The Church of St Mary and St Hardulph, Breedon on the Hill, Leicestershire

 

Last week, on one of the cooler days!!!, D and I made a trip to Breedon Priory Church on Breedon Hill in Leicestershire. We were both keen to see the Saxon carvings in the church and the trip also gave D some much needed motorway driving practice.  The journey only took around 45 minutes. 

Breedon hill is a 122 metres upthrust of carboniferous limestone. The church is located in what was once an Iron Age Hill fort.  Luckily we didn't have to walk up the hill as there is a car park right by the church!

St Mary and St Hardulph

Dog roses in the hedgerow

There were wonderful views from the top of the hill.

 Monks from Medeshamsted (modern Peterborough) founded a monastery on Breedon Hill in the late C7.  Then Breedon was situated near the centre of Mercia (an Anglo-Saxon kingdom).  The priory became important in 731AD. Its abbot Tatwin was made Archbishop of Canterbury.  It continued to be important until the end of the C9 when Viking kings arrived at nearby Repton in AD873 and English politics led to warring kingdoms. These factors meant that monastic life had become impossible. The church survived until the Norman Conquest when it was completely rebuilt. Around 1123 it became an Augustinian Priory.  Much of the Anglo Saxon sculpture from the original Saxon church was incorporated into the interior and exterior walls of the new church ensuring their survival right up until the present day. 

Four saints are said to be buried at Breedon. One of these Ardulfus Rex is possibly Saint Hardulph to whom the church is dedicated.   It is possible Hardulph was King Eardwulf an early C9th king of Northumbria.

The church was restored in the C18th when it was in a ruinous state and further restorations occurred in the C19th and C20th.

We had a wander round the churchyard and exterior of the church initially. In the church I picked up a leaflet on a graveyard trail which I would love to do in the future. We missed quite a few items. such as the West Tower Norman door so I would really like to return.

Blocked up doorway

Entrance door to the church.

The octagonal C15th font which has tracery window designs, spoked floral wheels and family shields with heraldry.

Church interior looking along the nave with its box pews towards the chancel.

At this stage I missed some of the Saxon sculptures - Cross Shafts which were near the font! I also missed the squint!  The North Aisle also contains the Shirley Pew and monuments. After the Reformation the Shirley family were important landowners in the area and they created an area for family tombs and pew.

Shirley Pew

In 1627 Sir Henry Shirley, who lived at nearby Staunton Harald commemorated his marriage to Dorothy Devereaux, daughter of the executed Earl of Essex, with a spectacular pew.  It was built to demonstrate the status of him and his wife and was also ideal for a Catholic husband and wife to hide away from the Anglican priest. Catholics had to attend Anglican services to avoid being fined and being viewed as potential traitors to the crown. Sir Henry and Dorothy's marriage was not happy and she pursued him for maintenance payments and accused him of adultery.

The Shirley Monument and tombs

The large Shirley monument was built to commemorate George's wife Frances who had died three years earlier.  The tomb is dated 1598 and was made by the Hollemans workshop in Burton. Frances Shirley is depicted next to her husband with their five children, two of which died in infancy.  The epitaph to her in Latin praises her virtues and highlights her maternal links with the Dukes of Norfolk.  Through them she was related to two English Queens - Catherine Howard and Anne Boleyn.   She died in childbirth and George was apparently devastated although he married again in 1598 the year the tomb was erected.  At the base of the monument is a lifesize skeleton (cadaver) sculpture.  It could reflect George's grief over his wife's death and act as a warning to people that everyone is mortal.  But as he was a Catholic it may also be a reminder to pray for the soul after death.

Tomb of John Shirley depicted without his wife Jane as she had remarried.  The tomb cost £22 and was made by the Royley workshop in Burton who were not the finest craftsmen!

Chest tomb of Frances and Dorothy Shirley (d 1571).  At the base are mourners holding family shields.

This was the first Saxon sculpture we saw. This frieze of birds was only discovered in 1959.

Wooden C18th Pulpit

And finally we came to the area which contained most of the Anglo Saxon sculptures.  Breedon Priory Church has one of the largest and finest collections in England. They were created between c775 and 825 AD.  Many of them were strongly influenced by the Byzantine Empire centred on Constantinople.  The sculptures indicate that the monastery must have been very wealthy. Although the church contains many sculptures many others may have been lost.

There are four types of sculpture

• Crosses which once stood outside the church
• Shrines
• Panels showing saints which would have once have been part of a rectangular box containing the bones of a saint, possibly St Hardulph
• Friezes - the most common sculpture at Breedon - some are broad some narrow. Some are geometrical and others contain birds and beasts or people doing every day tasks.

The carvings are of the highest quality although it is not known for certain who carved them. Most of the stone used came from Barnack near Peterborough. It is possible the sculptors also worked at Peterborough which founded Breedon.  There are similiarities with the Hedda stone at Peterborough and with carvings at two other monasteries. Many of the carvings would have been painted and traces of paint remain on the wings of the angel.

The friezes over the main altar are slightly narrower than the others and are typical of Anglo Saxon sculpture.  Two different designs form elaborate scroll work using twisted vines and decorated with berries, trefoils and leaves.

Stone panels depicting saints. The eyes are deeply drilled and they would once have contained glass.

A very rare Anglo-Saxon representation of a woman.  Although lacking a halo it was probably the Virgin Mary.  Her right hand makes a blessing and in her left hand she carries a book.

This lion was D's favourite sculpture.  The carving is not of the same quality as the others and it is one of the few not to be carved from Barnack limestone.  It is encased in lead and was located outside the church until the 1920's and is, therefore, badly weathered.

 A leg and wine jar is depicted here and it is believed to represent the wedding at Cana when Jesus miraculously turned water into wine.

This panel shows a saint at the foot of a cross at a crucifixion.  

The "Breedon Angel" was my favourite sculpture. The Angel is shown as stepping out of the frame with one hand raised in a Greek blessing. It is believed to be the Angel Michael and still has traces of paint on its wings. It has been in its current position in the church since the C11th.

Frieze on the nave wall

Beacon in the church car park.

We stopped off in the village of Breedon for a late pub lunch at the Holly Bush Inn. 

War Memorial on the village green.

We missed the C18th village lock up which we later found out was located by the other pub in the village.  I do hope we can return as there is so much to see in the church and village and as usual I managed to miss a lot of features in the church.

Wind Turbine seen on the way home.

All photos taken by D and me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. D's camera battery went flat just after we arrived! (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks)

Reference: Church Guide Books and Information Boards in the church.