St George's Church, Orcheston

St George's Church in Orcheston, Wiltshire, England, was built in the 13th century. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II* listed building,[1] and is now a redundant church in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.[2] It was declared redundant on 1 March 1982, and was vested in the Trust on 30 October 1985.[3]

St George's Church
LocationOrcheston, Wiltshire, England
Coordinates51°12′11″N 1°54′56″W / 51.20306°N 1.91556°W / 51.20306; -1.91556
Built13th century
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameChurch of St. George
Designated4 July 1985[1]
Reference no.1024021
St George's Church, Orcheston is located in Wiltshire
St George's Church, Orcheston
Location of St George's Church in Wiltshire

The church is built of flint and has a Norman north door.[2] The door has single columns which are headed by simple scallop-shaped carvings with fan-shaped leaves in the scallops.[4] The short embattled west tower has a tiled pyramidal roof. It contains three bells which were cast by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough following fire damage to the bells which previously hung there;[5][6] another source lists four, including a bell from the Salisbury foundry of c.1400.[7]

The windows in the nave and Early English chancel and low tower also date from the 13th century.[2] The tower is supported by diagonal buttresses.[1] Inside are the Royal Arms of 1636.[2] The font is of a style popular in the 15th century, although it was made in 1833.[1] The funerary hatchment is also from the 1830s.[1]

The church was restored in 1833 by Thomas Henry Wyatt,[4][8] during which the roof of nave was raised.[1] In 1933 the parish of St George was combined with St Mary's, the other church in the village,[5] which continues in use.

In 1988 the church was used as a location for the filming of the BBC television series First Born with Charles Dance ringing the church's bells.[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Historic England. "Church of St George, Orcheston (1024021)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d "St George's Church, Orcheston, Wiltshire". Churches Conservation Trust. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  3. ^ "Diocese of Salisbury: All Schemes" (PDF). Church Commissioners/Statistics. Church of England. 2011. p. 8. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
  4. ^ a b "St George, Orcheston St Mary". Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  5. ^ a b "Church of St. George, Orcheston". Wiltshire Community History. Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  6. ^ Baggs, A.P.; Freeman, Jane; Stevenson, Janet H. "Parishes: Orcheston St Mary In; A History of the County of Wiltshire: Volume 15, Amesbury Hundred, Branch and Dole Hundred". British History Online. Victoria County History. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  7. ^ "Orcheston, St George". Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  8. ^ "Orby - Ormskirk". A Topographical Dictionary of England. British History Online. 1848. pp. 479–483. Retrieved 8 October 2010.
  9. ^ "St George's Church, Orcheston". Salisbury Plain benefice. Retrieved 4 September 2016.