Naunton, St Andrew's Church

St Andrew's Church, Naunton

The medieval parish church of Naunton is a delight, begun in the middle of the 12th century but almost certainly standing on the site of a much earlier Saxon chapel. The church is laid out on a very simple plan consisting of a nave, chancel, and north aisle, with a west tower and south porch.

Saxon Cross

The church's ancient origins are reinforced by the presence of a Saxon cross, discovered under the nave in 1878 and now set high in the west wall. A reset corbel head in the WC is thought to be Norman.

History

We know that there was a church in Naunton by the middle of the 12th century, when records show that the priest and the Abbot of Eynsham each claimed the tithes. The first written record of a church comes from 1260, when the tithes were granted to Little Malvern Priory.

Saxon cross, west wall

The Prior of Little Malvern later granted the tithes back to the Bishop of Worcester in exchange for an annual pension of eight shillings. Interestingly, there is no evidence that the pension was paid after 1301.

Famous and Infamous Rectors

The history of the Naunton priests is a tangled one. In 1303 the Crown named a rector who was not even in minor orders, and a later nominee did not become a priest until two years after he was instituted.

In 1551, the rector was deprived of his living and the same occurred in 1651, when Thomas Freeman was ejected from the living. Freeman seems to have continued living in Naunton and carried on preaching unofficially.

Stone pulpit, circa 1500

One of his successors was ejected in 1660, when the royalist Clement Barksdale was named in his place. Barksdale was a popular poet and author of 'The Cotswold Mews' collection of verse. Barksdale was not the first poet to act as rector of Naunton; Ulpian Fulwell served as rector from 1570 to 1585. Fulwell was the author of a history of King Henry VIII entitled 'The Flower of Fame', the play 'Like Will to Like', and a treatise intriguingly entitled 'The Art of Flattery'.

John Hurd served as the rector for 53 years. It was Hurd who helped build the two bridges over the River Windrush at Naunton, the first in 1819 and the second in 1851.

A later rector was Edward Litton, a close friend of Reverend CL Dodgson, better known to millions of readers by his pen name, Lewis Carroll. Dodgson is thought to have visited Litton and spent the night at the Naunton rectory on several occasions.

The body of the church was rebuilt in the 16th century and much of what we see today dates from that period. The weathervane atop the tower was installed to mark Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.

The east end of the north aisle was used as a Lady Chapel and later as the burial place for members of the Aylworth family.

1743 sundials

Sundials

There is a scratch dial on the south wall of the tower, and a pair of striking 18th-century sundials set onto the west and south walls. These were installed in 1743. It is odd, to say the least, to see two sundials so close to each other, facing in different directions. One of the sundials bears the Latin inscription 'Lux Umbra Dei', which translates as 'Light is the shadow of God'.

Stone Pulpit

The striking stone pulpit dates to the 15th century. It is styled as five sides of an octagon with beautifully carved tracery panels. The font is also 15th century and is octagonal with each face decorated with shields of four-leafed flowers.

Clement Barksdale memorial brass

17th-Century Brasses

Perhaps the most intriguing historical treasures inside the church are three small memorial brasses. The oldest brass remembers Ann Major, the wife of Edmund Major, 'who lived virtuously and died Christianly' in 1613. Ann Major's great-nephew was Richard Aylworth of Naunton, who played a major role in the Battle of Stow that effectively sealed the Civil War in Parliament's favour.

Then there is the small brass to Letitia Holt (d. 1628). and a larger brass to Reverend Clement Barksdale and his family.

Ambrose Oldys memorial, 1720

The Oldys Memorial

The most striking memorial is to Ambrose Oldys (d. 1720), whose epitaph tells us that his father was 'barbarously murthered [sic]' by Parliamentary rebels.

The epitaph reads in full:

'Near this place lyeth the Body of Ambrose Oldys, son of William Oldys, Dr of Divinity formerly Vicar of Adderbury in ye County of Oxford, who, for his loyalty to his King, his zeal for ye Established Church (tho a clergyman) was barbarously murthered by ye Rebells in ye year 1645, whose unshaken loyalty to ye Crown, & constant adherence to ye Established Religion, was nevertheless perfectly imitated by his son, But with better fortune for after he had escaped many & eminent dangers as well as by sea as in battles fought for ye honour & service of his King & Country, (to which he frequently with undaunted Courage exposed himselfe) he ended his days in peace & quiet at his house, called Harford, in this parish which at his death he left to his Sister Cecilia Goad who out of gratitude to ye memory of so good a man, & so kind a brother, caused this monument to be erected.'

Ann Major memorial brass, 1613

Exterior Highlights

• Stunning three-stage tower with medieval gargoyles, decorative corner pinnacles, and two historic sundials.
• The 1748 sundial and its companion bearing the Latin inscription "Lux Umbra Dei" (Light is the Shadow of God)

Interior Features

• An exceptional Anglo-Saxon cross mounted on the nave's west wall
• The 15th or early 16th-century octagonal pulpit showcases beautiful period tracery work
• The grey marble memorial to Ambrose Oldys (d.1720)
• The sanctuary floor, installed in 1899, features exceptionally rich Victorian tiling
• Three 16th-century brass tomb plaques
• The north aisle's east window

Visiting

St Andrew's Church is at the western end of the village, just off the small, triangular green. There is limited parking along the village lane. The church is open to visitors daily and was open when we visited.