Church of St Peter and St Paul, South Petherton facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Church of St Peter and St Paul
Church from the north west, showing porch, north transept and octagonal central tower
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Location	South Petherton, Somerset, England
Denomination	Church of England
History
Dedication	Peter the Apostle Paul the Apostle
Architecture
Functional status	Parish church
Heritage designation	Grade I
Designated	19 April 1961
Style	Gothic
Specifications
Length	130 feet (40 m)
Bells	12 + flat sixth
Tenor bell weight	22 long cwt 3 qr 15 lb (2,563  lb or 1,163  kg)
Administration
Parish	South Petherton with the Seavingtons and the Lambrooks
Deanery	Somerset South
Archdeaconry	Taunton
Diocese	Bath and Wells
Province	Canterbury

The Church of St Peter and St Paul is a special church in the village of South Petherton, Somerset, England. It's a Church of England parish church, which means it's the main church for the local community.

This church is very old, built mostly between the 1200s and 1400s. It stands where an even older Saxon church once was. The church is shaped like a cross, and it's considered a very important historical building, listed as Grade I.

It's famous for its beautiful Gothic architecture, colorful stained glass windows, and old monuments. The church also has a rare octagonal (eight-sided) central tower. People say it's the tallest tower of its kind in Britain.

History of the Church
Church Design and Features
Church Bells
- History of the Bells
- Record-Breaking Bell Ringing
Images for kids
See also

History of the Church

Early Beginnings

South Petherton grew up near the Fosse Way, an important Roman road. This road was built in the 1st and 2nd centuries. It crosses Somerset less than a mile from where the village is today. It's thought that a Saxon monastery or church was set up here. This church would have looked after other smaller chapels in the area. Old letters from the Pope mention this early church.

Norman Times and Rebuilding

By the time of the Norman Conquest (around 1066), William the Conqueror owned the land at South Petherton. Later kings also owned it. In the mid-1100s, King Stephen gave the land, including the village and the old monastery, to Wells Cathedral.

In 1181 or 1182, King Henry II gave the church itself to Bruton Abbey. It stayed connected to this abbey until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1500s. It's likely that the church started to be rebuilt during the 1100s. It changed from its Saxon and Norman style to a Gothic one. Money from the abbey probably helped with this. Some old 12th-century stones in the chancel (the part of the church near the altar) show that this area might have been rebuilt first.

Gothic Style Changes

The church was rebuilt in the Gothic style two more times. This happened between the 1200s and 1400s. The first time, probably in the late 1200s, the work on the chancel continued. This was in the Early English Gothic style. The lower part of the tower, including the four main pillars, was also started then.

A bigger rebuilding project happened in the 1300s and 1400s. The north transept (the arm of the cross shape) and the south porch were rebuilt in the 1300s. The tower was made taller, and the nave (the main part of the church where people sit) was finished in the 1400s.

Later Centuries and Repairs

By 1636, the lead roof of the chancel was in bad shape. An old lead-lined tomb in the church was used to get lead to fix the roof. In 1644, Parliamentary soldiers damaged the windows in the chancel and north nave aisle. This destroyed most of the old medieval stained glass and the church organ. The organ wasn't replaced until 1715.

19th Century Restorations

The church had a lot of repair work done in the 1800s. The first part of this work happened from 1859 to 1860. This included putting in new seats and replacing many church items like the lectern (reading stand) and pulpit (preaching stand). The south transept, which had a fireplace, became the vestry (a room for clergy). Before this, the east end of the chancel was used as the vestry. Hicks and Isaacs of Bristol did this first stage of work.

A bigger restoration project took place between 1882 and 1890. A famous Victorian architect named Arthur Bloomfield led this work. They completely renewed the building. A bright painting was added to the east wall of the nave, above the tower arch. The south porch was also restored in 1890. Any galleries (balconies) around the walls were removed at this time.

The final part of the restoration was on the tower itself in 1895. Architects J. D. Sedding and H. Wilson worked together on this.

Church Design and Features

Layout and Size

Like most medieval churches in England, St Peter and St Paul's church has a traditional cross shape. It has four arms that meet in the middle, with a tower on top. The church is about 40 meters (130 feet) long. Its total area is about 761 square meters (8,191 square feet). This makes it a "large" church building for the Church of England.

