Dormston St Nicholas, Worcestershire

When tramping around the rural churches of any county food is of the essence, and that day I had stopped my car in a narrow lay-by on the A422 west of Inkberrow and munched my way through a cheese and onion pasty and a Snickers bar.  The nearby farm gate read Quarry Pit Farm and I wondered what type of quarry it had been in its day.  There was nothing marked on the map and so that would remain an unanswered question. 

Three quarters of a mile after lunch I turned right and north into a narrow lane that led uphill to the hamlet of Dormston.  I had heard of its church and even though I grew up just three miles as the crow flies to the west I had never seen it!  And it’s easy to miss for it is a very tiny parish.

Dormston (Deormodesealdtune in the 10^th century and Dormestun just a hundred years later) is first mentioned in history when, and we don’t know the exact year, King Edgar the First (“The Peaceful” 943-975) gave lands in the village to the monks of Pershore Abbey some sixteen miles away.  As an aside Edgar was not a very popular man.  He was described as “extremely small both in stature and bulk.”[1.]

The County History describes Dormston as “a small parish, which contains only 820 acres, lies on the road from Worcester to Alcester, which runs through it on the south. On a road branching north from this is the small and scattered village, which consists of a few old cottages grouped round the church.” [2.] A short but accurate visual description. 

Noakes twins Dormston with the neighboring parish of Kington, describing their populations as “limited and straggling.”  Of interest he also notes the poverty of the place. “Kington is what is called a " discharged rectory," value only £100; while Dormstone, a "perpetual curacy exonerated," is but about £50! If both livings were held by the same gentleman (as they should be) he would be by no means a subject for envy as a pluralist!” [3.]

Approaching the church the first things one sees is the black and white tower which is of 15^th century origin, and leans ever-so-slightly. (Or was it me?)  Mee describes these churches with half-timbered constructions as “Forest Churches” [4.] but I’ve looked and dug and for the life of me can’t figure out where he got that term.  But who am I to argue with the venerable Arthur Mee?

It’s a glorious church inside and out!  Avoiding architectural terminology I might describe the interior as “light and messy!”  Large, plain glass windows, almost disproportionate in size to the south wall, catch the sun perfectly.  This is very much a 14^th century nave – the chancel was rebuilt much later in the 19^th century but is in keeping with the older lines. The rear pews of the church, which on that day held a variety of second-hand books for sale watched over by a teddy bear, were described in the guide leaflet as “old” but no date was offered.  I suggest that they were early 16^th century.  

The font is plain and 15^th century, but parish history records that a part of a Norman font bowl was found buried under it, pointing to a much earlier church building on this site. 

There is a rather fine example of a Tudor age chair in the sanctuary.

And there is a wonderful story about the dedication of the church. For years the name of the patron saint was unknown, but an erstwhile vicar of Dormston, the Reverend TP Wadley (dates unknown at time of writing but I will look further) came across a number of papers which included the last will and testament of a Thomas Hemmyg, 1512, who left a bushel of barley to:

“Eccile sci nycolla de Dormystun.”  (To the church of St Nicholas at Dormston.)  And so the name was given, or re-given at that moment. [5.]

Three gems?  Well, firstly the tower.  Whatever its correct architectural name it is quite magnificent.  Secondly the late 14^th century roof beams are superb.  

 

And finally the invisible but audible treasures that are three bells in the tower which have been rung down the centuries.  Dated and inscribed they are:

God Save Our King 1640

Jesus Be Our Speed 1631

Sancta Maria Ora Pro Nobis (15^th century with Lombardic letters.)

O that they would have been rung on the day of my visit!

[1.] Gesta Regnum Anglorum.  William of Malmesbury 1080-1143.

[2.] A History of the County of Worcester.  Volume 4. 1924. Pages 65-68.

[3.] Noake's Guide to Worcestershire 1868. Page 233.

[4.] Worcestershire.  Arthur Mee. 1968 New Edition. (The King’s England.)

[5.] Parish History Leaflet

OS Grid reference:  SO9857

St Mary the Virgin, Longdon, Worcestershire

If one's passion is tramping to and around old churches then there are the occasional moments when one is taken aback by the first sight of the building. It's that exact moment when the corner is turned by car or on foot and the church is glimpsed over a hedge or a gate. Sometimes it's a “Hmm” moment; at others (such as my first sighting of Burgh St Peter in Norfolk*) the mind does a double take and tries to make sense of what the eyes are relaying to it. And then there are those “Oh my!” experiences. And on a rather dark and showery day in May 2014, Longdon St Mary the Virgin was just one of those.

The village of Longdon is about four miles south of Upton upon Severn on the B4211. The old “Gloucester High Road.”A quiet road even in the 21^st century. Mee says of the village: Here among the willows and ditches we are in the heart of England, yet we are in a place where the sea once came. Once Longdon Marsh was part of the tidal estuary of the Severn, and maritime plants are still found growing here. [1]

Noakes, in his 1868 Guide to Worcestershire, says nothing about the church (undergoing building work that very year) and village but writes at length (for him that's about eight lines) about the controversies surrounding the draining of the marshes, a contemporary issue: The proposed drainage of which has long threatened to drain the pockets of everybody in the neighbourhood. [2] And I bet they still talk about it in the Hunter's Inn.

The church stands on a tall bank to the left of a bend in the road in the centre of the village. There are a few parking spots and two points of access to the churchyard. Both involve steep climbs. Before today's culture when we fuss and fret about disabled access I wonder how they coped back in the day when there were far more immobile people. I suggest they coped very well as neighbour looked after neighbour to the point of carrying them to church!

If you've reached this far into the text I recommend scrolling back to the top and looking at the church again. Done? I will continue.

The “Oh my!” for me was the immediate realisation that St Mary's has three distinct architectural sections that stand in stark contrast to each other. Mediaeval, Georgian and neo-Norman (Victorian age.) The tower, with its octagonal stone spire, is 14^th century. It was attached to a similar age church, but that either fell down or was demolished. The whole of the church was redesigned and rebuilt in Georgian brick with stucco on the south wall in the 1780s. This included a small chancel for the altar – but that's pretty much in keeping with the churchmanship of the day.

A century later at the beginning of the fourth decade of Her Majesty Victoria, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith, Empress of India, a new chancel was built in honour of a new vicar.  (Why don't they do that these days?)

The 1868 chancel is in 12th century style with six round headed windows and a blue ceiling. And it's absolutely gorgeous inside and out!  It's not often that I get enthusiastic over Victorian church architecture but this example of replica building is truly outstanding.

Three gems at Longdon St Mary?  Well, the building itself - a wonderful, historical hybrid that makes no effort to harmonise. Then there's a 12th century font base with four stone shafts with scalloped capitals. (The top is modern, cubist, and actually quite attractive.)  And finally the monuments - notably a huge 16th century brass to William Brugge in full armour,  erstwhile  Lord of the Manor by marriage (he was a bit of a Johnny foriegner back then) and his wife Alice.  At her feet is a small dog with bells on its collar!

And a raspberry?  Just the 1970s (and I'm guessing the date here) nave lights.  They are better suited to a B movie science fiction set.

[1] Worcestershire.  Arthur Mee. 1938. The King's England p125.  1968 Revised Edition.
[2] Guide to Worcs. p 255
Ordnance Survey reference:  SO837362

* More on that in a later post!