Church of the Month

Categories: Church of the Month

The featured church for December 2018 is the church of St Edmund, Mansfield Woodhouse.

The church comprises a west tower with broach spire, nave, north and south aisles, chancel, vestry, chantry chapel,and north and south porches.

In 1304 a disastrous fire swept the entire village and destroyed much of the church. King Edward I granted Sherwood Forest timber for the rebuilding of the village and church to be rebuilt.

There were major restorations of the building in 1848-53 (by W. B. Moffat) and 1877-78 (by T.C. Hine).

The tower dates from the 13th century and has a well proportioned broach spire. At the top of the spire is a most unusual second tier of small dormer windows. Pevsner commented that they are ‘so close to the tip and so tiny that they look from a distance like a spiky finial.’

The four-bay nave arcades date from the 14th century and were heavily restored in the mid-19th century. Each arcade has ‘3 filleted clustered piers and 2 matching responds, with water holding bases and moulded capitals.’ The tower arch also dates from the 14th century and is double-chamfered and rebated, with hood mould and filleted responds.

Features of historical interest inside the church include the 17th century Digby Memorial, an octagonal stone pulpit (featuring a corbel with a carving depicting Eve eating the apple, with a serpent entwined around her), a 14th century double semi-effigial slab featuring an knight and his lady, 17th century stained glass showing the arms of Roland Dand in a south aisle window, and individually carved poppy-heads on the pew ends dating from the early 1850s.

