 1911 , p. 204
  24. ↑ "Complete List of our Churches: West Sussex". Churches Conservation Trust. 2011. Archived from the original on 29 March 2013. Retrieved 29 March 2013.

Bibliography

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.