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Moulton Parish Church and Churchyard – History

Taken from 2021 Quinquennial Report.

 

TAKEN FROM:

PEVSNER THE BUILDINGS OF ENGLAND: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE MOULTON ST PETER AND ST PAUL.

Of ironstone. There was an aisleless Norman nave, of which the arch of one window has been exposed inside. To this about the end of the C12 was added a N aisle. This has low square piers with four demi-shafts and one-step round arches. About 1300 much was done to alter and enlarge the church. Witness of this is the S arcade, with octagonal piers and double-chamfered arches. Of c. 1300 also a number of windows (intersected tracery, Y-tracery) and the arches to the N and S chapels. Dec W tower with Perp, ashlar-faced top storey. Pairs of two-light bell-openings with transom. Quatrefoil frieze. Battlements. Perp also the windows in the S aisle. Rood loft openings on both sides of the nave. There was quite a harsh restoration 1884-9 by Law & Son.

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But we must return to the N arcade, with its two tall masonry plinths of the first and second piers from the W - the puzzle of the church. The usual explanations are that these plinths refer either to the original arcade and that there was a change of plan during rebuilding, or that they refer to a scheme to rebuild the arcade which was never finished. Neither of these seems satisfactory. Why is one circular and the other octagonal? Why are they so crude and at different heights? The upper sections of the piers do seem to be supported by the plinths, not encased by them. Is it conceivable that they are the remnants of masonry infilling when there were box pews in the nave, and were just tidied up in 1884? The whole arcade looks a bit sharp and its capitals somehow do not look quite right for the late C12. The pier of the chancel S arcade also looks a little odd and its capital looks possibly post-medieval. It is very similar to the capitals of the nave arcade at St. Giles's church in Northampton, which are known to be early C17.

 

The spire was taken down or fell down in the C17, and this must make one wonder whether there might have been damage to the arcade. There seems no easy explanation and it remains one of the county's church puzzles. - FONT (N chapel). C18. Plain baluster, small alabaster gadrooned bowl. - COMMUNION RAIL. C18. - SCULPTURE. Fragment of a Saxon cross-shaft. A beast biting its tail. Interlace below. - STAINED GLASS. Chancel E, 1899, the Last Supper by E. R. Suffling. N chapel, memorial to Philadelphus Jeyes, the chemist (i.e. Jeyes Fluid), 1931 by Percy Bacon. S aisle W, two panels of St Peter and St Paul by Heaton, Butler & Bayne. - MONUMENT. Slab in N aisle for Saunderson, 1689 with painted shield. Curious mural tablet in S aisle for Edward Gee †1799, but very Rococo in concept.

 

The Church is listed in the following books and journals:

Pevsner, N, Cherry, B, The Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, (1973), 307

Legal:

This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.

 

CHURCH OF ST PETER AND ST PAUL - Church Building

Grade 1 Building

Listed Entry Number:                1356515.

Date First Listed;                         2nd November 1954 

Location:                                          CHURCH STREET, Moulton NN3 7SW

National Grid Reference:        SP78358 66419

Church. C12 and C13. Squared coursed lias and limestone ashlar with lead roof. Aisled nave and chancel and west tower. Chancel projects only slightly from east end of the north and south aisles and has 4 light Perpendicular window with 4 centred head.

Shallow gabled roof with ashlar parapets and finial. South aisle of 4window range of three 4light windows with 4centred heads to right, and one 2 light window with Y tracery to left. 4  light east window with Y tracery and 2 light C20 west window.

Lean to roof with ashlar gable parapets. South porch to left has double chamfered arch with corbelled responds. Shallow pitched roof with ashlar gable parapets. North aisle of 3 window range of two 3 light windows with reticulated tracery to left and one 2 light window with Y tracery to right

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North doorway with double chamfered pointed arch. 3 light east window with reticulated tracery and 2 light west window with Y tracery. Gabled roof with ashlar parapets. Nave clerestory of 5 window range of 2 light square headed windows. Shallow pitched roof with ashlar parapets with animals at eastern corners.

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West tower of 4 stages. West door has double chamfered pointed arch. 2 light west window with quatrefoil in second stage. 2 light bell chamber openings with quatrefoils to each face of third stage.

