Clayhidon Church of St Andrew Basics
Listed building grade 1
Regularly open
Address
Church of St Andrew
Clayhidon
Cullompton
EX15 3TJ
Geographical coordinates
50°56’01.2″N 3°11’41.8″W (enter these in your smartphone navigator)
Devonchurchland says…
Do not fooled by the simple rural around and inside this church, like all our Devon churches it has its own magic for the seeking out… Not least the parish itself, a glorious deep Devon beauty snuck into the beautiful Blackdown Hills, well worth a voyage of discovery in themselves.
Inside there are fine medieval roof bosses in the chancel, now golden and none the worse for that. Simple (again!) and a delight.
The early 16th century pulpit is another delight, beautiful carved with flowing, organic foliage, along with some other very fine medieval carvings carefully preserved, Not a lot, it is true, but quality does not need a lot.
Popping back a few centuries, there is goodly 13th century font, very handsome indeed.
Another real treasure is here is the preservation of a complete set of 1840s furnishings – benches, stalls, sanctuary rails, commandment boards, sanctuary floor tiling and patterned glass to chancel and coloured glass to the west window – that is a fascinating glimpse of the taste and religious change of those days. The highlight surely is a very elegant west gallery of that age, supported on cast iron columns to give an impression of floating.
But after all that there is still this lovely church with a 13th century nave and chancel and later additions to delight us with its structure and position, not to mention the beautiful parish… again.
Outline
PLAN
- West tower
- Nave
- South aisle
- South porch
- Chancel
AGE
- Fabric of nave and chancel probably late C13
- South aisle and west tower C15
BUILT FROM
- Coursed rubble chert and limestone
- Roughcast west tower
- Limestone and Ham Hill stone dressings
- Slate roof
- Crested ridge tiles to nave only
Exterior
WEST TOWER
- 3 stages
- Moulded stringcourse and plinth
- Battlemented with corner pinnacles (some truncated)
- South-east square-section stair turret
- Separate south porch with gable-ended roof
- 2-light belfry openings
- 3-light west window
- Perpendicular
- West doorway with chamfered arch
- Door itself possibly contemporary
- Albeit heavily restored
SOUTH SIDE
- 5 bays including porch
- All 3-light Perpendicular windows
- Largely replaced externally by Ham Hill stone in the C19
- Stair turret to rood loft between bays 4 and 5
PORCH
- Diagonal buttresses
- Moulded outer arch with sundial in gable wall
- Dated 1782
- Inner doorway C15
- Composite moulded arch
- Square-headed above with foliated spandrels
CHANCEL
- Blocked priest’s door
- 2- and 4-light windows
- Perpendicular
- Heavily restored
NORTH SIDE
- Tall square-headed window
- Probably early C16
- Two 3-light Perpendicular C19 window
- Concave moulded stone wall plate
Interior
VARIOUS
- Chancel arch, double chamfered and possibly late C13
- Also of this date the font
- Ham Hill stone
- Circular bowl
- Moulded with fleurons to its base
- Octagonal stem
- Moulded plinth with separate bases for detached shafts
- Now disappeared
- Tower arch with concave moulding
- Wagon roof to nave and chancel,
- That to the nave unceiled in the 1960’s
- Ribs, bosses and wall plate all of the C15
- Door to rood loft (now destroyed) early C16
- Piscina and credence table under pointed arch looks C15
- Some of the inner tracery and window arches look original
- C15 work.
- Mid-C18 panelled west gallery
- C13 encaustic tiles now set under altar table
- South arcade of 5 bays
- Wavey moulding to piers
- Capitals to principal shafts only
MONUMENTS
- Tomb recess
- Half an effigy of a priest
- Presumably reset in the 1840’s
- Also late C13
- Possibly represents one of the 2 members of the Hydon family
- Who provided the first incumbents
Other information
A complete set of 1840s furnishings (benches, stalls, sanctuary rails, commandment boards, sanctuary floor tiling and patterned glass to chancel and coloured glass to west window, forms an important group.
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