St Mary's Church, Ottery St Mary facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church, Ottery St Mary
St Mary's Church from the south east
50°45′11.04″N 3°16′44.03″W / 50.7530667°N 3.2788972°W / 50.7530667; -3.2788972
Location	Ottery St Mary, Devon
Country	England
Denomination	Church of England
Churchmanship	Broad Church
History
Dedication	St Mary the Virgin
Consecrated	1260
Architecture
Heritage designation	Grade I listed
Specifications
Length	163 feet (50 m)
Height	71 feet (22 m)
Administration
Parish	Ottery St Mary
Deanery	Ottery
Archdeaconry	Exeter
Diocese	Diocese of Exeter
Province	Province of Canterbury

St Mary's Church is a very old and important church in Ottery St Mary, Devon, England. It is a Grade I listed building, which means it's one of the most special historic buildings in the country. It is part of the Church of England.

This church works with four other churches in Ottery St Mary. They are all part of a group called "Churches Together in Ottery St Mary."

History of St Mary's Church

The parish church of St Mary's is sometimes called "a tiny Exeter Cathedral". This is because it has a similar cross shape. Its towers form the arms of the cross, just like the cathedral.

Early Beginnings and Design

The church is about 163 feet (50 m) long. Its towers stand 71 feet (22 m) tall. It was officially opened in 1260. At that time, the church belonged to Rouen Cathedral in France. This was even before the Norman invasion of England.

Experts believe that the tower-transepts and the outer walls of the main church area (chancel) were built around 1260. The towers were likely built to look like those at Exeter Cathedral.

This church is one of 107 listed sites in the area. It was consecrated (made sacred) by Bishop Bronescombe in 1260. Later, Bishop Grandison made changes around 1330. The church mainly shows an "Early English" style. It has two towers above the transepts. The inside was greatly fixed up in the mid-1800s by people like William Butterfield.

In the 1300s, the main part of the church (nave) was rebuilt. A special chapel for the Virgin Mary (Lady Chapel) was added at the east end. Two smaller chapels were also built on either side of the chancel. More changes happened around 1520. This included making the north nave aisle bigger. It got a fancy, fan-shaped ceiling with hanging decorations.

St Mary's College: A Special School

In 1335, John Grandisson, who was the Bishop of Exeter, bought the church and its land. On January 22, 1338, he started a college there. This college was a special kind of church where priests lived and worked together. It had forty members.

Bishop Grandisson rebuilt much of the church. The main hall (nave), the chancel, the side aisles, and the Lady Chapel are from this time. The nave has five sections. The chancel is quite long, with six sections. It also has small chapels on the north and south sides.

The beautiful roof inside St Mary's Church

Inside the Church: Cool Features

The church is famous for its painted roof. It also has a special aisle from the early 1500s called the Dorset Aisle. This aisle has a unique fan-shaped ceiling. It was designed for Cecily Bonville, 7th Baroness Harington.

The church has ten misericords from when it was built in 1350. These are small wooden seats that choir members could lean on during long services. Five of them show the family symbol of Bishop John de Grandisson. You can also find two medieval carved stone green men inside. Other interesting things include the tombs of Otho de Grandisson and his wife. There is also an altar screen, special seats for priests (sedilia), and a wooden eagle given by Bishop Grandisson.

The college closed on December 24, 1545. After that, the church started serving the local community. The other buildings of the college were torn down.

Becoming a Parish Church

The church was closed on May 21, 1849, for a big restoration project. An architect named William Butterfield led the work. He made changes to make the church better for the local people. For example, he lowered the floor in some areas. This made the east end, which was built for the college, more suitable for everyone.

All the old galleries (balconies) were removed, except for one in the south transept. This one was kept for the organ. The old wooden benches (pews) were taken out and replaced with open seating. The area around the altar was paved with special tiles. The walls were cleaned and scraped. The church reopened on May 22, 1850. The money for this work came from donations, including £1,200 from Mr. Justice Coleridge.

Modern Updates and Famous People

New choir stalls were added in 1908. They were designed by John Duke Coleridge. Miss Mary Dickinson paid for them to remember her father, Rev. Frederick Binley Dickinson.

In 1934, three empty spaces in the old altar screen were filled with carved scenes. Herbert Read, a sculptor from Exeter, did the work using Beer stone. Mrs Winstanley paid for this in memory of her husband, Harold Winstanley.

You can find a small stone plaque for the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge on the south churchyard wall. The church records for Ottery St Mary go back to 1601. They are kept in the Devon Record Office.

Sir Ernest Mason Satow, a famous scholar and diplomat, is buried in the churchyard. There is also a plaque inside the church that remembers his life. This plaque was originally in Peking (now Beijing), China.

On September 26, 2015, St Mary's was a special place. It held the first ordination service in the Church of England led by a woman. Sarah Mullally, who was the Bishop of Crediton, ordained two deacons to become priests.

Amazing Astronomical Clock

The ancient astronomical clock

In the south tower (bell tower) of the church, there is an amazing Ottery St Mary astronomical clock. It is one of the oldest working mechanical clocks in the country! Many people think Bishop John de Grandisson (who was Bishop of Exeter from 1327 to 1369) was involved in its creation.

This clock shows how people used to think the universe worked. It follows Ptolemaic cosmology, which means it shows the Earth at the very center of the solar system. The clock was fixed and made to work again in 1907.

The Church Organ

St Mary's Church has had organs since at least the 1300s. Bishop Grandisson's rules for the college mention them. By 1545, there were three organs. However, any organs that were still there in the 1600s were destroyed in 1645 during the English Civil War.

Around 1828, a company called Flight and Robson put a new organ in the west gallery. This organ was moved to the south tower in 1849. Other companies, Hele & Co, worked on the organ in 1878 and 1901. After more work in 1934, Eustace and Alldridge from Exeter made the organ bigger. They used parts from other organ makers like Willis and William Hill. The organ was rebuilt again in 1990 by Michael Farley. You can find more details about the organ on the National Pipe Organ Register.

Who Led the Church?

Past Leaders: Vicars and Wardens

Here are some of the people who have led St Mary's Church over the centuries:

Wardens of St Mary's College

These people were in charge when St Mary's was a college:

Vicars of the Parish Church

These are the vicars who have led the church since it became a parish church:

Churches Working Together

St Mary's Church is part of a group of churches that work together. This group includes:

• St John the Baptist's Church, Colaton Raleigh
• St James and St Anne's Church, Alfington
• St Gregory the Great's Church, Harpford
• St Luke's Church, Newton Poppleford
• St Edward the Confessor's Church, Wiggaton
• St Gregory's Church, Venn Ottery
• St Michael the Archangel's Church, West Hill

See also

In Spanish: Iglesia de Santa María (Ottery St Mary) para niños