St Mary's Church, Bungay facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Bungay |
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St Mary's Church, Bungay, from the west
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| OS grid reference | TM 337 898 |
| Location | Bungay, Suffolk |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Website | Churches Conservation Trust |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Redundant |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Designated | 9 May 1949 |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Perpendicular Gothic |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Flint and stone |
St Mary's Church is an old Anglican church in Bungay, Suffolk, England. It's no longer used for regular services, but it's a very important historical building. The church and the nearby ruins of an old priory are protected as a Grade I listed building. This means they are very special and important. The Churches Conservation Trust looks after them. You can find the church right in the middle of Bungay on St Mary's Street.
Contents
History of St Mary's Church
St Mary's was first built as the church for a Benedictine priory. A priory is like a small monastery. This one was started in the late 1100s. But most of the church you see today was built later, between the 1300s and 1400s.
The Domesday Book from 1086 mentions a church in Bungay. It was called the Church of the Holy Cross. People think St Mary's stands on the same spot as an even older Saxon church.
The priory was closed in 1536. This happened during a time called the dissolution of the monasteries. After this, St Mary's became a regular parish church for the town. A school was even set up in one of the priory's chapels.
In 1577, something amazing happened. Lightning struck the church! This event led to a famous story called the Legend of the Black Dog. You can read more about it below.
Changes Over Time
The church was damaged in a big fire in Bungay in 1688. The roof of the south side and some church furniture burned. But the main roof of the church was safe. The south roof was fixed in 1699, and the church opened again in 1701.
Later, in 1879, the tall tower was repaired. The rest of the church was also restored (fixed up) at that time. This cost a lot of money, about £3,000 back then.
During the 1900s, fewer people attended the church. So, it was decided that it was no longer needed for regular services. Now, a group called The Friends of St Mary's helps keep the church clean. They also organize concerts and other events there.
Architecture of St Mary's
St Mary's Church is built from flint and stone. It's in the Perpendicular style, which is a type of English Gothic architecture. The church has a main area called the nave. It also has side sections called north and south aisles. Above the nave is a clerestory, which is a row of windows to let in light.
The church has a tall tower at the west end of the south aisle. This tower is about 110 feet (33.5 meters) high. It has four tall, pointy decorations called crocketted pinnacles on top. There is no separate chancel area in this church. Outside, to the east, you can still see the ruined parts of the old priory.
Inside the Church
Inside, the main area of the church has arches supported by five columns. These columns are made of many smaller pillars grouped together. The big window at the west end is very impressive. It has fancy stone patterns called tracery at the top.
Look up at the roof! The carved decorations there are called bosses. They show all sorts of things, like angels, a lion, two-headed eagles, and even a bat. Near the entrance, there's a special cupboard called a dole cupboard. It has a carving of a rat on it. In the past, bread was put in this cupboard to give to people who needed it.
Part of the church has been made into a special War Memorial Chapel. In this chapel, you can see an old 17th-century painting from Belgium. It shows the Resurrection of Jesus. The famous writer H. Rider Haggard gave this painting to the church.
The church also has an organ with two keyboards. It was made by E. W. Norman and moved here from another building in Bungay. It was rebuilt in 1961. There are eight bells in the tower. All of them were made in 1820 by Thomas Mears II.
Legend of the Black Dog
On Sunday, August 4, 1577, a big thunderstorm hit Bungay. Lightning struck St Mary's Church. During the storm, a strange creature appeared inside the church. It was a large, black dog, sometimes called a Hell Hound. This dog ran around the church, attacking people. Then, it suddenly vanished!
Moments later, the same dog appeared about 12 miles (19 kilometers) away in Holy Trinity Church, Blythburgh. There, it also injured people in the congregation.
This mysterious dog has been linked to the legend of Black Shuck. Black Shuck is a ghostly dog said to haunt the coasts of Norfolk, Essex, and Suffolk. The story of the Black Dog is so famous in Bungay that an image of it is on the town's coat of arms. Many businesses in Bungay even use the Black Dog in their names!
