St Michaels Chapel Rycote

 

This is a church that has been on my radar for a while now since I noticed the entrance while driving past to another church. The main problem was when it was open which are only at cretin times during the year which is between April and September on Friday Sat & Sunday 2-6pm but I might add is well worth making the effort to visit

"Richard and Sybil Quartermayne, lord and lady of the manor of Rycote, founded Saint Michael's chapel as a chantry in 1449. It is a Perpendicular Gothic building with a chancel, nave and west tower. It retains original 15th-century wooden fittings including pews, stalls and a screen In the 17th century the chapel was ornamented with a west gallery, altar rails, a reredos and other fittings. The first reredos, dated 1610, is now damaged and in 1974 was kept under the tower. It has been replaced by a second reredos dated 1682. Henry Norris, 1st Baron Norreys is buried here. The chapel is both a Grade I listed building and a scheduled monument.^"

  When I got to the entrance the gate was shut and there was a car stopped just in front of the gates. There was a little old lady in the car I assumed was waiting like me for the place to open but she got out of her car went to the sign and pushed it to open then typed a number in the gate pad and the gates opened. She drove through and stopped by then I had just started to move off through the gates when they started shutting. The lady just walked back over to a box and opened them again. From there I drove down a long drive to  carpark which was full of expensive cars but I managed to park on the end. I had just stopped when the lady looked through my window and scared the life out of me. She asked if I was going to the church then told me she was the custodian and it would be a few moment before it opened. I could hear shooting in the distance so knew they were shooting pheasants which accounted for the cars in the carpark. Wile waiting I took the photos of the outside 

Coming through the gate your first view of the chapel

Not much to see of the place really but you get a good view of the south side

the East end looking west along the south

View of the tower and finals on the chapel

This was the best I could get looking along the north side

Another looking at the west end and north side with the main entrance

One of the greyhound figures on the East end of the chapel

Both of them have bee recently replaced with new ones

The door on the north side looks like a private entrance

With old eroded headstops

either side

Above the coat of arms of the family, I did think it had moved but looking behind it is supposed to be like this

Either side a couple more eroded coats of arms

one slightly better that the other

The west end tower

which has a statue of St Michael subduing the dragon or satin

The churchyard has a few headstones in it, mostly old sinking in the ground

This is the most recent

You can see  a huge Yew beside the church

and when I say huge I mean it, must be going on a couple of thousand years old

Inside which is through the south doorway, Turning left towards the organ loft

And right looking towards the altar

This looked typical of the 1700's

Turning around and looking back

 

Similar shots only with my iPhone

Organ loft

The pulpit with the sounding board and box pew, I could not really get a shot form the pulpit this time

One of the private pews with a balcony for a choir

The other one is interesting as it was for visiting royalty and Elizabeth 1st sat in here

The domed roof of the royal box pew

The other box pew opposite where the door leads to the loft above

The ceiling of the box pew

I used another camera for these where you can see the painted panels

This is the detail on one complete with woodworm holes

 

The altar panel with scripture on it

 

This is one of the old hounds of the church corner outside

Now remember Elizabeth 1st used the box pew well this is her banner, the flag has not been changed since though I doubt this is the original one

 

Detail of the screen top between the pews

The font with cover

This contains the exodus from the Bible

Hamersley memorial

This one is impressive though not easy to read

Written in Latin so lost on me

Memorial in the floor

Connop memorial

Elizabeth Goddard

Margaret Tilly who is buried underneath

The strip of wood here was part of the old rood screen

 

Box pews near the back, the one in the forgrounds is where Charles 1st say and drew on the pew, there are some marks on it that look like some one had drawn on it but there are very feint 

Banner so some of the past owners of the manor

Pew final

This I bound out was  small bread oven used by the monks who lived in the chaple

The Organ in the organ loft

The monks lived in the room to the right where the door is and the window above it

 Final look down the church at the banners

 

 

I took another photo with my iPhone on the way back to the car. Interesting chapel which is well worth visiting

Till next time have a peaceful weekend