The church has a nave with four sections and aisles on either side. There are porches on the north and south sides of the aisles. It also has north and south transepts and a chancel with two sections. The central tower is special for two reasons. First, it has a square base below the roof but an eight-sided shape above it. Second, the octagon is wider from east to west than from north to south. This is because its sides are not all the same length.

Outside the Church

The church sits on a small hill, which is the highest point in the village. This makes it an important landmark. The main feature on the outside is the tall, but uneven, octagonal tower in the middle. It is said to be the tallest of its kind in the country. The tower is about 21 feet (6.4 meters) wide from east to west.

The tower has two main sections above the roof. It has decorative stone bands, battlemented (castle-like) parapets at the top, and angle gargoyles (stone carvings that drain water). A stair turret (a small tower with stairs) goes up the full height of the tower in the southwest corner. The tower has a small lead-covered spirelet (a tiny spire) and a wrought-iron weathervane on top.

The nave aisles also have stone bands like the tower. However, their parapets are plain, not battlemented. Stone supports called buttresses separate each section of the nave. The aisles have wide 15th-century windows with three lights (sections). The windows at the west end of the aisles match these. There is no clerestory (an upper row of windows). So, the central aisle of the nave is only seen on the west gable. This gable has a large window with five lights in the Perpendicular Gothic style. It has decorative stone tracery and a horizontal bar called a transom above a blocked doorway.

Both nave aisles have porches. The south porch was built in the 1300s. It is larger than the north porch but doesn't have a second floor. The south porch has a shaped arch with bell-shaped capitals. It also has a stone vault with six parts and an inner doorway from the late 1200s. The north porch was built in the 1400s. It is smaller than the south porch but has a second floor. It has angled corner buttresses, shaped arches, and a two-light arched window on its upper floor.

The north transept has two sections, angled corner buttresses, and a battlemented parapet. It has two five-light windows. The window on the north side has a net-like tracery design. The window on the east side has a flat arch, also with net-like tracery. The south transept has one section. It looks similar to the chancel, with angled bases, a simple parapet, and full-height corner buttresses.

The outside of the church, like the rest of the village, is mostly built from Ham stone. The roof of the chancel and south porch has clay tiles, while the rest of the roof has lead sheeting.

Inside the Church

The inside of the church is very spacious. The nave is wide, and its two aisles are almost as high as the central nave. This makes it similar to a hall church. The nave arcade (a row of arches) is from the 1400s and has hollow columns. The ceilings above them were added in the late 1800s. The crossing, where the arms of the church meet, is separated by arches from the 1200s. It has a very unusual stone vault with eight parts. This vault is much lower than the nave roof. The space above the arches is filled with solid stone walls. The western wall, facing the nave, has a bright painting of God and several angels. This painting was done in the late 1800s or early 1900s. The chancel has a wooden ceiling from 1882, designed by Bloomfield. It also has a piscina (a basin for washing sacred vessels) with five-lobed arches and a blocked hagioscope (a squint or opening) to the north transept.

The church has many monuments. These include memorials to Giles Daubeney, William Ayshe, Samuel Cabel, and Jacob Ayshe, all in the north transept. The stained glass windows are also special. Most were made by Nicholson and show local landmarks like Barrow Mump, Glastonbury Abbey, and Sherborne Abbey. There is a medium-sized pipe organ with two keyboards. It is located under the tower vaulting and was made by W. G. Vowles of Bristol. The exact date it was built is not known. The organ has 22 "speaking stops," which control different sounds.

Church Bells

History of the Bells

The first bells at South Petherton were a set of six. They were made by John Wiseman in 1641. Over the years, some of these bells were recast (melted down and made again). The 3rd bell was recast in 1713 by the famous Bilbie family. The largest bell (the tenor) was recast in 1721, also by Bilbie. The 2nd bell was recast by Bilbie in 1765. The 5th bell was recast by William Jefferies in 1832.

In 1896, these six heavy bells were rehung by Thomas Blackbourn of Salisbury. He put them in a new wooden frame designed for eight bells. Two new smaller bells were added, made by Mears & Stainbank in London, also in 1896. Blackbourn also provided new parts for all the bells, like new wheels and clappers.

