Hitchin St Mary’s Church
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St Mary’s Church Photos
About St Mary’s Church
There’s been a church in this location ever since the year 792 when King Offa of Murcia founded a Benedictine community on the site.
The church you see today is actually from the 14th and 15th centuries but the foundations of a Saxon church lie underneath the floor of the nave and are probably those of the original building.
On this beautiful south porch door there’s an unfortunate tale of how the Iconoclast did a fine job of destroying the nine statues that stood in the niches near the top part of the doorway. However, they did not get the three figures at the very top presumably because they couldn’t be pulled down or chiseled out.
The graveyard reveals a fascinating array of graves with these mummy like tombs above ground. Buried closer to the walls of the church are those who could afford the privilege while memorial tablets may have been mounted on the internal walls just to confirm their status. Those even more fortunate or important chose the actual floor of the church as will become evident later.
The first church was dedicated to St Andrew and by the time the Doomsday Survey in 1086 it was being described as a monastery. It was described as having five hides of land, approximately 600 acres and from its size and significance it would have been one of the old minister churches of Anglo-Saxon England.
This painting of the Adoration of the Magi hung above the north door was present to the church by Ralph Radcliffe of Hitchin Priory.
One of the beautiful aspects of this church is the fine wooden roof and the carvings associated with it. In fact, animal carvings occur throughout the church.
If you look down the church you will see that it has not been built in a straight line. This is not an uncommon feature in churches and is due to the church being modified in stages. Local tradition however recall this as being a feature of the cross because Christ’s head lay on one side.
This ancient font made in 1470 illustrates carvings of the apostles. However, in the 1640’s Oliver Cromwell’s soldiers who took over the church damaged it by defacing the carvings. The fine carved cover hanging above the font is a Victorian addition.
The church you see today was built in stages and is originally believed to be ‘Cruciform’ with a central tower. History records that in 1115 a substantial part of the building was destroyed by a great wind. As a result the nave had to be completely rebuilt. The new work didn’t stand for long. In 1298 the centre of the building collapsed in an earthquake and as a result in 1304 the roof fell in.
The remains of the 12th century nave can still be seen in the substantial corners of the present nave.
In this south aisle are quite a few of those internal crypts spoken of earlier. Most are located along the walkways while others are interred around the various altars.
There are plenty fine examples of stained glass some illustrating militaristic scenes in the form of knights as angels. It’s perhaps some sort of links to religious orders and theirs connections with the Knights Templars in the Middle Ages. This theme is repeated in a much more iconic manner elsewhere in the church.
This angel screen which leads into the chapel of St Andrew is considered to be one of the finest in the Hertfordshire County.
On its eastern side are the fraternity stalls used by the Guild of Our Blessed Lady’s, St Mary the Virgin and dating from the 15th century.
Inside the chapel and on this beautifully sculpted seat is where the present Reverend says Mass.
Adorning the eastern walls here are the family monuments of the Radcliffe’s of Hitchin.
Back over on the north side are these three stone sculptures which at first seem quite plain but in reality their stories are steeped in an ancient and rich history.
This mutilated effigy in perfect marble presents Bernard de Balliol, Lord of Hitchin Manor. The left arm is hidden behind a kite-shaped shield, a belt girded a little above the hips once supported a sword worn on the right side but of that only a fragment remains.
This figure is that Lady Elizabeth de Kendale. She wears the costume of a lady of quality in the days of Edward III. The hair is confined with a tightly fitted cap surrounded by a coronet of metal with lead and precious stones. Her close fitting jacket comes half way down her hips and is trimmed with a border of beads. A plain skirt falls in graceful folds to the ground and overall is an ample cloak. At her feet crouch 2 pug dos with bell collars. This lady of Hitchin Manor died two years after her husband in 1376.
This figure of a Knight in armour represents Edward de Kendale, Lord of Hitchin Manor in the reign of Edward III. He was chosen as one of the eight justices in Hertfordshire to quell the disorder that followed the Black Death of 1349 and to enforce the statutes of labours in 1351. He founded the Gilbertine Priory at the Biggin a few yards south east of the church in 1361 and died in 1374. His effigy once lay side by side with that of Elizabeth his wife on an altar tomb in Trinity Chapel where his father Sir Robert De kindle is interred.
This is the Chapel of The Holy Trinity.
In the east window above the chapel you will see the only surviving fragments of medieval glass left in the church. The original glass was smashed by Oliver Cromwell’s men in 1640’s.
This is the chancel and choir area while further on is the Chapel of St John the Baptist.
References
http://www.stmaryshitchin.org.uk/History.html
Update by David Reverest: The “weeping chancel” is a feature of many churches, and can be in either direction, so Christ’s head being on one side isn’t a good reason. More likely that the original nave (St Andrew’s) was pointing to sunrise on St. Andrew’s day, while the chancel of the later building was to the East.
External Links
http://www.stmaryshitchin.org.uk/Home.html
A few minor points, spelling errors that should be made.
It’s “hides”, not “hives” of land, The knight and his wife are “de Kendales” rather than “de Kindles”, “stained glass” rather than “stain glass” and “pug dogs”, not “pug dos”
Also, the “weeping chancel” is a feature of many churches, and can be in either direction, so Christ’s head being on one side isn’t a good reason. More likely that the original nave (St Andrew’s) was pointing to sunrise on St. Andrew’s day, while the chancel of the later building was to the East.
Dave Everest