Manaton Church of St Winifred Basics
Listed building grade 1
Regularly open
Address
Church of St Winifred
Manaton
Moretonhampstead
TQ13 9UJ
Geographical coordinates
50°37’04.1″N 3°46’09.0″W (enter these in your smartphone navigator)
Devonchurchland says…
Quite a charmer this one, the village almost as good as the church up here high on Dartmoor.
The church itself is so very moorland, so much granite taken straight from the surrounding area. The west doorway especially is worth a long, lingering gaze along with the tower.
The porch too, a two storey darling with a vaulted stone roof inside, a real rarity around here.
Inside there is so much fine work to play with.
The rood screen to start with, somewhat restored but retaining a lot of its original colour along with medieval saint paintings along the bottom. Around the doors are carved little figures of the apostles under miniature arches, totally delightful even if somewhat damaged.
In the chancel the altar back (reredos) is magical, painted by a major Victorian Pre-Raphaelite painter, with saints and three powerful depictions of the Annunciation, Nativity and Crucifixion.
Then there are some equally enchanting floral bench ends carved by the very talented Pinwill sisters, very nice indeed.
There are two stand outs in the stained glass field. The first is a beauty from 1920s by another famous artist, Sir Frank Brangwyn, a very striking and subtly beautiful window in memory of Esmund Hunt who died aged 19.
Then there are four saints in medieval glass, well worth a good look, all very characterful.
And while visiting this church it is worth taking in the stunning landscape around this village too, some of the best that Dartmoor has offer.
Outline
PLAN
- Nave,
- North and south aisles with chapels
- Chancel
- West tower;
- Storeyed porch to south
AGE
- C15
- Although probably in varying stages
- Chancel destroyed by lightning in 1779 and re-built
- Major church restorations in 1865 and 1923
- By Sir Charles Nicholson
- Further in 1925
BUILT FROM
- Mainly granite ashlar construction with rendered tower
- Dressed granite and volcanic stone detail to doors and windows.
- Nave and chancel have slate roofs
- Aisles have lead roofs
Exterior
WEST TOWER
- Unbuttressed
- 3 stages
- Embattled parapet
- Octagonal polygonal stair turret on south side
- Slit openings
- 2 simple 2-light belfry openings
- With 4 centred heads
- At ringing stage is small rectangular window opening
- On south side
- 3-light Perpendicular west window
- Appears to be unrestored
- Jambs are granite
- The rest volcanic stone
- West doorway has 2 centred granite arch
- Hollow and roll moulding
SOUTH AISLE
- Set back buttress
- Offsets
- Parapet with moulded granite battlements
- Continuing round the porch
- And polygonal rood stair turret projection
- Chamfered plinth extending right around the church
- On the eastern and western windows of the south aisle the tracery is C19 replacement
- Bath stone
- Central window is a complete C19 replacement
- Perpendicular style
- West end window has carved headstops to the hoodmould
- One of which has been mutilated
- Original hoodmould to easterly south aisle window
- Sill appears to have been raised when window was rebuilt
- Rood stair turret projects from south aisle
PORCH
- Set back buttresses
- Off-sets
- Moulded 2- centred arched granite doorway
CHANCEL
- East window late C19 3-light
- Decorated star tracery
- Hood-moulded with eared stops
- All in Bath stone
NORTH AISLE
- Windows have probably C20 replacement mullions and transoms
- Late C19 hoodmould
- Carved headstops on north aisle window
- Wall cut away below to allow access to priest door
- Adjoining in chancel wall
- Which has a rounded arch
- Hollow and roll moulding with stops
Interior
NAVE & AISLES
- 4 bay arcades to either aisle
- Pevsner A-type moulded piers
- Double chamfered 4-centred arches
- North arcade has shallow moulded capitals
- Cushion bases
- Keels at each corner.
