St Mary the Virgin Longcot

Longcot is not far from Faringdon and a short way from the A420, you could easily pass by but you would be missing a beautiful little church.
"The Church of England parish church of Saint Mary the Virgin has a 13th-century Norman nave and chancel. One lancet window on the north side of the chancel is original but all other the current windows were inserted later. On the north side of the church they include one two-light Decorated Gothic and one four-light Perpendicular Gothic window. The pulpit is Jacobean.
The tower was rebuilt in 1721 or 1722. Abraham Rudhall of Gloucester cast five new bells in 1722, followed by the treble bell in 1729 to complete a ring of six.
St Mary's is now part of the Church of England Benefice of Shrivenham and Ashbury, which also includes Bourton, Compton Beauchamp, Fernham and Watchfield".

On going through the main gate you see the village war memorial near the path leading to the church

Above the East end of the church with the South East view here on the left

Here we look over at the South side of the church

Another South side view with the belltower

Couple more views of the West end showing the Bell Tower

The porch taking you into the church

Where you pass this little display on your way in

On entry to the church you can look down the nave towards the Chancel

The altar dressed looking very simple with a beautiful floral display nearby

Behind the altar the East window letting in light

Looking down the nave from the back of the church

The chancel with choir stalls either side

The Jacobean pulpit

Above looking from the pulpit
Right looking to the back from the centre of the church

The other way to the chancel arch
The organ looks quite modern

Above the organ
Right looking over towards one of  the South windows

Above a memorial plaque to a couple who died on the Titanic

Left the floor has a lot of tomes let into it

The stones that are let in the floor are shaped like headstones

There are a couple of memorials on the walls of the church

But I fell the one that stands out most is this one to Earnest Courtney Carter and his wife Lilian who died when the Titanic sank

The plaque telling you the story of how it came to Loncote and a close up of the couple

Another shot of the pulpit

The stained glass around the church the top two are small and either side of the chancel arch


The one on the right is more modern and near the sill you can see a bust

The bust is of a local Ted Ball who seemed to have been quite a character

The windows were all dressed with displays

Above the East window behind the altar

Left the floral display near the altar and a Doll which is part of the window display

The displays were part of the Harvest Festival

This one with flowers was using a watering can

Baskets of vegetables and fruit

On the font another floral display

Outside a walk around the churchyard showed that the older headstones were near the church on the North side

As you went further East the headstone were more modern













Looking towards the North side of the church across the churchyard

Looking West over the more modern headstones

The path from the east end gate in the churchyard

This monument was on the South side of the church

The monument from the look of the carving was quite modern though I did not read the plaque attached to it

Left the headstones here are near the West end

The churchyard near the west end of the church

The West end headstone are a mixture of old and more modern

Some of the older headstone on the North side

Looking East along the Northside with a
tomb in the foreground

Monument near the porch in the church

Last look of the South side of St Mary the Virgin

I will leave you with this shot of the War memorial with the church behind

Till Next time I wish you all Peaceful week

St Mary the Virgin Little Coxwell

Cistercian monks of Beaulieu Abbey built the Church of England parish church of Saint Mary in the 12th century as a chapel of ease. Little Coxwell was a dependent chapelry of the ecclesiastical parish of Great Faringdon. In 1866 the civil parish was established.

 The Church of St. Mary's is a 12th Century Chapel of Ease, built by the Monks of Beaulieu Abbey. It contains a number of features of historical and architectural interest, including:

• Norman doorway
• Perpendicular stone porch
• Transitional Priest's door
• Early decorated window
• 3 large perpendicular windows
• 13th Century Bell-cote
• 12th Century Chancel Arch, rebuilt in the 15th Century
• Norman door jambs of the Vestry in the north wall of the nave
• Carved wood rail of organ loft - part of a pre-Reformation Rood Screen
• 15th Century octagonal font
• Iron Hour-Glass stand
• Brass Candelabrum dating from 1729
• George III Coat of Arms

You walk along a narrow lane to find the church and come to this wonderful lychgate

Go though and you are met with a view of the South side of the church
A seat stands to the side of the porch looking towards the Lychgate

Go around to the West end and you find a large window with a rose one above
The North side also had a porch

Though this has been blocked off in the past and a false door placed over where the opening is. The porch is used a vestry

Above the East end window with family vault under it.

Left we look towards the Porch

Standing near you cam look up and see the bells in the cote which dates to the 13th Century
 Right one of the headstops on the window

The ones around the door are very eroded

Priest door in the chancel and the door on the porch

Inside another door takes you to the Nave

Looking down you see the 12th century chancel arch which was rebuilt in the 15th century

Above which you can see the George III coat of arms

Through the arch into the chancelm the sreen at the back is tilted

Behind on the East wall are tow recesses, one looks partly blocked in, they look like they were windows once

The Altar dressed in white

On top of which are simple wooden candle holders and a brass altar cross

The The chancel window depicts the Crucifixion and looks Pre-Raphaelite

Looking back through the arch you can see the 1729 Brass Candelabrum

Looking at it from the Pulpit on the right you can see a dove on the top

Looking from the pulpit to the Nave

Another view of the Brass Candelabrum

Looking up at the Organ loft you can see the rails of the loft which is part of a pre-Reformation Rood Screen
Right a view down from the loft, I might add the stairs are some of the most narrow I have climbed

One thing that is worth looking at above  the stairs is this Stained glass window, it is something you would miss if you did not go up them

Around the church are plaques with scripture on them, from the look they are enamelled tin and in good condition compared to some I have seen

The George III coat of arms

Not easy to read this memorial even if you are close

Little Coxwell Roll Of Honour, some one hand wrote this with great care and devotion

Right some of the kneelers in the pews

along with hymn books all neatly held

View towards the Pulpit

Before heading back out the Font which is near the door

Outside is a mixture of headstones these near the porch have footstones maching the headstone though one has lost it's top

Looking further west the churchyard has been extended

Though I did not wander through the headstones here are not so old

The headstone on the left with ivy growing up is on the Norths side, at the East end you see this family vault

Looking east here at three headstones beside the path

A Commonwealth war grave of Private A.E.King who died in 1918 age 20. The motive of the Royal Berkshire Regiment prominent on top. Many local men belonged to the Regiment, back then this area was in Berkshire, now it is Oxfordshire

Over the far East side more headstones forgotten by family's

A final look from near the seat.
Till Next time I wish you all a peaceful weekend