Going on from last week with a tour around the churchyard at St Leonard Watlington.
There is a fare bit of frontage to St Leonard but the graves are sparse here with only this Tomb chest standing out, any headstones that were here have long gone
Going along the south side of the church proves better with many older headstones on show
The one above looked particularly old
Above another older headstone with inscription just about readable.
Left the churchyard at the east end of the church looks more recent
One of the headstones that stuck out belonging to Jennifer Piper
I did like the carving of the Jenny Wren at the top
Further along you come into an area of older headstones again
which are in an idyllic situation of woods growing around them
You will also see the headstone of
Private W.W.Lamport nearby
Walk on a little further and you pass a fenced marking the extension of the churchyard and the more recent burials of the parish
Turn around an you look back through the old part
Lawrence A Batten I can only assume was a fireman from the engraving of an engine on the headstone
One point in the extension that stands out is this cross, nearby memorial tiles are let in along the stones
Above Andrew Patrick Brown who from the badge was in the US Medical Corps
Right looking across the new part of the churchyard
On the way back through the old part I noticed the marker of General Sir John Mogg
The older part of the churchyard
The churchyard held a few more Commonwealth war graves
Bombardier Herbert Edward Jones
Private H.J.young
Private A.E.Paget
Corporal George Edward Hoar
You can see their graves amongst the other headstones
A covered wooden cross on one grave
While in another part the marker of Lt Col Fred Basset R.A and his wife Mary was in danger of being covered in grass
A crucifix serves as a monumental for one family in the churchyard
The old churchyard with path running through the centre
An old family vault with the names still readable on it
Finally I walked out by the yew tree near the church and left for the next church on my list to visit.
Till next time Take care and have a peaceful weekend
Amazing.
ReplyDelete...it's nice to see stones that help tell a bit about the person's life!
ReplyDeleteThat's a lot of gravestones!
ReplyDeleteMade me feel a bit sad walking through St Leonard's cemetery Bill, I know we're all only here for a relatively short time which becomes poignantly clear when you see the gravestones. Beautifully shown here ✨
ReplyDeleteI find that gravestones are among the most evocative things in old churches and I'm always sad to find they've been cleared. You found some interesting ones. Every now and then I come across some modern stones which are real works of art - like the one with the wren.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately it is now unkept and must be the worst looking in Oxfordshire, the grass and bramble are taking over. On the rare occasion a small part of the church yard is cut they make such a mess.
ReplyDelete