Heritage Church
In the shadow of the Long Man of Wilmington in Sussex, Roger Paine discovers a charming ancient church.
St Mary and St Peter, Wilmington
ON the northern slopes of Windover Hill, just below the South Downs Way, one of the most remarkable pieces of ancient craftsmanship in Europe looks down on the Church of St Mary and St Peter, Wilmington.
This unusual figure, holding a staff longer than himself in each hand, is known as “the Long Man of Wilmington”.
Standing two hundred and thirty feet high, the figure is made of hundreds of whitewashed stone blocks, following an outline originally cut into the chalk sometime in the distant past.
Although his origins remain a mystery, there seems little doubt the Long Man was here before Saxon times.
He undoubtedly pre-dates the church in Wilmington, and its adjacent priory.
It is believed the church was founded to serve the Saxon settlement of Wineltone, the name by which Wilmington is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. Although there is no specific reference to a church in the book itself, it seems likely that some form of wooden structure existed on the current site either prior to, or at that time.
The Benedictine Abbey of Grestain in Normandy acquired property across the south-east of England – including Wilmington – following the Norman Conquest, and it was at the beginning of the twelfth century that Wilmington Priory was built to accommodate the monks as the abbey’s representatives.
But, as it seemed unnecessary to construct a chapel solely for such a small group, a church that could be used by both monks and parishioners was built next to the priory. This is the Norman church of St Mary and St Peter which exists today.
The chancel was used as the quire for the monks, and its nave as the parish church. The priory, although now ruined, was originally connected to the church by a covered cloister walk, which is now the south aisle.
In the west wall is a blocked-up arch which may once have led down to a short tunnel to the priory crypt. This entrance to the church would have been well used by the monks, in view of the number of services Benedictines were required to attend each day.
A list of vicars of Wilmington indicates the first as Master Samson, prior and rector, in AD 1206, followed by Geoffrey de Caz in 1208. There was a prior in charge of the church for two hundred years until the priory ceased to be a religious establishment in 1413.
The church, like the priory, is built of flint, the stone most easily obtained
locally. Only the arches and pillars have been constructed of imported stone.
The central pillar supporting the arches which separate the nave from the south aisle is made of chalk – a material rarely used in construction at the time.
The nave was rebuilt during the fourteenth century, and remains unchanged to this day. Its four two-light, early-english-style windows, together with the large east and west windows, provide the kind of natural light often lacking in medieval churches.
The chancel is surprisingly long, and its huge sidewalls – the narrow, round-headed windows of Caen limestone and stone seats used by the monks – date from the time when the church was first built. Nowadays, they have the appearance of mere narrow ledges.
On the floor, two large memorial tablets with elaborate family crests commemorate long-serving eighteenth-century parish priests.
High on the north wall is a peculiar carved stone figure, removed in 1948 from a corresponding position on the exterior wall. Some believe this may have been a form of gargoyle; others suggest it could be a Norman representation of the Madonna.
Another theory is that it might have been associated with pagan fertility rites. The shape and form is similar to that found in Romanesque churches in parts of Europe, and it has attracted the sobriquet of The Wilmington Madonna.
In the thirteenth century, the north chapel was built on to the church. It is entered through an arch which leads from the nave into the north transept.
In 2002, a devastating fire virtually destroyed the area then used as the vestry. This included the Bevington pipe organ and beautiful Bee & Butterfly stained-glass window. Smoke and water damage extended to the whole church, and necessitated a daunting repair programme.
The ceiling between the rafters was replaced by traditional plaster work, the stonework within the north transept was rebuilt and the burned timber ceiling was replaced in oak.
A Bevington organ of similar vintage was tracked down, overhauled and sited at the west end of the church. This change of location for the organ is considered to have improved the building’s proportions.
In common with many other churches, St Mary and St Paul underwent extensive restoration during the Victorian era.
The Lady Chapel at the east end of the south transept was consecrated, and the two windows in the south wall also date from this time.
In 1883, the box pews in the nave were replaced by the existing pews, the western gallery was demolished, stalls erected in the chancel to accommodate the choir and the Gothic chancel arch was erected to replace the original which had been destroyed some three hundred years earlier.
Two fine, stained-glass windows in the Sanctuary, depicting Moses and Aaron, were installed around 1845.
The impressive carved oak pulpit with sounding board is Jacobean, and was placed in the church in 1610.
The stone font inside the north door dates from the fourteenth century, and is large enough to allow baptism by total immersion.
The porch was built in the fifteenth century and has been used for a variety of purposes – including the calling of marriage banns; as a venue for coroner’s courts; and as a place to display public notices. The imposing oak door has given access to the church for over seven hundred years.
To commemorate the millennium, new stained glass for the west
window beneath the tower was specially commissioned.
Designed by Paul San Casciani, it was inspired by the centuries-old yew tree in the churchyard, and is symbolic of the tree of life – and a reminder that Christ died on a cross made of wood.
Based on the rings seen in the transverse section of the trunk, the design and the techniques employed to create it are described nearby.
The same artist was responsible for the Bee & Butterfly stained-glass window installed in the north transept following the fire.
This outstanding replacement window depicts a phoenix, symbolic of the church rising again from the ashes, and like the original window includes a centre panel with St Peter surrounded by beautiful butterflies, moths and a bee.
Salvaged pieces of the old stained glass are set at the bottom, below the rising phoenix.
In recognition of the restoration work carried out in the church following the fire, a stone carving in the shape of a heraldic shield – the work of Geoffrey Aldred of Lewes – can be found on the north wall of the nave. It is inscribed “In Gratitude to Almighty God for the restoration of this church AD 2004”.
The extensive churchyard has been in continual use since Norman – and probably Saxon – times.
The most enduring feature is the ancient yew tree, with a girth in excess of twenty-three feet, which almost overshadows the church. It has been authenticated as being over 1,600 years old.
Although now supported by props and chains, it continues to produce new growth every year.
It is not difficult to imagine that this same yew, whose life has spread across millennia, could have been seen by those, whoever they were, who first carved the mysterious Long Man into the chalk of the South Downs.
This carefully maintained and active church, with its artistically displayed history, surely reflects the words attributed to Christ and quoted in the millennium window:
“Raise the Stone and thou shalt find Me, Cleave the Wood and I am there”.