Herefordshire - Part 4: Friday 28th May - St Leonard's, Yarpole

 

Last year on one of our trips back from Croft Castle we detoured to the village of Yarpole but unfortunately it was difficult to park so I suggested to B we try again last Friday. I don't think he was overkeen as churches, you may have gathered, are not his "cup of tea"!

St Leonard's church is 14th century and contemporary with nearby St Michael and All Angels at Croft castle, and within a local group of parish churches in this part of North Herefordshire, that were owned in the Middle Ages by Leominster Priory - a susbidiary of Reading Abbey.

St Leonard's is listed Grade 2 in the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest. The 14th century church consists of a nave, chancel, north aisle and a detached late 12th century bell tower.

It was good to see another example of a churchyard which allows wild flowers to flourish in unmown areas.

There were plants for sale and later I persuaded B to leave the car to have a look and he bought a tray of French Marigolds for the garden and pots.

In case you can't read the inscription below I believe it reads "Ancients of Yarpole reinterred and blessed by the Bishop of Hereford 17th January, 2010".

I wandered round the exterior of the church first even though it was drizzling.

The detached bell tower pre-dates the church by more than a century. It is a complex timber structure and its four diagonally braced corner oak stanchions inside have been tree-ringed dated to 1195/6. This makes it the earliest of the Herefordshire detached towers.   The stone walls of the lower stage may be of a later date while the entrance door (see photo below) appears to be early 12th century but it has been altered.

12th century door to bell tower.

Although the shop in the church was closed at the time we visited, the church is really at the heart of the community and contains a village shop, post office and a cafe.

This was the result of a Re-ordering Project decided in 2005 and 2006. The project set out to respond to three reports:

A Church of England Report "Building Faith for our Future"

A survery of church attendance by the Bishop of Hereford and

The Yarpole Parish Plan which was based on consultation with the parish.  Its conclusions included a strong desire to keep a village shop and post office, the need for a social focus for the young and better facilities for the disabled and elderly and a greater use of the church as a meeting and function place.

Subsquent closure of the shop led to a temporary shop being set up behind the Bell Inn.  This was followed by a Re-ordering of the Church which involved new toilets being installed as well as under floor heating, space being created for a shop and post office and the creation of a gallery for meetings and a cafe and kitchen. The work was carried out in 2009 and has been a great success. The cafe is popular as a social meeting place and has won awards and the church has been used for art shows, conferences, theatre productions and private parties.

The shop may have been closed but you could still view the church interior although the chancel area was screened off as renovations are being carried out there.

Stained glass in the porch.

Some of the photos are a bit "iffy" as light levels were low!

During alteration works a detailed photographic record was kept by members of the Living History Group.  For the formal opening in 2010 the sculptor Mark Richards designed a photo montage from this record to produce the banners hung in the nave.  They proved to be so popular that they have been kept on a permanent basis.

The nave and chancel date back to the 14th century but the chancel was rebuilt by James Cranston 1852/6 and the north aisle was added to a design by GG Scott in 1863/4 when  the nave was restored . In addition there were the Re-ordering Works to create room for a shop and cafe etc.

Trefoil headed nave piscina.

The pulpit is from the Scott Restoration.

The font is a composite of various dates - the octagonal bowl is probably Norman, the stem 13th century and the base modern.

Memorial wall tablet to Herbert Kevill-Davies who died in 1915. Made of white marble.

Sorry two pics of same window - I couldn't work out how to delete a photo!

14th century nave roof

This bier had information on the Living History Project.  I can't imagine a lovelier village to live in with the project at the church and interesting history societies!

We did have a brief wander round the village and I will do a separate post on this - less photos I promise!!

I hope everyone is staying safe and well.

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera.

Reference:  Guide to Yarpole Church bought from the church

Herefordshire Pevsner (Architectural Guide to the Buildings of England)