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Fourth stage limestone ashlar with twin 2 light bell chamber openings with quatrefoils and cusped transoms to each face. Quatrefoil freize above with castellated parapet and short pinnacles at corners.

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Interior: chancel, 2 bay south arcade of late C13 double chamfered pointed arches with octagonal piers. Similar one bay north arcade. C13 double chamfered chancel arch. Nave originally C12, aisles, has late C12 four bay arcade of one step round arches with square piers having 4 demi shafts. The piers to the left have C13 octagonal casing at bases. C13 four bay south arcade of double chamfered

pointed arches with octagonal piers. Tall tower arch has 4 chamfers. C19 king post and tie beam roofs.

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Stained glass to east and south west windows. C14 piscina to right of altar. Communion rail C18 with turned balusters. Font C18, plain baluster with small gadrooned bowl, also C20 stone font. Sculpture attached to south wall is fragment of Saxon cross shaft depicting a beast biting its tail. Monument above is oval marble tablet with scrolled surround to Edmund Gee died 1799 and wife Elizabeth. North wall inscribed tablet with heraldic decoration to Saunderson family probably C18; reset. Fragments of C13 masonry and stone coffin lid below. Spire removed in 1702.

 

Taken from 2021 Quinquennial Report, (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire)

 

CHURCHYARD OF ST PETER AND ST PAUL

Tomb A

Chest tomb. Mid C18. Limestone ashlar. Separated into panels with plain pilasters. Inscriptions in panels, now partially illegible commemorate members of the Worley family; Joseph Worley died 1769. Prominent position in the churchyard and included for group value with Church of St. Peter and St. Paul (q.v.) and chest tomb approx. 8 metres east of the chancel (q.v.).

Listed                                                  Grade 2 Building

Listed Entry Number:                1356516.

Date First Listed;                         19th July 1985 

Location:                                          CHEST TOMB APPROXIMATLEY 4 METRES EAST OF CHANCEL OF CHURCH OF ST PETER AND ST PAUL, CHURCH STREET, Moulton NN3 7SW

National Grid Reference:        SP78358 66418

 

Tomb B

Chest tomb. Probably late C18, Limestone ashlar with panelled sides. Inscription in panels now partially illegible commemorating members of the Marsh family from 1658 to 1780. Prominent position in the churchyard.

Listed                                                  Grade 2 Building

Listed Entry Number:                1039124.

Date First Listed;                         19th July 1985 

Location:                                          CHEST TOMB APPROXIMATELY 8 METRES EAST OF CHANCEL OF CHURCH OF ST PETER AND ST PAUL, CHURCH STREET

National Grid Reference:        SP78358 66421

 

Tomb C

Chest tomb. Late C18. Lias ashlar. Sides divided into plain panels with panelled pilasters. Inscription illegible. Prominent position in the churchyard and included for group value with the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul.

Listed                                                  Grade 2 Building

Listed Entry Number:                1057659.

Date First Listed;                         19th July 1985 

Location:                                          CHEST TOMB APPROXIMATLEY 4 METRES SOUTH OF CHANCEL OF CHURCH OF ST PETER AND ST PAUL, CHURCH STREET, Moulton NN3 7SW

National Grid Reference:        SP78358 66418

 

 

Tomb D
Chest tomb. Mid C18. Limestone ashlar. Central rectangular panels flanked by oval panels some with relief figures. Various inscriptions to members of the Lichfield family from mid C18 to mid C19 now partially illegible.


Listed                                                  Grade 2 Building

Listed Entry Number:                1067862.

Date First Listed;                         19th July 1985 

Location:                                          CHEST TOMB APPROXIMATLEY 13 METRES SOUTH OF SOUTH WEST CORNER CHURCH OF ST PETER AND ST PAUL, CHURCH STREET, Moulton NN3 7SW

National Grid Reference:        SP78358 66418

Moulton Parish Church and Churchyard – Architectural History Explained
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The Church of St Peter and St Paul in Moulton is a Grade 1 listed building with a rich architectural history, featuring elements from the Norman period through to the 19th century. Below, technical architectural terms from the original description are explained for clarity.

