I'd left B, D and E on the High Street and had just 40 minutes to explore the church. First I spent 10 minutes looking round the exterior and churchyard feeling annoyed with myself that I hadn't read up on the church in Pevsner before visiting especially as the church was a lot larger than I envisaged!
The Church seen today has elements from 3 periods of English Church Architecture:
- Early English
- Decorated
- Perpendicular.
St Michael and All Angels is built on the site of the Saxon Minister. The detached tower, one of 7 in Herefordshire, was built in the late C12th with 2 Norman phases and re-modelling in the late C13th and early C14th. The tower has lancet windows and the spire was added 1732-3 by Nathaniel Wilkinson of Worcester.
The Nave West Doorway is late Norman. The arch has outer roll moulding and 2 inner orders of chevrons. There are 3 orders of shafts with foliage capitals including one with faces or masks biting onto the shafts.
Plants in Walls
The outer north transeptal chapel built 1330 - 40 contains large four light windows studded with ballflower. The windows (see below also) reminded me of those I had seen at Leominster Priory.
The stonemason may have worked also at Hereford Cathedral or Tewkesbury Abbey.
One suggestion has been made that the chapel was built to contain a relic of St Radegund whose cult was later associated with the church.
Door to the Tower
More of the ballflower windows (sorry my photos were uploaded in the wrong order!)
I then had 30 minutes to whizz round the church interior! But enough photos for one post so I'll save the interior for another post.
All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera (I don't particularly rate most of my photos but if anyone wishes to use one or more could they please email me first - thanks)
Reference:
Pevsners The Buildings of England Herefordshire by Alan Brooks and Nikolaus Pevsner (Yale University Press)
Decorated in Glory Church Building in Herefordshire in the Fourteenth Century by Nigel Saul Logaston Press
National Church Trust Website
