Church of St Brannock, Braunton, Devon

Description

SS 43 NE
11/68
25.2.65

BRAUNTON
CHURCH STREET(west side)Braunton
Church of St Brannock

GI
Parish Church,C13 fabric to chancel with three lancets on north wall and C14 doorway cut out of walling beneath middle lancet.Unmoulded pointed arch to north transept
and similar but much deeper arch to south transeptal tower.Cruciform plan.Two lancets at east end of nave flanking double-chamfered chancel arch possibly indicate former aisles but C15 rebuild removed them to make impressively wide buttressed nave with single waggon roof chancel chapel also added C15.Mostly C19 refenestration and south,north and west porches all probably rebuilt in C19.Chancel restored 1887.Rubble throughout mainly uncoursed but some roughly squared masonry in south wall of south chancel chapel and dressed stone quoins to chancel.Slate roofs with coped ashlar gables and stone crosses at the apexes.Broach spire and tower of two stages with angle buttresses and large central buttresses all with offsets.Single narrow slit openings in north and west wall of bottom stage.To south is square-headed window with mouchette tracery and head mould with returned ends over buttress with hollow-chamfered lancet to right.Plain pointed arch opening above in second stage.Lead clad broach spire has four gabled two-light lucarnes between the broaches.Stair turret sits in north-east angle of tower with three slit openings on east side.The nave has symmetrical disposition of window openings with single three-light Perpendicular style windows,all partially recut to each side of north and south porches.Both porches have plain pointed arches and doorways with plain chamfers,the base of the jambs recut on south doorway.Ancient pointed arch plank door to south with square framing and ledging and old pointed arch door to north.To right of south porch entrance is reset wall tablet with weathered inscription and stopped hood mould.Large external buttresses with off-sets towards west end and smaller ashlar buttresses bonded in at corners.West porch has unmoulded pointed arch and C19 ceiled waggon roof.Double chamfered pointed west doorway with plain hood mould.Double-leaved ancient door.Wooden charity board on north wall and stocks used as bench on south wall.Large C19 west window in Perpendicular style with corbelled hood mould.Between north transept and north porch is a low slated lean-to roof to outshut with external stone steps in front leading to organ gallery door in transept west wall.Its north wall has two-light C19 window and to east is reset C13 pointed arch window with Y bars.The vestry has C19 cusped two-light window to north and small square window above two light window with shouldered jambs to east.Elaborate Perpendicular style chancel window with corbelled hood mould,tracery recut but architrave mostly intact.Slightly smaller chancel chapel east window has recut long and short jambs and mouchette tracery.Hood mould has stopped ends but also weathered label stops outside these indicating large opening formerly extending up to empty niche near the gable apex.Two rainwater heads at east end dated 1872.Chancel chapel to south has two-light Dec.style window and single-light Dec.style opening each side of four-centred arch doorway with hollow chamfer,floriated stops to the hood moulds and plank door.Interior: Unaisled nave spanned by massive unceiled waggon roof with ornately carved bosses in the intersections of ribs and longitudinal members.Ceiled waggon roof to south chancel chapel and plank ceiled waggon roof to chancel with similar arrangement of bosses:chancel also has angel busts spaced along the wall plates.Two bay arcade of 'B'-Type Pevsner piers with lipped capitals.Fine Cl7 turned communion rails and altar table.Panelled reredos resembling Cl7 chimneypiece dated 1653 with five angels busts in the central projecting bay.Chancel screen,Four-light sections with Perp.tracery,ogee-arched to centre and original headrail to rear.South chancel chapel has C20 dado panelling.Small pointed head piscina near base of east wall of tower.Anglo-Saxon (?) burial stone forms lintel of slit windows.North transept contains carved panelling to organ gallery dated 1619.Lectern reuses portion of one of the turned pedestals of existing Cl7 panelled pulpit which now has its tester as a base.Font near north door has square bowl on squat column,probably late C13/early with base of column and corner colonettes being replacements.Bowl carved with human heads at each corner and ox and human face on east and north sides enriched with Dec.style traceried surround.Nave has three brass Flemish chandeliers.Excellent complete set of twenty-three pairs of C16 variously carved bench ends complete with benches and moulded rails.Single C16 bench end in south chancel chapel,pew front carved 1887 but reusing Cl7 panelling.Two further bench ends with new pews in tower chapel.Armada Box in south chancel chapel with male and female figures in Portuguese costume C.1560 with initials and inscription and C16 chest in nave.Wall monuments.On south chancel chapel wall is hinged brass palimpsest 'reinstated 1908' originally from chapel floor.Nave south wall from east.Early classical style wall monument to Peter Shepherd of Fulbrook and his son died 1558 and 1591.Also monument to Nicholas Hooper Wood also in classical Ionic style.Large late Cl7 wall monument to Robert Incledon(died 1558) and other members of family.Large entablature with semi-circular arched head and angel figures over trophies outside classical colonettes supported on cherubs heads.These flank principal tablet with skull below with painted decoration.Small wall monument to Peter Calverley 'Chyrurgeon'(died 1799).Oval medallion with fern surround,skull and armorial bearings above,cherubs below.Early C19 marble wall tablet above South Doorway to Webber Family 1807-1822.Fluted pilasters flank inscription with Classical Urn above.Marble wall monument to Frances Baker (nee Webber:died 1782).Scrolled surround to carved tablet with tapering crown surmounted by Classical urns. Cluster of three cherub heads at base flanked by urns and brackets.Wall monument extreme west end of south wall of panels containing shields flanked by three superimposed orders of fluted Ionic columns to the lower two tiers with heads in the capitals of the upper tier and pilastered single tier above.North wall from east.Marble wall tablet.Anthemiom acroteria above inscription to Henry Webber 1823 and 1833.To left of organ gallery,Doric columns each side of 1758 tablet with classical urn over.Reset stone wall tablet dated 1622 wall tablet to right of north door to Margaret Allyn died 1709.Cherubs heads over tablet with wreathed surround to skulls head below.Over north door wall tablet to husband and wife died 1839 and 1870.Pilaster to each side of marble wall tablet with shield over.To left of north door,marble wall monument by T Jewell of Barnstaple to Hale family C.1737.Doric pilasters and classical urn.One stained glass east chancel end lancet has window by Percy Bacon 'Artist of most of the stained glass in this Church'.East window of South Chancel chapel by W F Dixon Pinx 18 University St.London.

Listing NGR: SS4892237072

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Church of St Brannock

A Grade I Listed Building in Braunton, Devon

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