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The Church of St Margaret Hardwick

Civil parish of Shelton

Norfolk

Fig. 1. South elevation

Conservation-Based Research & Analysis Report

NHER: 10189 Hundred: Depwade Deanery: Depwade South Norfolk Council Stephen Heywood FSA Historic Environment Service Norfolk County Council

4 July 2013

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Introduction This report accompanies the investigative stage of the English Heritage grant procedure towards the repairs to the roof. It consists of an illustrated history of the church concentrating on the roof. Exterior The church of St Margaret has an aisleless nave and ruined west tower of the 12th century, a later medieval chancel flush with the nave. The fabric is of flint with ashlar dressings and the continuous roof is covered with Broseley plain tiles of two slightly different colours (fig. 1). A faculty was obtained in 1895 to sell the lead off the roof and cover with Broseley tiles. The different colours of the tiles may relate to a repair. Ladbrooke shows the lead nave roof with pantiles to the chancel (Fig. 2).

Fig 2. Ladbrooke’s lithograph of circa 1820

The Norman or Romanesque nave is characterised by neatly coursed large broken flints. Quite large areas of early render survive. The west quoins of the nave are of rubble (fig 3) and there is a blocked window between the existing south windows and is probably double splayed (fig.1). There are signs of a second early window next to the east pitch of the porch roof. The round tower lost its western side and top in 1770 and a lean-to boiler room (not inspected) has been accommodated in the space. Just above this is a relieving arch of flint which may relate to a taller tower arch existing before the fall). The tower has bold quadrant pilasters in the angles between the nave and the west wall of the contemporary tower (fig.3). In the late Middle Ages the nave was heightened and given that chancel windows are lower set than in the nave, its walls were raised at a later date but before 1820 in line with Ladbroke’s lithograph (fig. 1).

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Fig. 3. Tower and porch from south west

The south doorway is of great interest (figs 3 & 4). The two-centred arch has a billet-moulded hood on animal head corbels and supported on a pair of nook shafts with crudely carved scalloped capitals. At the springings of the arch the chamfered edge ends with a single dogtooth (Fig. 4). This type of ornament does not occur in the decorative repertoire until well into the second half of the 12th century and thus dates the nave and tower to the later 12th century. The pointed arch lends support to the dating but is not on its own particularly significant. The billet moulding on the hood is a typical earlier 12th century ornament demonstrating the transitional quality of the doorway. The animal head corbels are particularly expressive and an odd extra head accompanies the east corbel. The nave has two pairs of two-light 14th century windows with multi-cusped circular vessicas (figs 1 & 5). There is a remarkably basic north doorway with rubble jambs, a semi-circular head and simple freestone imposts. The chancel has five windows each of a different design. Of particular interest is the late Geometric north east window with ogee heads to the two lights forming a pair of trefoils. The east window is a 19th- century repair probably part of the works carried out in 1881 when the large sloping buttress shown in Ladbroke (fig. 2) was removed. There is a priest’s door on the south side. The remains of plaster with scored joints survives on the chancel. It is a post medieval stucco.

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Fig. 4. Detail

Fig. 3 south doorway

Fig. 5. North side

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Fig. 6. Porch

There is a very fine porch probably of 16th century date. It is of knapped flint with brick dressings and decorative chequered facing . Interior The remarkable screen forms the division between nave and chancel along with a cambered beam above (fig. 7). The painting to the top section has the names of the

Fig. 7. Interior looking east

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churchwardens and a date, 1661. This presumably dates the removal of the rood loft and the fabrication of the present top section out of the salvaged timber (Fig 8). The stairs to the former loft remain on the north side.

Fig. 8. Detail of screen. Richard Tilbrook

Fig. 9. Roof structure looking east (May 2006)

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The roof structure is late medieval and of high quality running uninterrupted from east to west with only slight changes of treatment over the chancel (fig. 9). The roof consists of twelve quite closely spaced principal arch-braced trusses which spring from short wall posts connected to each other by 4-centred wall arches. The curve of the braces are continued to just below the ridge through a small additional timber thereby creating a fine two-centred arch for each principal truss. There are two moulded side purlins and a heavy ridge piece carrying three plain common rafters per bay. There is open ashlaring supported on very prominent embattled cornices which are deeper and finely moulded in the chancel only (fig. 10).

Fig. 10. Chancel cornice to right, nave to left.

This roof was added to the building when the walls were raised. One beam of the earlier roof survives against the west wall (Fig. 11). It is markedly cambered and with the braces and wall posts creates a four-centred arch. The camber created an almost flat roof which may have been disguised by a parapet similar in principle to the roof over the Bedingfield chapel at Oxborough (fig. 12) or the Prior’s lodging at Castle Acre Priory. This roof was probably 14th century in date and corresponds to the wall painting of St Christopher. As Andrea Kirkham explains the 14th-century painting was over painted in the 15th century to correspond to the raised level of the wall arches. This was taken away by overzealous restorers leaving the traces of the later painting only in the area of the raised wall.

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Fig. 11. Surviving cambered beam

Fig 12. Bedingfield Chapel Oxborough

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Final special features at Hardwick are the fine angle piscina in the chancel with a carved head above and simple cusped arcches (Fig. 13).

Fig 13. Piscina

In the region of furniture is the extraordinary 17th century canopied pew which apparently was moved to the west from the chancel in 1881. One wonders how it got past the screen without being completely dismantled. (Fig14). The canopy is supported on typical tapered balusters rising from the panelled ‘box’.

Fig. 14. The canopied pew

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There are many other items of note but in particular and of the same period as the pew is the remarkable communion rail of Jacobean tapered balusters (Fig. 115).

Fig. 15. Communion rail

Summary This important church has an interesting history which can be summarised as below:

• First masonry church of circa 1170. Aisleless nave, round west tower and a lost chancel. Possible double-splayed window in south wall.

• Early-mid 14th century. Reconstruction of chancel, rebuilding of nave roof and refenestration of nave.

• 15th century. Nave and chancel walls raised and new steeply pitched roof erected • 16th century. Construction of porch • 17th century. Loft removed from screen. Communion rail and canopied pew • 1770. Tower collapses • 1881-2. Repairs. Big sloping buttress removed from south wall of chancel, re-seating

and canopied pew moved to west end. Also probable rebuilding of east wall of chancel with a new panel-traceried window

• 1895. Faculty to sell the lead from the roof and tile with Broseley tiles. Stephen Heywood July 2013