St Peter & St Paul Yattendon

This was the first of five churches I visited one Saturday  and one I have wanted to visit for a while. The church you see dates back to 1450 though no doubt there was another around here before that.

 St Peter & St Paul taken from the corner of the churchyard

The tower with spire and clock, I confess I missed getting a photo of the clock which looks interesting

 Wood framed entrance porch

view along the path running round the outside of the church to the graveyard at the back

The north side of St peter & St Paul

 The North East end of the church

The buttress on the South West end of the church leading round to the porch

 Inside the church looking along the Nave. As you can see there is a rood screen and at one time it would have had a rood loft as you can see from the gated door on the left under the cross, beside that is the doorway that would have gone to the loft. From what I have read this is one of the best examples around of the stairwell

 The chancel where the sun came out for a moment when I took the photo

On either side of the chancel window you can see these panels 

 The Chancel window which is quite magnificent

 The Altar, I did like the cross with the flowers and the hanging on the altar front

The back of the rood screen from the chancel

One of two sets  the choir stalls

some of the kneelers by the altar rails

more near the pulpit with a beautiful embroidery on the lectern 

It was not easy to take a photo of the organ because of the light coming through the window the pulpit was easier

This shot is from the back of the church

and one I took from the pulpit

The nicely carved font with cover and a view of the arch leading to the belltower

 There was some very nice stained glass through the church

showing various scenes from the life of Christ 

This window is at  the back in the belltower

One of the first things which I noticed was the battlefield cross for Major F W L Gull who was killed in Action 28 Aug 1918. It was over the door that lead to the rood loft

There is a family memorial under one of the stained glass windows
 

This is the chief monument in terms of interest, is that erected to the great Elizabethan soldier, Sir John Norreys. He is known as the Drake of the Army, though he is little remembered today. The long inscription tells is story. It was put up by his collateral descendant, Norreys Bertie, in the 18th century. The information canme from the Royal Berkshire Hitorys

The second was the roll of honour for Yattendon

With a WWI helmet in pride of place over the top

Walking through the church you can see many fine old memorials

To churchwardens like Paul Waterhouse M.A








 

 

Or Sir John Andrew Bartista Gallini 1728-1805

and the Howard family here on the right

These two to the Rucker family stand out with the coat of arms the lower one Arthur was Neville Chamberlain's Principal Private Secretary

A more recent one to Edward Mauger Iliffe who was first Baron of Yattendon  and the marble one of Alfred Waterhouse who was Lord of the Manor of Yattendon and died in 1905

In the back under the belltower you van see more let in the walls

Heading outside to the churchyard round the back you see a large burial area

With a few war graves
Lieutenant A.L. Ilsley and Private A.T. Pizzey who dies in the First World War

The grass and moss are trying to overcome this grave

One Celtic cross stands out amongst the other graves

The one to the left has a niche in it, I wonder if it held something at one time.  The headstone to the right had a crucifix, something I had not come across before on a heardstone

These four headstones are from the same Family


















And one I noticed to Sir David Llewellyn

The grave of Chef Petty Officer E.S.B Martin of HMS Ganges

I took this photo on the North side of the church while heading back to the car and my next church to visit

I'll leave you with this photo I took in the porch.
Have a peaceful weekend