St Giles on a Winter's Afternoon

Regular visitors to my Blog may recall that I first discovered this beautiful church and churchyard when I went searching for Snowdrops last February "following in the Footsteps of an Edwardian Lady." The churchyard is a haven for wildflowers and I made several visits last year.

I had an appointment in Knowle late this afternoon so on the way I stopped off to see if any Snowdrops were yet in flower in the churchyard.

As you can see from the photos the light was already going as it was mid-afternoon. The church is over 800 years old.

I couldn't find any Snowdrops in flower or bud but I did find one clump of primroses.

Many parts of the churchyard are "neglected" to encourage wildlife.

Flower display in the church porch

The Church Tower is known as The Tower of Atonement and was added in the late fifteenth century by Nicholas Brome, Lord of nearby Baddesley Clinton, as an act of atonement for murdering a local priest who he found in his parlour "chockings his wife under ye chinne". (Ferrars). I think I mentioned the blood stain in the library at Baddesley when I did a post on visiting Baddesley Clinton in December.

I spotted Moorhen and Mallard on the moat which surrounds nearby Packwood Hall and a kestrel in nearby fields.

I drove past Packwood House in the hope of finding some snowdrops there but no sign yet. The House and Gardens are shut until the 1st May as the National Trust is doing extensive work developing a new car park, cafe and Visitor Centre and I believe the house is being rewired too.