St Mary's Church, Akenham facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Akenham |
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St Mary's Church, Akenham, from the south
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| OS grid reference | TM 147 489 |
| Location | Akenham, Suffolk |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Website | Churches Conservation Trust |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade II* |
| Designated | 9 December 1955 |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Norman, Gothic |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Flint and brick with limestone dressings Roofs tiled and slated |
St Mary's Church is an old and special Anglican church in a small village called Akenham, in Suffolk, England. It's like a protected treasure, listed as a Grade II* building because of its history and beauty. The Churches Conservation Trust helps look after it. You'll find this church standing quietly in the fields, about 5 kilometers (3 miles) north of Ipswich.
Contents
Church History and Changes Over Time
The church was first built a very long time ago, during the medieval period. The oldest parts of the church probably date back to the late 1200s.
Building Through the Centuries
- The church tower was added in the 1300s.
- More parts were built and changed in the 1400s.
- A south chapel was added in the 1500s.
- In the mid-1800s, the church was fixed up and improved. This was part of a common trend called the Victorian restoration, where many old churches were updated.
Damage and Repair
During World War II, in 1940, a bomb from a German plane damaged the church. It was left in ruins for many years. But in the 1960s, local people and a group called the Friends of Friendless Churches worked together to restore it. The church was no longer used for regular services after 1976. It was then given to the Redundant Churches Fund, which later became the Churches Conservation Trust.
Church Design and Features
St Mary's Church is mostly built from flint stones, with special limestone details. The wall of the chancel (the part of the church near the altar) is covered in a smooth plaster called stucco. The chapel is made of brick. The roofs of the nave (the main part of the church) and chancel are covered with tiles, while the chapel roof has slates.
Layout of the Church
The church has a main area (the nave), a chancel, a tower on the southwest side that also works as a porch, and a chapel on the south side.
Windows and Openings
- On the north wall of the nave, there's a narrow window in the old Norman style.
- The south wall of the chancel has two tall, narrow windows called lancet windows and a pointed doorway, all from the late 1200s.
- The north wall has a square-shaped window from the 1300s.
- The tower has a doorway leading into the porch, with a lancet window above it.
- The openings where the bells are have louvred slats.
Tower and Decorations
The top of the tower has a battlemented edge, which looks like the top of a castle wall. It also has gargoyles shaped like lion heads. The south window in the chapel has three sections.
Inside the Church
Inside, you'll find a font from the 1400s, made of limestone. It has eight sides and is decorated with carved patterns called tracery. In the south chapel, there's also an old piscina, which is a stone basin used for washing sacred vessels.
Important Story from the Churchyard
In the churchyard, which is the burial ground around the church, there's a gravestone for a boy named Joseph Ramsey. He died in 1878 when he was only two years old. Joseph's family were Nonconformists, meaning they weren't part of the official Church of England, and Joseph had not been baptised in the Anglican church.
His burial in a Church of England churchyard caused a big legal argument. This case was very important because it led to a new law, the Burial Laws Amendment Act 1880. This law changed how funerals could happen, making it easier for people of different faiths to be buried in Church of England churchyards.
See also
