St John the Baptist's Church, Stanwick facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St John the Baptist's Church, Stanwick
St John the Baptist's Church, Stanwick, from the southeast
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OS grid reference	NZ 185 119
Location	Stanwick St John, North Yorkshire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	Churches Conservation Trust
History
Dedication	John the Baptist
Architecture
Functional status	Redundant
Heritage designation	Grade I
Designated	4 February 1969
Architect(s)	Anthony Salvin (1868 restoration)
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic, Gothic Revival
Completed	1868
Specifications
Materials	Stone rubble, roofs in stone slate, artificial stone slate and lead

St John the Baptist's Church is an old Anglican church in the village of Stanwick St John, North Yorkshire, England. It is no longer used for regular church services. This church is very important historically. It is listed as a Grade I building, which means it is one of the most important historical sites in England. The church is cared for by the Churches Conservation Trust. The land where the church stands is also special. It is recognized as a Scheduled Monument. It is located within the ancient earthworks of Stanwick Camp, which was a settlement from the early Iron Age.

History of the Church

The church building you see today was mostly built in the 1200s. But there might have been an even older church here! A piece of a cross from the 800s was found in the churchyard. This suggests that people were worshipping on this spot a very long time ago. In 1868, the church was "heavily restored" by a famous architect named Anthony Salvin. This means he made many repairs and changes to the building. The church officially became part of the Churches Conservation Trust on June 1, 1990. This group helps to protect and preserve old churches like this one.

Church Design and Features

Monument of Sir Hugh Smithson, 1st Baronet (died 1670)

Mural monument to Sir Hugh Smithson, 3rd Baronet

The church is built from stone rubble, which means rough, unshaped stones. The roofs are made of stone slate, artificial stone slate, and lead.

Outside the Church

The church has a main area called the nave with four sections. It also has a south aisle and a south porch. There is a chancel with three sections and a north vestry that was added in the 1800s. At the west end, there is a tall tower.

The tower has three levels. It has strong corner stones called quoins and diagonal buttresses that help support it. On the lowest level, there is a tall, narrow window called a lancet window. There are similar windows on the middle level. The top level has two-light bell openings, where the bells are. The very top of the tower has a battlemented parapet, which looks like the top of a castle wall. On the ground, near the west side, there is an old medieval stone coffin lying on its side.

On the north side of the church, there is a five-sided stair turret. This was added in the 1800s. The porch has strong buttresses and an arched doorway. Above the doorway, there is a sundial that tells the time using the sun. The inner door of the porch is from the 1200s. You can see carved stones from the Anglo-Saxon and medieval times built into the south aisle walls. The south aisle has a single window from the 1800s on its west side. It also has two three-light windows from the 1800s on the south wall. The east window of the south aisle is a three-light window from the 1200s. On the north wall of the church, there are three two-light windows with decorative stone patterns. The chancel has a doorway for the priest and several windows. This includes a three-light east window with beautiful stone patterns. The vestry has a two-light window from the 1800s.

Inside the Church

Inside the church, there is a south arcade with four arches. There are also arches connecting the tower to the nave and the nave to the chancel. In the north wall of the chancel, there is a stone statue of a person lying down, called a effigy. In the south wall, there is a piscina from the 1800s, which is a basin for washing sacred vessels. There is also a stepped triple sedilia, which are seats for the clergy.

In the south aisle, you can find another piscina and an aumbry, which is a small cupboard for storing church items. The font, used for baptisms, is from the 1800s. It has a carved wooden canopy from the 1600s. The church has many tombs and monuments dedicated to the Smithson family. On the east wall of the chancel, there are painted boards with the Lord's Prayer, Creeds, and the Commandments. Above the chancel arch, you can see the royal arms of King George III. Around the church, there are also hatchments, which are diamond-shaped boards showing family coats of arms. The organ in the church was built in 1866 by John Fincham. The church has a ring of three bells. Two of them were made in 1677, and the third was made in 1685.

Historical Features Around the Church

Around the church, there are seven other structures that are also protected as Grade II listed buildings. These are important historical items. To the south of the south aisle, there are four sandstone tombstones from the 1700s. On the east side of the porch, there is another group of four tombstones from the same time period. South of the porch, there are two memorials. One is for William Newcomb, who died in 1752, and the other is for Richard Slater from the early 1700s. South of the chancel, there is an Anglo-Saxon cross-shaft. This stone cross piece probably dates back to the 800s.

To the north-northeast of the church, there are two wells. These wells were built in the late 1800s for the Duke of Northumberland. They might have been designed by Anthony Salvin, the same architect who restored the church. The smaller well is about 150 meters from the church, near a natural spring. This spring feeds the other well, which is about 100 meters from the church.

See also

• Grade I listed buildings in North Yorkshire (district)
• List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in Northern England