Parish Church of Canford Magna, Merley, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole

Description

POOLE

SZ0398 CANFORD MAGNA, Canford Magna
958-1/9/225 (East side)

14/06/54 Parish Church of Canford Magna

GV I

Church. Late Saxon with C13, C14, C15, C19 and C20 additions.
Nave of late Saxon minster church, now chancel of aisled nave
and tower added by Augustinian Canons of Bradenstoke Priory
c1200. S chancel chapel and S chancel aisle remodelled C14.
Nave aisles and other alterations made C15. Nave extended
westward 1829 by Edward Blore, remodelled 1876-8. N chancel
aisle and porches rebuilt and other alterations made by D
Brandon; other C20 alterations.
Coursed limestone and carstone rubble with plain-tile roofs.
PLAN: chancel, N chancel aisle, N tower, S chancel chapel and
aisle, aisled nave and N and S porches.
EXTERIOR: 5-light E window of c1856 with Decorated-style
tracery; hoodmould and uncarved labels. Small paired lancet
windows to E end of N chancel aisle. Aisle, rebuilt as vestry,
has catslide roof with chancel and similar pair of windows to
N and chamfered Carnarvon-arched doorway near tower. S chancel
chapel, built at right angle to chancel, has 3-light window to
gable end with rectangular chamfered surround, straight head,
trefoil-headed lights and spandrel lights.
4-stage tower to W end of N chancel aisle has lancet windows
to bottom stage with deep chamfered surrounds and small
1-light window to next stage to E side with rectangular
chamfered surround. 2-light bell-chamber openings with
attached shafts outermost and central shaft with simple carved
capitals and roll-moulded round-arched heads within single,
chamfered round-headed arch, except to S side where window
head has been lost. Short top stage with small 1-light window
with round-arched head to each side and plain stone-coped
parapet. Tower has closing angle buttresses to outer angles of
bottom stage, and offsets to each stage.
S chancel aisle has 3-light window with chamfered rectangular
surround, straight head, cinquefoil-headed lights and cut
spandrels. Nave aisles have cat-slide roofs, a similar window
to N and S and small lancet windows either side of porches
with cusps to heads. N door has 2 orders of shafts, those
outermost of limestone with moulded mid rings and enriched
capitals, chamfered imports and round-arched head,
roll-moulded innermost keel-moulded outermost.
C19 porch has similar doorway and trefoil windows to sides in
roll-moulded circles. S door has similar porch and 2 orders of
shafts with enriched capitals, imposts, keel-moulded
round-arched head outermost and trefoil head innermost with
cusps and chamfer. Late Saxon W end has small 1-light windows
to aisles with chamfered, round-arched heads.
C19 W bay has shafted lancets either side with foliage
capitals and hoodmoulds, that to N side converted into C20
organ loft inside. 3-light stepped lancet W window with
similar shafts and hoodmould, and wheel window to gable above
with roll-moulded surround and hoodmould. Stone-coped gables
with kneelers, foliated gable crosses to nave and chancel
gables and sundial to apex of S chancel chapel gable. Offset
angle buttresses to aisles.
INTERIOR: chancel, the former nave of Saxon minster, has
original round-headed archways to E end to N and S sides with
imposts, formerly leading to porticus. Later round-headed
archways to N and S walls either side of low doorways with
similar heads, that to N with blank tympanum and imposts.
Traces of small original windows, especially to S side.
Chancel has C19 tiled floors, mosaic decoration to E wall by
Salviati with large angels either side of window, and carved
oak choir stalls with lion ends. Fine mid-late C18
wrought-iron communion rail. Chancel arch has pointed,
double-chamfered head dying into piers. W tower arch has
shafts with foliage capitals and nailhead ornament and
stepped, pointed arch.
Nave has 2 arches to aisles either side with semicircular
responds with moulded bases and trumpet-scalloped capitals,
roll and keel-moulded round-arched heads and roll-moulded
hoodmoulds turned up at ends. NW arch has been replaced by
double-chamfered pointed-arched head. Trefoiled circular
openings to spandrels, C19 in present form.
FITTINGS: Purbeck marble font has octagonal bowl with 2
shallow trefoil-headed panels to each face on octagonal stem
and 8 subsidiary circular shafts and octagonal base.
Hanoverian Royal Arms in carved and painted wood in S aisle.
C19 stained-glass E window and other C19 stained-glass
windows.
MEMORIALS: brass inscription plate to Richard Cheke d.1502.
Wall monument to Hendry Constantine of Merley "buried in this
aisle with many others of the name and family" d.1613 aged 28
erected 1651 by his widow Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Evelyn
of Surrey, "in the 38th year of her widowhood"; limestone with
segmental pediment and shaped apron. Wall monument to Richard
Lloyd AM Rector of Winterbourn Selston d.1732; white marble
draped cartouche on acanthus bracket with scull and winged
cherubs' head.
3 fine wall monuments by Bacon with low relief sculpture in
statuary marble on veined grey marble grounds, to Samuel
Martin d.1788 with profile portrait head in medallion, to
Henrietta Mary Wilkie, daughter of James and Sarah Wilkie of
Fouldon Berwicks d.1790 with mourning female and draped urn
with coat of arms, and to Catherin Willett d.1798 with female
figure leaning her left elbow on open book on top of classical
altar with the Lamb in low relief, a censer at her feet and
above, a circlet of flowers in a sunburst framing the symbol
of Eternity.
Wall monument to Rev. Robert Henning d.1798 and Mary his wife
of grey and white marble with Latin inscription and double
urns signed H Rouw London. Other early C19 marble wall
monuments by a variety of hands and later C19 wall monuments
including one to land agent of Canford estate.
A very fine and interesting church, the late Saxon work being
of major importance.
(RCHME: County of Dorset (South East): London: 1970-: 192-195;
Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Newman J: Dorset: London:
1972-).

Listing NGR: SZ0319598813

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British Listed Buildings

History in Structure

Parish Church of Canford Magna

A Grade I Listed Building in Merley, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole

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