St Botolph's Church, Wardley

St Botolph's Church, Wardley is a redundant Anglican church in the small village of Wardley, Rutland, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II* listed building,[1] and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.[2]

St Botolph's Church, Wardley
St Botolph's Church
St Botolph's Church, Wardley
Location in Rutland
52.595°N 0.776°W / 52.595; -0.776
OS grid referenceSK 831 002
LocationWardley, Rutland
CountryEngland
DenominationAnglican
WebsiteChurches Conservation Trust
History
StatusFormer parish church
Architecture
Functional statusRedundant
Heritage designationGrade II*
Designated10 November 1955
Architectural typeChurch
StyleGothic
Groundbreaking12th century
Specifications
MaterialsStone, Collyweston roof

History
Interior view towards chancel before the recent restoration

The advowson was granted to Launde Priory by Richard Basset in the early 12th century.[3] The church was built in the 12th century with the tower and spire built in the 14th century and clerestory being added in the 15th.[4] A Victorian restoration in the 1870s included the rebuilding of the chancel.[5]

Wardley's parish church was dedicated to the Anglo-Saxon Saint Botolph, patron saint of travellers.[4] It stands on its raised churchyard above this hamlet in Rutland, south of the A47 and close to the border with Leicestershire. St Peter's Church in Allexton, the nearest village in Leicestershire, is also in the care of the CCT.[6]

An inspection of the fabric of the building in 2000 identified serious defects in parts of the stonework. Public fundraising enabled work to be carried out and the church was rededicated in 2004.[7]

The church was closed for regular worship in June 2010 and vested into the care of the Churches Conservation Trust in April 2016. The CCT undertook a significant programme of conservation work, including the re-roofing of the chancel with Collyweston slates, timber repairs and re-glazing. The church re-opened in December 2017.[8]

Archietcture

The church consists of a nave (without aisles), a chancel, a west tower with spire and a south porch. The oldest features of the church are the doorways, with the moulded south doorway with waterleaf carving on its capitals, dating c.1175 and enclosed in a 14th-century porch. The tower and broach spire date from the 14th century, while the chancel was rebuilt in 1871.[4] Inside are clear glazing and whitewashed walls. The pointed tower arch to the west, with its carved mask corbels, is likely to be 14th century, while the simple oak nave roof is 15th century. Stone flags in the nave give way to Victorian encaustic tiles in the chancel. The three-stage tower is supported by buttresses and contains two bells.[3]

Inside the church it retains a 19th-century barrel organ made by Bates of Ludgate Hill in London.[4] The octagonal font is dated 1797.[4] A parish chest contains parish documents from 1743 until the 20th century.[7] The piscina is from the 13th century.[9]

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See also

References
  1. Historic England, "Church of St Botolph, Wardley (1180127)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 18 January 2018
  2. Visitchurches, Churches Conservation Trust, archived from the original on 19 January 2018, retrieved 18 January 2018
  3. "Parishes: Wardley Pages 53-57 A History of the County of Rutland: Volume 2.", British HistoryOnline, Victoria County History, retrieved 18 March 2020
  4. "Wardley Church St Botolph", Leicester Churches, archived from the original on 14 July 2019, retrieved 18 March 2020
  5. "St Botolph, Wardley, Rutland: the south nave with late eighteenth century pulpit and painted wood box pews", RIBA, archived from the original on 18 March 2020, retrieved 18 March 2020
  6. "St Peter's Church, Allexton, Leicestershire", Churches Conservation Trust, archived from the original on 2 October 2019, retrieved 18 March 2020
  7. "Newsletter March 2005" (PDF), Rutland History, archived (PDF) from the original on 11 September 2016, retrieved 18 March 2020
  8. "St Botolph's Church in Wardley reopens after conservation", Stamford Mercury, 31 December 2017, archived from the original on 20 January 2018, retrieved 19 January 2018
  9. "The Botolphian June 2014", The Society of Saint Botolph, archived from the original on 29 September 2017, retrieved 18 March 2020

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