I think that gothic architecture is so beautiful. Every gothic building that I’ve ever seen looks different from the others even though they all follow the basic elements.
Lovely little church. Watching the news on you tube is very depressing. Turning to your channel is such a blessed relief. So many old churches still exist . This one is a gem.
How interesting Allan. I love your discussion of the small details and your placing these elements in history. There are some wonderful churches still standing in Britain so I, and many others I'm sure, will look forward to more mini tours. Thanks!
Thanks for watching, I am glad you found it interesting. These small church buildings are never dull and you don't ever know what you are going to find it - every one is a surprise.
Any organist who has to play a harmonium, like the one featured in this church, will tell you that they don't have to visit a gym! Playing one is a hell of a workout! Believe me!!
@@allanbarton LOL! It's a lot like pedalling a bicycle. You simply get going and don't stop! Apart from the strength needed you do have to be careful not to pedal to the rhythm of what you're playing, otherwise the wind pressure isn't constant and you literally sag in the middle!!
What an absolute gem. Wish I had access to your channel a few years ago prior to my 1 month trip around England where I visited many beautiful churches but could have added so many more to my itinerary with the info you provide. Next time :-) Thanks from Australia.
What an adorable old church. Only in England would something like this be found. The decorative trim around the windows and doors are gorgeous. I am so happy this church has been saved and I assume still used. Thank you for your wonderful videos.
I live in a neighbouring village, and I recommend that, if planning a visit, you combine it with the open gardens event, details of which can be found online. It's a very pretty village with a nice pub.
These little old churches built originally for Catholic rite but painted white as can be with clear windows and no altar just a table,very very protestant indeed ,but that wheel painting found beneath the distemper and very small amounts of coloured glass in the tracery of the east window give away its old colourful medieval Catholic past.
I love those small English old churches. Often with peaceful old churchyards surrounding them. I specifically remember the one in Lewes, Kent. Will never forget it. Greetings from The Hague.
I noticed that the name inscribed onto the communion table wasn’t just scratched there quickly but actually carved, each letter with thin and thick lines (resembling letters chiseled into stone), like it took some time to do. Like he wasn’t in any rush or worried he’d be caught. So odd.
Thank you for a very interesting video and sad, when you consider what was likely destroyed since the mid 17th century, particularly by the puritan zealots of the likes of William Dowsing. In the quest to rid the region of papist idolatry, East Anglian churches suffered greatly as a consequence of systematic destruction and of stained-glass and mutilation of sculptures. The successive removal continued well into the 18 & 19th centuries. We can only lament the great loss of the Stained-glass, if you look at what remains, say in the East Window of the grand church of St Peter Mancroft in Norwich. Even memorial brasses didn't escape being crow-barred off of their matrices. Walk down the aisles of the nave of Lincoln Minster, which are paved with an almost numberless amount of empty slabs that once contained brasses. Ghosts of a past long gone, but not forgotten...
It is tragic, when you think how colourful and elaborate this interior would have been, it has a simple charm but that is not how it was intended to be. A lot of glass, brasses, monuments were lost after the Commonwealth just through sheer apathy. Medieval glass could be picked up for pence in plumber's workshops, where it had been replaced we clear glazing which was more economical than repairing medieval glass. In Norfolk here are so many more brass indents than there are extant brasses. I was at Fincham on the same day as Barton Bendish - one brass remains, but there were four matrices that I found under the carpets.
Funny you should say that I visited Frenze the next day. Sadly I didn't record a video as there was someone else photographing the brasses and I didn't wish to disturb them.
@@allanbarton I been there several times on family history research. It’s a lovely atmospheric little place. The wife of a very long-dead cousin lies under the brass opposite the main door!
Allan it’s so exciting when you open the door! 😊 I was also wondering if most of the churches are open for visitors in the daytime and do you have to get permission to film for your channel?
It is, you never know what you are going to find inside a medieval church. Yes, the vast majority of the churches are open every day in this country, which is great. This church is now redundant and is owned by the Churches Conservation Trust who keep most of their buildings open for visitors.
Sis you ever get to the bottom of the arches? They look quite strange - they lack symmetry and seem to have been carved/built into the buttress as if the whole arch had been originally more to one side.
Is this church ever still used? If it is, it needs a good cleaning. The roof looks like it needs some maintenance…. A whole lot more could be said about this church, the churchyard, and the community. Do tell us more if you can! It’s a delightful building. 😊
Sadly not, there is still another church in the village that remains open. This one is maintained by the Churches Conservation Trust who look after redundant church buildings and keep them open for visitors and private prayer.
Absolutely, St Mary’s is in need of repairs and re-thatch but being off the beaten track it does not attract many visitors or donations. My husband and I cleaned the church on Easter Sunday and will do so again this week at least to keep it decent. I have to say its acoustics is great and I made several non-commercial recordings there. It is located on the fringe of the village, does not have water/electricity supply, so it is difficult to use it as a concert venue but its exquisite atmosphere and location are the main reasons of my frequent visits and music-making. The parish church is dedicated to St Andrew - just to correct the information.
