Church of St Nicholas

Details

BEAUDESERT

SP1566 BEAUDESERT LANE
652-1/10/3 (North side)
05/04/67 Church of St Nicholas

GV I

Church. Mid C12 with C15 tower, some probably late C16
rebuilding and 1865 restoration by Thomas Garner.
MATERIALS: rubble and dressed limestone with ashlar dressings;
steeply pitched old tile roofs.
PLAN: 2-bay chancel, 3-bay nave and west tower.
EXTERIOR: chancel has coped gables with crosses, clasping
buttresses and string course; C12 round-headed east window,
with shafts, and mouldings including zig-zag to arch; flanking
very worn tablets, one with Tuscan pilasters and swan-neck
pediment with urn, the other recorded as being to Richard
Jago, d.1741, father of the poet Richard Jago; north side has
large off-set buttress between 2 C12 round-headed windows with
square-cut openings; break-back to west end; south side has
pilaster buttress with to left a 2-light late C13 window with
double-chamfered shaped arch, and to right an interrupted
string course and the jamb and part of arch to a C12 window.
Nave has north wall rebuilt inside former wall-line with 2
string courses, lower one reused C12 with some diapering,
upper one marks narrowing of wall; 2 C14 double-chamfered
straight-headed windows of 3 and 2 trefoil-headed lights to
east of large off-set buttress; plain round-headed C12
entrance has door with strap hinges; 2-light pointed window to
right end has renewed Decorated tracery; off-set buttress to
west end.
South side has high string course; re-set C12 entrance in
forward break has 4 orders with richly moulded arch and C19
door with enriched strap hinges; to west a high blocked
opening, to east two 2-light windows with renewed tracery.
3-stage west tower has rectangular plan; moulded plinth, to
north side broken by tall narrow infill, possibly to former
nave west wall, with cruder plinth to west and off-set
buttress abutting present nave west wall, with bracket to
angle, rectangular opening above; diagonal west buttresses;
C15 3-light transomed west window has worn hood with stops,
crockets and fleuron; string course above and small
trefoil-headed light with similar hood; bell-stage has louvred
bell-openings of 2 cinquefoil-headed lights with hoods as
above; very worn cornice and C19 or C20 crenellated parapet
and hipped roof; south side has image niche and stair lights
with hoods as above.
INTERIOR: chancel has C19 quadripartite vaulted roof on
original piers with scalloped or interlaced capitals, damaged
C13 piscina to east wall and aumbrys to north and south; deep
splays to north windows; restored C12 chancel arch of 3 orders
has richly moulded arch including much zig-zag; C19 half-arch
to north side reveals part covered by C16 wall.
Nave has 4-bay C16 or C17 roof with 4 tie-beam and collar
trusses with queen struts, braced collars and coupled rafters;
C19 brattished wall plates; double-chamfered tower arch has
capitals to inner chamfer and C19 timber screen; signs of
blocked C12 window to west end of south wall.
FITTINGS: mostly C19; chancel has altar rail on enriched iron
supports and some encaustic tiles; nave has some C15 or C16
bench ends with arms and round, flat, finials, other benches
have C19 copies, with numbered finials and candle standards;
plain C15 octagonal font with moulded underside; C19
Norman-style lectern.
STAINED GLASS: east window by Holland probably c1865; 2
chancel north windows dated 1852 or 1862; west window with
figures dated 1875; most other windows by Morris & Co c1864-5.
MONUMENTS: some C18 and C19 wall tablets to tower including
William Welch, d.1777, black sarcophagus-shaped tablet in
white setting with coloured marble to apron, fluted pilasters,
cornice and swan-neck pediment with central urn and outer
gadrooned urns; William Ellis, d.1848, Norman-style
round-headed tablet.
(Buildings of England: Pevsner N: Warwickshire: Harmondsworth:
1966-: 88-9; Victoria County History: Styles P: Victoria
History of the County of Warwickshire: 1945-: 45-9; Shell
Guides: Hickman D: Warwickshire: London: 1979-: 37).



Listing NGR: SP1529466042

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

482632

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Styles, P, The Victoria History of the County of Warwickshire, (1945), 45-9
Pevsner, N, Wedgwood, A, The Buildings of England: Warwickshire, (1966), 88-9
Hickman, D, Shell Guides in Warwickshire, (1979), 37

End of official list entry

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