Description

SU 07 SW
9/154

COMPTON BASSETT
COMPTON BASSETT VILLAGE
Church of St Swithin

20.12.60

GV
I
Anglican parish church, C12 and C13, externally C15 with chancel and side chapels of 1865 by H. Woodyer. Ashlar, with squared rubble stone to C19 work, stone slate roofs and some Welsh slate. C15 west tower, nave with C15 clerestorey and aisles, 1865 north porch, 1865 chancel with lean-to side chapels. Three-stage tower with plinth full-height diagonal buttresses, dripcourses, two-light bell-openings and embattled parapet. North side canted stair-tower. Low four-centred arched west door under deep-set three-light hoodmoulded west window and small two-light, similar to bell-openings, in second stage above. Nave has coped east gable, three-window clerestorey of flat-headed three-light windows, all but one with cusped heads. Coved cornice. Lean-to embattled aisles with coved cornices and buttresses each end. North aisle has C19 squared rubble porch, coped with crocketed angle pinnacles and cross finial. Four-centred arched entry. Four-centred arched doorway within with cusped niche over. To right a C19 four-centred arched three-light window, to left a C17 long two-light with arched heads. South aisle has two windows, one similar C19 window and a cusped flat-headed three-light. Chancel has coped east gable, eaves corbel table, three-light east window and two-light each side adjoining east end. North side lean-to has east two-light and north cusped-headed door with cross under hoodmould above and two two-lights. South lean-to has four narrow cusped lancets, cusped-headed door and east two-light. Both sides have slate roofs. Tracery of 1865 work generally with foiled circles above lights.

Interior: three-bay C15 panelled cradle roof with timber wall shafts from carved corbel heads. West wall shows line of earlier roof. Moulded C15 tower arch. Three-bay arcades with two-chamfer arches, round piers, round bases and varied caps. South side has moulded round caps. North side has square caps with varied scallop and scroll mouldings. Finely moulded C14 chancel arch, obscured by superb C15 verandah-type stone screen with deep panelled cove carried on three four-centred arches. Arches each have four renewed figures under crocketed ogee canopies. Rosettes in mouldings, pierced fretwork to arch heads, carved spandrels, foliage frieze, fleuron frieze and brattishing.

Inside, panelled stone roof sloping down to stone screen, arch with three ogee over-lights and three ogee-headed single lights each side. Spiky painted iron gates of 1865. Door to rood stair. Aisles have lean-to roofs, plastered to north, C15 timbers to south. Chancel has unusually sharply pointed three-bay arcades each side on round piers. Third arch on north has vestry door with good lettering over. Sanctuary windows are marble shafted. Five-bay stone reredos with gabled niches, cross to centre and angels with emblems of the Passion each side. South side pointed arched recessed seat.

Fittings: badly faded east window by Hardman (Pevsner) c1865, north two-light of c1878, south of c1885. Oak stalls by Woodyer. South-east window of c1886. Large stone pulpit by Woodyer and fine painted iron lectern by Woodyer, south aisle stained glass of c1875 and c1901, north aisle faded glass of 1856. C19 octagonal font. Small north aisle plaque by E.H. Baily to A. Walker Heneage died 1828. Large west family pew of Walker Heneage family, early C19 fronted with re-used traceried C15 bench ends.

(N. Pevsner Wiltshire 1975 188-9)

Listing NGR: SU0308271598

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17530042

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
• 
  For the Record
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Renovating Old Houses: Bringing New Life to Vintage Homes (For Pros By Pros)
• 
  County Durham (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England) by Elizabeth Williamson Nikolaus Pevsner(1983-03-11)