Todenham, St Thomas of Canterbury Church

St Thomas of Canterbury Church, Todenham

Todenham is a village lying three miles north-east of Moreton-in-Marsh, on Gloucestershire's border with Warwickshire. The parish church, dedicated to St Thomas of Canterbury (St Thomas Becket), stands on the north side of the road through the village and is easily seen from a distance because of its lofty spire.

History

Todenham manor was owned by Deerhurst Priory from as early as AD 804, but was later granted to Westminster Abbey by Edward the Confessor. The manor passed to the Crown at the Dissolution of the Monasteries and was then granted to William Petre. The Petre family retained the manor for over 250 years.

The 12th-century font

The first written record of a church at Todenham comes from 1157, when it was recorded as a possession of Westminster Abbey. The most famous rector was Thomas Merke, formerly Bishop of Carlisle, who was cast into prison for his opposition to King Henry IV.

Merke served as the Rector of Todenham from 1404-1409 and he is thought to be buried here. Records show that a lead coffin, thought to be that of Bishop Merke, was found in the chancel in 1779.

Medieval piscina in the chancel

Highlights

The church was begun in the 12th century but the building we see today dates primarily from the 14th century and is a lovely example of Decorated Gothic style. It consists of a three-bay nave, chancel, south chapel, north aisle, south porch and west tower. It is built of limestone under a roof of Welsh slate.

In the chancel is a medieval sedilia and piscina, and the nave arcade dates to the 12th century. The striking tower and spire are products of the 14th century.

The north chapel dates to the Tudor periods and was built by William Greville and dedicated to the Holy Trinity. The church was comprehensively restored in 1879.

Interior highlights include a 12th-century font set on an octagonal pedestal. It was removed from the church for many years and only returned in 1773. The names of the churchwardens responsible for returning the font to the church are inscribed on the bowl.

On the south wall of the transept is a is a hatchment bearing the arms of the Pole family of Todenham Manor. Nearby is a marble tablet to Lady Louisa Pole (d. 1852), near an 18th-century engraving of Bishop Merke of Carlisle.

The Moulton brass, 1614

On the north wall of the chancel is a finely-etched memorial brass to William Moulton (d, 1614) and his wife (d. 1604). The brass is shows the Moultons kneeling on either side of a prayer desk. The effusive epitaph reads as follows:

Stay passenger this tomb doth hold
A coffin full of Holy mould
If virtue have a grave, lo here
Religious care and love sincere
Wise government and zeal welled
Bounty of hand and cheer of face
Good nature perfected by grace
And which gave life to all the rest
A true heart ion afraidless breast
If these on earth were lately missed
Lo where they lay in Moulton's chest

Here lyeth the bodies of William Molton of Toddenham, Esq, and Millicent his wife, daughter of Giles Spencer of Nurthen of Warwickshire, Esq., which Millicent dyed the 10 of December 1604 and William, after long sickness dyed the VI of January 1614 having before his death married 3 daughters. The only children then remaining of 12 whereof the 1 was married to Thomas Bayfoy, Esq., son and heir to Sir Thomas Bayfoy, Knight, and the 2 to Richard Savage, so and heir of Walter Savage, Esq., the 3 to William Willoughby of Normanton, Esq.

Look for a stained-glass panel commemorating Robert Wickens, 'Who made the first Bible concordance' in 1654.

1723 Mander memorial

Outside the church, you can see an highly-eroded memorial fixed to the south chancel wall. The inscription is no longer legible, but the memorial is that of John Mander (d. 1723).

Visiting

There is no dedicated parking that we could see, but we found it easy to park along the main road through the village. The first time we visited, we found the church open, but the next time, it was closed at 16.00.