Church of St Nicholas, Hinxworth facts for kids
The Church of St Nicholas is an old Church of England church in the village of Hinxworth, Hertfordshire. It's a very special building, mostly built in the 1300s. It's so important that it's a Grade II* listed building. The church is part of the Diocese of St Albans.
Contents
A Look at the Church's History
The Church of St Nicholas is named after Saint Nicholas. It's very likely that an even older church stood in this exact spot before the current one. However, a very old record called the Domesday Book (from 1086) doesn't mention a priest in Hinxworth. This means the village might not have had a church at that time, or perhaps it was very small.
Building Through the Centuries
Most of the church you see today was built in the 1300s. The tall West tower and the main part of the church (called the nave) were built then. They have battlements, which are like the tops of castle walls. The church is made from flint stones with special clunch stone decorations.
In the 1400s, some changes were made. The chancel, which is the part of the church near the altar, was rebuilt much later, around 1830. This part is made of red brick with stone patterns. The tower has two main sections and strong buttresses (supports) on its corners. The South porch, which is the entrance, was added in the 1400s.
How Big is the Church?
The chancel is about 20 feet long and 16 feet wide. The nave, where people sit, is about 42 feet long and 20 feet wide. The west tower is about 10 and a half feet square, and the south porch is about 12 feet by 10 feet.
Inside St Nicholas Church
The main part of the church, the nave, doesn't have side aisles. Its roof was added in the late 1800s and is supported by four carved wooden corbels (decorative brackets) from the 1400s.
Special Features and Old Secrets
You can find two unusual canopied niches (small alcoves) inside the church. One is by the North nave window, and the other is in the south-east corner of the nave. Next to the north window, there's a 14th-century spiral staircase. It's now blocked at the top, but it used to lead up to a rood screen, which was a decorated screen that separated the nave from the chancel.
The arch at the west end of the church is from around 1350. The original arch leading to the chancel was taken down around 1440. A new one, which isn't quite straight, was built a little further east. The upper part of the nave walls, called the clerestory, was made taller at the end of the 1400s, and a new, flatter roof was put on top. The chancel has a ceiling with simple decorations, and its colourful stained-glass windows are from the mid-1800s.
Old Memorials and Furniture
Inside the chancel, you can see two old monumental brasses. These are like flat metal plaques with engraved pictures of people. One is high on the north wall and is from the mid-1400s. It's thought to show Simon Ward (who died in 1453) and his wife (who died in 1481). The other brass is on the floor and shows a man, a woman, and six children. People say it's for John Lambard, an important person from London who died in 1487.
The pulpit, where the priest gives sermons, is from the mid-1700s. Near it is a chair for the Rector (the head priest), which is from the 1500s or early 1600s. The small, eight-sided baptismal font (used for baptisms) at the west end of the church is from the mid-1800s.
The Church Bells
The church has six bells!
- The smallest bell (the treble) was made in 1908 by Mears & Stainbank.
- The second bell was made by John Briant of Hertford in 1820.
- The third and fourth bells were made by Miles Graye in 1651.
- The fifth and the largest bell (the tenor) were also made by John Briant in 1825 and 1820.
These bells and the church tower were repaired between 1981 and 1986. Money for this came from a BBC Radio appeal by the author Monica Dickens, who used to live in the village. Funds were also raised by the Friends of the Church group. The church has been a Grade II* listed building since May 1968, meaning it's a very important historic place.
Gallery
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The stairs that once led to the rood screen
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A Monumental brass showing Simon Ward and his wife from the 1400s
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The 19th-century baptismal font
