Church of St Mary, Wavendon facts for kids
The Church of St Mary is a really old church in the village of Wavendon, which is part of Milton Keynes in England. It was built way back in the 1200s! Because it's so special and important, it was officially recognized as a Grade II* listed building in 1966. This means it's a historic building that needs to be protected.
Contents
History of the Church
This church is dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It got a big makeover between 1848 and 1849. An architect named Mr. Butterfield led the project. The restoration cost about £4,000, which was a lot of money back then! People raised the money through donations and subscriptions.
Church Design and Features
The Church of St Mary has several main parts. These include the chancel, the nave with side aisles, a clerestory, a south porch, and a tall west tower.
Architectural Styles
The chancel, which is the area around the altar, is built in an Early Decorated style. This is a type of English Gothic architecture from the 13th and 14th centuries. The main part of the church, called the nave, has beautiful arches and pillars in the Decorated style. The roofs, the upper windows (clerestory), and the tower are in the Perpendicular style. This style came a bit later, around the 14th to 16th centuries. The tower has a special top called 'embattled', which looks like the top of a castle wall. It also holds five bells!
Inside the Church
You usually enter the church through the south porch. Near the entrance, there's a holy-water stoup, which is a basin for holy water. The main part of the church, the nave, has wide aisles on both sides. These aisles are separated from the nave by four arches on each side. These arches rest on columns that look like they're made of several smaller columns joined together.
The aisles used to be small chapels. You can still see the piscinas there. A piscina is a small basin with a drain, used for washing communion vessels. The floor of the nave is covered with red and black tiles. The seats, called stalls, are made of oak wood and have carved ends.
Special Furniture
The pulpit is where the priest gives sermons. This one is very old and was bought from another church in London. It's made of carved oak and sits on a stone base. You climb stone steps to reach it. There's also a movable oak lectern, which is a stand for reading lessons from the Bible. A fald-stool is a special kneeling desk used for prayers.
The large font is where baptisms take place. It's made of Totternhoe stone and has carvings. The font also has a carved oak cover that hangs from the ceiling by chains. A golden dove is part of its design. The nave's roof is covered with lead and has carved heads as decorations. The windows in the clerestory have green-tinted glass. Some windows in the aisles have two sections, and one at the east end of the north aisle has three sections.
The Chancel Area
The chancel is connected to the nave by a pointed arch. Below this arch is a low screen. It's painted with green and red patterns on a white background. There are also two beautiful brass gates with enamel work. These gates are supported by brass stands with flower-like tops.
The large east window has four sections and is filled with colorful stained glass. In the south wall of the chancel, you'll find a double piscina and triple sedilia. Sedilia are special seats for the clergy. The one farthest from the east is the largest and has a rounded top. The other two have pointed tops. On the opposite wall, there's an arcade with four stone stalls that have simple rounded arches.
Chancel Decorations
The chancel's oak-paneled roof is painted a deep blue and covered with many gold stars. This starry design extends to the east window, where you can see figures among the stars. An illuminated scroll with a special message wraps around the molding of the same window. The backs of the sedilia are also painted blue with a fleur-de-lis pattern, which is a stylized lily.
The chancel floor is paved with red and buff patterned tiles. The communion table is made of a heavy oak frame with a blue stone slab on top. It's covered with a rich velvet cloth that is beautifully embroidered. The table is decorated with a cross, two candlesticks, and a brass desk. The chancel also has oak stalls with carved poppy-heads for the choir members. In a room on the north side, which is also used as a changing room, there's an organ built by Walker of London in 1849.
Stained Glass Windows
Besides the large east window, the chancel has two other stained glass windows on the south side. These windows show scenes like the Annunciation (when an angel told Mary she would have a baby) and the Adoration of the Magi (when the wise men visited baby Jesus).
The window at the end of the north aisle also has stained glass. It shows the Crucifixion, with figures of the Virgin Mary and St. John on either side. In the south aisle, there's a memorial window showing the Resurrection. Nearby, another memorial window features figures of St. Catherine and St. Agnes. All the stained glass in the church was made by O'Connor of London.
Memorials and Monuments
In the north aisle, you can see a beautiful marble monument dedicated to Sir Henry Hugh Hoare, who lived at Wavendon House. At the west end of the same aisle, there's another carved monument for George Wells. Under the east window of the north aisle, there's a special brass plaque with illumination for Henry Arthur Hoare, who was Sir Henry Hugh Hoare's youngest son. The north aisle also has a colored memorial window. On the west wall of the vestry (a room for clergy), there's a black marble slab with a brass plate.
Church Grounds
Outside the church, in the churchyard, there is a modern cross. You can also find memorial stones for many families who lived in the area, including Boyle, Bumey, Fairtlough, Hoare, Lane, and Mayor.
