St Mary's Church, Brading facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Brading |
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| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Broad Church |
| History | |
| Dedication | St Mary |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Brading |
| Deanery | Isle of Wight |
| Archdeaconry | Isle of Wight |
| Diocese | Portsmouth |
| Province | Canterbury |
St Mary's Church is a local church in the Church of England. You can find it in Brading, a town on the Isle of Wight.
Contents
History of St Mary's Church
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This church is very old, built way back in the 1100s! It has a long and interesting past.
Special Ideas and Features
A long time ago, a vicar named Legh Richmond worked here. He came up with a clever idea. He started using special boards with numbers to show which hymns to sing during church services. This idea became popular all over the world!
The church's tower, built in the 1200s, is quite special. It stands on four pillars right at the church entrance. This design is very rare, with only four examples like it in all of Britain. The tower holds eight bells. The heaviest bell weighs about 530 kilograms. The oldest bell was made in 1594.
Most of the church building you see today was changed and updated in the 1300s and 1400s.
The Oglander Chapel
On the church's south side, there's a special area called the Oglander Chapel. This is where members of the Oglander family were laid to rest. Inside, you can see two beautifully carved and painted wooden statues of knights. These statues are placed on top of two tombs. Even though the family put them there, the knights' clothing doesn't show what people actually wore back then.
In the north part of the church, you'll find special painted signs called funerary hatchments. These also belong to the Oglander family. There are also two old fonts, which are bowls used for baptisms, from the 1200s and 1400s.
War Graves in the Churchyard
The churchyard is the area around the church where people are buried. Here, you can find the graves of four British soldiers. They died during World War I and are cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Past Vicars of St Mary's
- Legh Richmond served as vicar from 1798 to 1805.
Churches in the Brading Group
St Mary's Church is part of a group of churches. This group also includes:
- St John the Baptist Church, Yaverland
- St Mary's Church, Brading
The Church Organ
The church has a large pipe organ. It was built by a company called Forster and Andrews in 1864. You can find more details about this organ on the National Pipe Organ Register website.
