Agatha Christie

So the second blog I wrote back in 2012 was about the author Agatha Christie I never realised when I was younger that she live in part of the Village Called Winterbrook. Winterbrook became part of Wallingford a few years ago stolen from the village by the Council and Wallingford. The one thing they could not take was where she is buried which is at St Mary's Church in Cholsey. Many people visit the churchyard from all over the world and if you ask there are people who are willing to show you the grave and tell you some history on the church . The grave itself is over in the North West corner of the churchyard and had a large white headstone marking it

St Helen Dry Sandford

Continuing with visiting Churches near Abingdon a week or so later I went to Dry Sandford to visit St Helens Church. A little history form Wikpedia
"The Church of England parish church of Saint Helen is a 13th-century-style Gothic Revival building designed by J.B. Clacy of Reading and built in 1855. St. Helen's has lancet windows, a nave, chancel, rib-vaulted apse and a bellcote on the gable above the chancel arch. St. Helen's was made a separate ecclesiastical parish in 1867, but was united in a single benefice with St. Peter's, Wootton in 2000.^{" There is a sign out of view by the Lych Gate telling you the church was open but I was to be sadly disappointed with what I found a few moments later}

I thought the entrance was quite present with it's little Lych Gate

The church from the South side and left porch with the village war memorial in the foreground
I did wonder at the fencing around the church at the time

Above the faded poppy wreath on the memorial base

Right looking towards the West end

Going over to the North East corner to get this view of the church

Closer view showing the apse and vestry off to the right

Left/right  view of both apse and vestry

Along to the West end for a view along the south side and the porch

Above the entrance porch which is as far as I got because inside were a couple of notices one telling you that no one was allowed inside with out a approved member of the team.
  On phoning the churchwarden it transpired that the church was closed of repairs because of some structural problems in the church

After that it was a little walk around the churchyard looking at the headstones

The West end where you can see most of them

I had looked around for the War graves and found two. One of Gunner W.T.Coll and the other of Warrant  Officer H Gower RAF

On the North side looking east

And back West

Not sure how old the Yew tree was

Some older headstones

Above a mixture of old and more recent headstones
Left some of the headstone behind the fencing around the church

Two are Crosses  of people who used to go to the church

I will leave you this week with a view of the East end of the church and the board showing the restoration fund. If you visit there is a notice board with photos showing what repairs are needed and the churchyard is neat and worth looking around. As I am not sure when it will open again I can only show a link to a fellow Church Crawlers Website to see the inside of St Helen

Till Next time I wish you all a wonderful  week and stay safe

Just as a footnote with this panic over COVID 19 which people seem to be running around like headless chickens over I may find it harder to visit the inside of some churches because they are being kept locked over due to the fear of spreading the virus. One church I have to visit I have to arrange for it to be opened. I'm hoping churches will remain open and that I can visit but I do not know how it will pan out.

St Leonard Sunningwell

This was the last of the three churches I visited near Abingdon which I was happy to see looked interesting from the outside. Some history from Wikipedia :-
"The oldest known record of the Church of England parish church of St Leonard is from 1246. The nave and parts of the chancel date from this time, and there is one blocked 13th-century window in the south wall of the nave. The east end of the chancel was rebuilt late in the 13th or early in the 14th century with a Decorated Gothic east window. Late in the 15th century the Perpendicular Gothic south transept and north tower were built and the nave was given Perpendicular Gothic windows and an embattled parapet. The Elizabethan polygonal west porch with Ionic columns is said to have been given by John Jewel, Bishop of Salisbury, who had been rector of Sunningwell St Leonard's in about 1551.
Samuel Fell was rector of St Leonard's from 1625 to 1649.
The west tower has a ring of six bells. Henry II Knight of Reading cast the tenor in the Commonwealth era in 1653. Charles and George Mears of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry cast the second, third, fourth and fifth bells in 1857. Mears and Stainbank, also of the Whitechapel foundry, cast the treble bell in 1933.
In 1877 St Leonard's was restored under the direction of JP Seddon, a friend of William Morris, who designed the stained glass in the east window. The church is a Grade II* listed building."

Above the view of the church as you  walk though the gate
Left the apse here in the West end is the entrance porch

The porch dates back to the 1550's
I did not realise what it was until I found the door opened

Going around to the East the chancel window is Decorated Gothic

Around the South side you find the transept where you can see the tree figures in the window there

At the North East side of the churchyard you get a good view of the tower

Inside the porch which is quite large

A welcoming smell hits you from this floral display

Waling in the church you get a wonderful view down the nave

The chancel is well lit and the stained glass by JP Seddon shows the colour beautifully

The chancel showing the altar lit from the sun

Few iphone photos

The East wall and window with the altar screen over on the right

View of the altar screen and floral display

Above looking back through the nave towards the entrance.

Right a screen splits off the South transept which is late 15th century

Above the altar table with a picture of the crucifixion on the wall beneath the stained glass window

The stained glass is Victorian and depicts St Leonard in chains , the Virgin Mary and St Edmund Rich (1175- 1240) he was born in Abingdon also known as Edmund of Abingdon

Above a stained window in the church

Left the banner is in the South transept

Where you can also see this floor tomb near the South wall

Above the screen looking back to the nave, the North transept is screened off with a door and locked so I presume it is a kitchen and vestry now

Above the pulpit on the South side of the church and a view of the nave from it

Above one of the clerks desk, there is one either side along with choir stalls

Left the carved poppy heads on the pews

They are shaped like Fleurs′-de-lis

The floor in the chancel is where you can see some interesting floor memorials with dates going back to 17th century

I like the simple carved heads and skull on them. The floor around looks like it was done in the Victorian restoration

The lectern opposite the pulpit looks very sturdy

Above the Roll of Honour for both wars

Listing the local men who died 

The memorial of a very brave Captain Clifford Whittington Green who died from his wounds in 1915

A poppy wreath and keeler under the plaque

Above the font which had a wooden cover

There are quiet  a few memorials you can view in the church the bottom one in the left photo being that of Major Sidney John Heath who was killed in action in 1945 and is buried in
REICHSWALD FOREST WAR CEMETERY 

Above a family memorial of the Blower family dating to the 17th and 18th century's

An 19th century  memorial to Rev Henry Bowyer who was the son of Sir George Bowyer

Memorial of Rev B.G.Collett who belong to some interesting companies

Nice brass memorial to Richard William (Dick) Greening

On the way back out I passed these knitted dolls that the children in the crèche play with

When you walk in the churchyard look left towards the East end of the churchyard

Looking West you will see where the more recent  burials are

Further along the North side looking East

Looking North across an mixture of headstones

Above I liked the look of this headstone. Right the remains of a preaching cross base

Snow drops cover these graves

Moss covers the foot stone

Above Primroses by a headstone on the East end of the church.

Looking west along the North side

The commonwealth war grave of Gunner B.Carritt

The one memorial I did like was this one with four angels surrounding the grave, the moss gradually creeping up their bodies

I will leave you this week with a photo of the beautiful floral display beside the altar 

Till next time do have a wonderful weekend