Blackbourn's frame was placed very high in the tower. Because of this, it became harder to ring the bells over time. The ropes were very long, the parts were old, and the bells didn't sound as good as newer ones. The 6th bell was recast again in 1919 by Llewellins & James of Bristol.

In 1994, the bell ringers decided to look into restoring or even recasting the bells. Experts said that six of the eight bells were too out of tune to be fixed. Changing the frame to make them easier to ring would also be very expensive. A plan was made to replace the bells, but it was put on hold.

In the late 1990s, the Millennium Fund was set up. It had £3,000,000 for bell restoration projects. This news meant the project to replace the bells could start again. The church allowed the project to go ahead, as long as the ringers raised all the money themselves. This was because other village projects needed money more urgently. English Heritage also gave permission to replace the bells. They said the old frame must be kept in the tower, and the historically important 3rd bell from 1641 must be saved. This allowed for a new frame to be installed lower in the tower for a new set of twelve bells. The order was placed with John Taylor & Co of Loughborough. The bells were to be hung by Eayre and Smith. The ten heaviest bells were made to be the same size as the bells at Christ Church in Swindon, which were also made by Taylor's in 1924.

When the old bells left the tower for Taylor's foundry in December 1997, the largest bell (tenor) was found to be lighter than expected. New homes were found for some of the old bells. The smallest bell went to Horton-in-Ribblesdale. The 2nd bell went to Holy Trinity in Horfield, Bristol, to replace a cracked bell there. The 6th bell went to Barrow in Furness. The tenor bell went to St Charles of Borromeo in Detroit, United States. The 4th bell was cracked and was used to help develop new bell-welding techniques. The 5th and 7th bells were scrapped.

The new bells, cast in 1998, are still in the church tower today. The tenor bell weighs about 1,163 kilograms (2,563 pounds) and rings the note D. The bells were hung in a new cast iron and steel frame. This frame is 25 feet (7.6 meters) lower than Blackbourn's old frame. The old frame still remains in the tower with the preserved 3rd bell. The project cost £150,000, with a large grant from the Millennium Fund. In 2007, a thirteenth bell was cast by Taylor's. It's called a "flat sixth" and sits between the 6th and 7th bells. This extra bell allows for a lighter set of eight bells to be rung, which is useful for teaching. Having twelve bells in a village church is unusual. Because of this, the tower at South Petherton is a teaching center for bell ringing in South Somerset.

Record-Breaking Bell Ringing

In 2012, people started talking about ringing a very long peal (a long sequence of bell changes) for charity. The tower captain had been part of a record-breaking attempt before. In 1965, he helped ring 16,368 changes of a method called 'Cambridge Surprise Maximus' at St Philip's Cathedral in Birmingham. This took 11 hours and 29 minutes. At that time, it was the longest continuous ringing of twelve bells by one group of ringers. Although it was beaten once in 1987, it was still the longest peal in that specific method.

After adding more soundproofing to the church, an attempt to break the 1987 record happened in October 2014. However, it failed after 4 hours because two bells unexpectedly moved. A second attempt took place on October 17, 2015. It started shortly after 7 a.m. and finished at 9:30 p.m. The peal was shown live in the church all day. When it was finished, many of the 200 people in the church cheered loudly. The peal was successful! It involved 21,216 changes of Cambridge Surprise Maximus and took 14 hours and 26 minutes to ring. This became the longest ever peal on twelve bells. The bell ringers came from all over the UK, including Birmingham, Bedfordshire, and Oxfordshire.

The record set at South Petherton was broken two years later. On October 25, 2017, at St Anne's, Alderney, in the Channel Islands, a peal of 25,056 changes of Bristol Surprise Maximus was rung in 16 hours and 7 minutes. The peal at South Petherton is now the second-longest on twelve bells. However, it still holds the record for the longest peal of Cambridge Surprise Maximus. A large board on the wall in the ringing room records this amazing event.

Images for kids

Church from the west
Detail on crossing tower
North porch
North transept window
Church from the east
Nave, showing wall painting
Window in south nave aisle, with Sherborne Abbey (left), Barrow Mump (middle) and Glastonbury Abbey (right)
Tomb chest of Sir Giles Daubeney