- South arcade has deep moulded capitals
- Square bases
- No chancel arch
- Tower arch possible earlier than arcades
- Double hollow and roll moulding
- Fillet in between
- Cushion bases
- Granite doorway from south aisle to porch chamber
- 3 centred arched head
- Doorways to rood stairs
- From north and south aisles
- 4 centred arched heads
- Original hollow chamfered granite rear arches to windows
- Old plaster survives in north aisle
- May include mural decoration
- Church entirely re-seated in 1925
- Organ presented in 1921 by Philip Champernowne
- In memory of his son
- Mahogany and satinwood with inlay
- Classical details
- Late C19 pulpit and carved lectern
- Re-used linenfold panelling at west end of south aisle
- Probably late C16
- Simple C19 octagonal granite font
- Small painted royal coat of arms on board over tower arch
ROOFS
- Original roof to nave and north aisle
- Ceiled wagon roof with moulded ribs and wall-plates
- Carved bosses at intersections
- Fleurons set at intervals into wall-plates on either side of nave
- Last 2 bays of chancel roof rebuilt in C19
- To form ceilure over sanctuary
- Painted
- With carved bosses
- Early C20 panelled roof to south aisle
- Bosses on ribs
PORCH
- Stone vaulted porch
- Moulded ribs,
- Round shafts
- Moulded capitals and bases
- Which rest on granite seats either side
- Holy water stoup on south aisle wall partially blocked by addition of porch
- South door has 4 centred arch
- Hollow and round moulding
- Cushion stops
ROOD SCREEN AND PARCLOSE
- Very fine late C15
- Richly carved timber
- Extending across nave and both aisles
- Pevsner type A ogee-headed tracery
- Coving much rebuilt
- But a considerable amount of the original double cornice is retained
- Running vine pattern
- Much original painting survives
- Although covered in places by later graining
- Panels have painted figures
- In the jambs and arch of the central doorway are carved figures
- Underneath crocketed canopies
- The original doors survive
- Screen was restored in 1893
- Under the direction of Mr. Sedding of Plymouth
- Again in 1924-25
- Parclose screens to either chapel
- Square headed tracery
- Tudor arches to doorways
- Also with traces of ancient colouring,
- Possibly early C16
ALTAR BACK
- Reredos presented in 1897
- By Mrs. Ffrench in memory of the Ffrench family
- Designed by Mr. G. Prynne
- Panels painted by E. Prynne
- Richly carved and gilded wooden panels
- High Italian manner
- Painted with scenes of the Annunciation, Nativity and Crucifixion
- Crocketed canopies over the central panels
BELLS
- 3 medieval bells survive
- One being cast at the Exeter foundry of Robert Norton
- About the end of the C15
- 2 others, dedicated to St. Catherine and to St. George
- Probably cast locally by Johanna Hill
- Widow of a London bell-founder
- Their marks indicate a date between 1440-43
MONUMENTS
- Number of granite tomb stones in the floors
- Of the nave, aisles and chancel
- In the south aisle they are dated 1620, 1633, and 1672
- One dated 1698 in the nave
- 2 in the north aisle dated 1658 and 1676
- There is a third one with an illegible inscription
- But a carved heart in the centre
- In the chancel
- A marble slab in memory of Richard Eastchurch
- Rector, 1698
- Carved coat of arms
STAINED GLASS
- 4 C15 stained glass figures
- In top of north aisle window, second from the left
- Glass below dated 1883
- Western window of south aisle
- Has robust design in stained glass dated 1927
- East window of south aisle
- Has a geometric pattern dated 1860
Other information
Largely Perpendicular, aisles possibly added at slightly different stages.
Area around south aisle Chapel and priest door to chancel subject to considerable alterations; south chapel partly impinges on priest door.
This could be due either to the chapel being added on to the chancel or the rebuilding of the chancel after
1779.
Sources: Devon C19 Churches Project. Kelly’s Directory 1893 and 1926. H Fulford Williams: “Notes on Parish of Manaton”.
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