 

Building Materials and Structure

  • Ironstone, lias, limestone ashlar: These are types of stone used in the church’s construction. Ironstone is a durable, reddish-brown stone; lias is a blue-grey limestone; ashlar refers to finely dressed (cut and smoothed) stone blocks used for a neat, uniform appearance.

  • Lead roof: The roof is covered with sheets of lead, a traditional waterproofing material for historic churches.

 

Nave and Aisles

  • Nave: The central part of the church where the congregation sits. Originally, the nave was aisleless (without side aisles) in the Norman period (11th–12th centuries).

  • Aisle: A passageway running parallel to the nave, separated by a row of columns or piers. The north aisle was added around the late 12th century (C12).

 

Arches and Piers

  • Arch: A curved structure spanning an opening. The original nave had a Norman window arch, still visible inside.

  • Pier: A vertical support, similar to a column but often larger and more solid. The north aisle features low square piers with four demi-shafts (half-columns attached to the pier) and one-step round arches (arches with a single, rounded curve).

  • Double-chamfered arch: An arch whose edges are cut away in two angled steps, giving a more refined profile, typical of the 13th century (C13).

  • Octagonal pier: A pier with eight sides, commonly used in Gothic architecture.

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Windows and Tracery

  • Tracery: The decorative stonework in the upper part of a window.

    • Intersected tracery: Stone bars crossing each other, forming patterns.

    • Y-tracery: Stonework forming a ‘Y’ shape, common in early Gothic windows.

    • Reticulated tracery: Net-like, with repeated geometric shapes, often seen in later medieval windows.

  • Perpendicular window: A style from the late Gothic period (14th–16th centuries), characterized by strong vertical lines.

  • Four-light window: A window divided vertically into four sections, or ‘lights’.

  • Quatrefoil: A decorative element shaped like a four-leaf clover, used in window openings and friezes (horizontal bands).

 

Towers and Roofs

  • West tower: The tower at the west end of the church, built in the Decorated Gothic (Dec) style, with a later Perpendicular (Perp) ashlar-faced top storey1.

  • Bell chamber: The upper part of the tower where the bells are hung, with openings to let the sound out.

  • Battlements: A parapet (low protective wall) with regular gaps, originally for defence but later decorative.

  • Pinnacles: Small, pointed towers at the corners of the parapet.

  • King post and tie beam roofs: A timber roof structure with a central vertical post (king post) and horizontal beams (tie beams) for support, typical of 19th-century restoration.

 

Arcades and Chapels

  • Arcade: A row of arches supported by piers or columns, separating the nave from the aisles or chapels. The south arcade (c. 1300) has octagonal piers and double-chamfered arches.

  • Chancel: The area around the altar, at the east end of the church, often separated by an arch or arcade.

  • Chancel arch: The arch dividing the nave from the chancel.

  • Rood loft openings: Small doorways or arches in the nave walls, once giving access to a gallery (rood loft) above the chancel arch, where a large cross (rood) was displayed.

 

Other Features

  • Font: A basin for baptisms. The church has an 18th-century (C18) font with a baluster (shaped support) and a gadrooned (decoratively fluted) bowl, as well as a later stone font.

  • Piscina: A stone basin near the altar for washing communion vessels, dating from the 14th century (C14).

  • Communion rail: A railing in front of the altar, with turned (lathe-shaped) balusters from the 18th century.

  • Sculpture: Includes a fragment of a Saxon cross-shaft (upright stone), carved with a beast biting its tail and interlaced patterns1.

  • Stained glass: Decorative coloured glass windows, with notable examples from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

  • Monuments: Memorial tablets and slabs, some with heraldic (coat of arms) decoration and elaborate surrounds, dating from the 17th to 18th centuries.

 

Restoration and Changes

  • The church underwent a significant restoration in 1884–9, which altered some medieval features.

  • The original spire was removed in the early 18th century (1702), possibly after falling or being dismantled due to damage.

 

Churchyard Tombs

  • Chest tomb: A large, box-shaped stone tomb, often with decorative panels and pilasters (flat columns projecting from the wall). Several Grade II listed chest tombs from the 18th century commemorate local families.

  • Ashlar: Again, refers to the finely dressed stone used for these tombs.

This summary clarifies the technical terms used to describe the architecture and features of Moulton Parish Church and its churchyard, providing context for their historical and stylistic significance.

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