All Saints' Church, Earls Barton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids All Saints' Church |
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Tower of All Saints' parish church
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| 52°15′57″N 0°45′12″W / 52.26583°N 0.75333°W | |
| Location | Earls Barton, Northamptonshire |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Central |
| History | |
| Status | Parish Church |
| Dedication | All Saints |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Style | Anglo-Saxon, Norman, English Gothic |
| Years built | Late 10th century |
| Specifications | |
| Height | 69 feet (21 metres) |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Parish of Earls Barton |
| Archdeaconry | Archdeaconry of Northampton |
| Diocese | Diocese of Peterborough |
All Saints' Church is a very old Church of England church in Earls Barton, Northamptonshire. It is famous for its Anglo-Saxon architecture. Experts believe the church was built in the late 900s. This was not long after Viking raids happened in England.
Contents
The Amazing Anglo-Saxon Tower
The tower at All Saints' Church is very special. It was probably the main part of the church when it was first built. This means people would have gathered on the ground floor. A smaller room, called a chancel, was attached to the east side. This was similar to another old church, St Peter's Church, Barton-upon-Humber.
There was a door on the south side of the tower. Another opening was on the west side. These allowed people to enter and leave. The upper floors of the tower might have been a home for the priest. They could also have been a safe place to keep valuable items. However, some people say these towers would have been dangerous during Viking attacks. Their wooden floors could easily catch fire.
How the Tower Was Built
The tower is made of stone rubble. It has a smooth finish on the outside. It is decorated with tall, thin stone strips called pilasters. These strips create patterns. The corners of the tower are extra strong. They use long vertical stones fitted with flat horizontal ones. This style is called long and short work.
The way this tower is decorated is unique to Anglo-Saxon architecture. Other decorated Anglo-Saxon towers can be found nearby. Examples include Barnack and Stowe Nine Churches.
Tower's Levels and Decorations
The tower has different levels, separated by stone ledges called string courses. Each level gets a little thinner as it goes up. The vertical stone strips continue all the way up the tower. Between these strips, there are stone arches at lower levels. Higher up, there are triangular decorations. Sometimes, these patterns cross over each other.
In the 1100s, the small Anglo-Saxon chancel was removed. A new, larger nave (the main part of the church) was built. So, the tower now stands at the west end of the church. This nave was made even bigger later in the 1100s. It was then updated in the 1200s and early 1300s. The far east end of the chancel was built in the 1200s.
The tower stands 69 feet (21 metres) tall from its base to the top.
Unique Church Features
The design of All Saints' Church shows a lot of Roman influence. You can see this in the doors and windows of the tower.
Doorways and Windows
At the west doorway, stone strips run up the sides. They then curve over the top to form an arch. Inside this arch, there is another arched shape. This shape starts from square blocks called imposts. These blocks have vertical grooves. The sides of the door frame are made of large, flat stones. This style of door frame comes from Roman designs. You can see a similar style at the Bath House of Chesters Fort on Hadrian's Wall.
The windows on the lower south side have a central post called a mullion. They also have small pillars called baluster shafts. The tops of these windows are arched. The window openings themselves are shaped like crosses. Higher up, in the belfry, there are five-light windows. These windows also have arches and baluster shaft mullions.
Decorative Patterns
The decorative arches and triangles on the tower are just for show. They don't actually hold anything up. One expert, Warwick Rodwell, even suggested that the mix of patterns at Earls Barton shows it was just decoration. He thought the design might have been based on wooden frames. But then the stone pieces were put together incorrectly. The windows and doors fit neatly within these decorative patterns.
Stone and Building Materials
Using stone allowed strong towers to be built during this time. The availability of stone that was easy to quarry and carve helped churches like Earls Barton be so decorated. The limestone from Barnack was used a lot from Anglo-Saxon times through the Middle Ages. It was used to build many churches and cathedrals, including those in Peterborough and Ely.
It's clear that Anglo-Saxon churches with "long and short work" and pilaster strips are found where this type of limestone was available. They are also found in East Anglia, where the stone was transported.
In 1935, an artist named Henry Bird painted the church's 15th-century rood screen. This screen is a decorative partition. The upper parts of his painting show different types of butterflies that live in the local area.
Church History
North of All Saints' Church in Earls Barton, there is a small hill and a ditch. These are very close to the church. Nikolaus Pevsner, a famous historian, thought that the local lord might have wanted to tear down the church.
After the Norman Conquest of England, an Anglo-Saxon nobleman named Waltheof became the first Earl of Northampton. He married Judith, who was the niece of William I. She was given land at a place called Buarton, which later became Earls Barton. The mound near the church might have been part of a manor house. It is likely that All Saints' Church was originally connected to a manor, not a monastery. Other churches, like the one at Sulgrave in Northamptonshire, also have earthworks next to them. Remains of an Anglo-Saxon hall were found there. This shows that churches linked to manors were common when All Saints' was built.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in Northamptonshire
- All Saints' Church, Brixworth
- St Peter's Church, Northampton
- The Slapton Wall Paintings
Images for kids
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St Andrew and St Stephen on the rood screen painted by Henry Bird
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Old door of All Saints
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Anglo-Saxon stone carving at All Saints
