Georgeham Devon
Plan of the Church of St George, Georgeham Devon www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/0h049179QS
The original name in Saxon times was simply Ham and it is mentioned as this in the 1087 Domesday Survey which states that Hama belonged to Tetbald, son of Berner and it was previously held by Etmar in the reign of Edward the Confessor. Parts of the village are still known as Higher Ham and Netherham. Later the village was been known as Ham St George, George Ham and finally Georgeham. There were other manors nearby in Pickwell, Croyde, North Buckland, Putsborough, Hole and Spreacombe. "Pediccheswella" / Pickwell Manor is most closely associated here and was held by Ulf at the time of Edward the Confessor, and in 1087 was held by Drogo on behalf of the Bishop Coutances. In 1186 it was held by Reinald. There were no distinct parishes at this time.
Legend has it that after the death of Thomas Beckett in 1170, three of the murderers fled to Pickwell. They were captured here and beheaded in front of the house. Whenever there is a full moon on December 29th (the anniversary of Beckett’s death) it’s reputed that the 3 knights can be seen riding from Pickwell to the beach – without their heads!
There may have been an early church on this site in Saxon or Norman times but there is no evidence of this. However there is a reference to an outdoor palm cross here
The founding date of the church is unknown but seems likely that a stone-built church was in existence in the 13c. In 1231 Robert de Edington is known to have been persona (parson) de Hamme and church patron. The Lord of the Manors of Georgeham & Pickwell & patron of the church in this period was Mauger de St Aubin who died in 1294 whose effigy now lies in the south side chapel www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/e04Qu53Zs0 On the north side of the chancel is a small mutilated 13c stone carving of the Crucifixion. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/5509z5s6H3 discovered in Victorian times behind a blocked doorway to the rear of the pulpit which is believed to have originally led to a loft or rood screen. In the corners are two figures representing a Knight and his Lady kneeling in prayer, possibly Mauger & his wife .
Another monument with many portraits is dedicated to Tobie Newcourt son and heir of John Newcourt who bought the manors of Georgeham and Pickwell in 1560 from Peter Carew www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/7uN7m7763z
There is also evidence that a north aisle existed possibly as part of a 13c building. The north wall is considerably thinner than the south wall and during Victorian restorations and the digging of a grave in 1975, traces of wall and paving were uncovered 15 feet outside the present north wall. These approximate to a continuation of the line of the outer wall of the Vestry.
The three stage late 14c / early 15c tower with stair turret n the north side.is the only part of the church largely untouched by later building work. Externally on the east side can be seen traces of alterations to the height of the nave showing that it was higher than at present. (possibly with a thatched roof) It was added after the 13c / 14c nave & south aisle were rebuilt
The main arcade between nave and aisle with its 4 graceful arches is most likely 15c work. The southern half of the arch between the chancel and Pickwell south chapel are similarly styled and is also original. It therefore seems likely that a 13c nave and chancel were rebuilt in the 15c adjoining the 14c tower.
The parish registers are interesting :
1571 - This yeere the plague was in Georgeham - 27 buried
1660 - Collected towards the rebuilding of the Kay of Watchett in Somersett the some of six shillings and eight pence
1663 - Collected in the congregation of Georgeham towards the brieffe for the rebuilding of the town of Marleborrow the sume six and twenty shillings and nine pence
1672 - Collected then in the congregation of Georgeham towards a brieffe for thous sufferers by fier of the psh of Kingston-upon-Thames in the Countie of Surrey 5/-
1680 - The great blazing Star or comet appeared December ye 14th
1746/7 - 21 persons died by a violent pleurotic feaver or peri-pneumone most of them in 4 or 5 days
An early 17c record mentions several coats of arms which are no longer on the walls including those of Carew, Talbot and Chichester whose families held Georgeham and Pickwell manors in the 14c or 16c, also those of Bouchier and Fitzwarren, related to Sir John Dinham whose family held North Buckland Manor.
In 1553 there were 4 bells in the tower and new bells were cast in 1714. Later records in 1727 say there were 6 bells. The 14c tower now houses a splendid peal of 8 bells with a combined weight of 2.8 tons. Five were cast in 1748, one in 1765 and the last two smaller ones in 1926. The bells have the following inscriptions:
Tenor "The Revd Mr Chichester, rector, John Harris esq A.R 1748"
7th "We were all cast at Gloucester by Abel Rudhall 1748"
6th "In concord such they'd please as much A.R. 1748 "
5th "As we that cheer the listering ear A.R. 1748"
4th "Mr John Richards, gent, H Warden T.R. 1765 "
3rd "Let men agree as well as wee A.R. 1748 "
2nd "In memorium S I Peacock patria sul deo dedit Helen Stuart Robertson Putsborough 1926"
Treble "My morning ring doth call them in"
There were radical changes made to the church from 1762 when the church interior was changed to a Classical or Romanesque style and most of the windows were altered. The original wooden screen between the nave and Pickwell side chapel dates from this period. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/316PAnFUtR New boxed seating for the congregation was installed in 1767.
In 1771 Honor Harris of Pickwell Manor applied to the diocese for permission to erect a 12-seated gallery at the west end of the church at the south side of the archway to the tower. The cost of erection was paid by her father John Harris, MP for Barnstaple There had already been a smaller gallery built by Gregorie Chichester, but John Harris replaced it with one made of oak without obtaining a faculty. Later in 1776 Honor applied for a licence to erect a monument in the south Pickwell Chapel to her parents John and Dorothy and three children who died in infancy. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/gWB324KB5X In order to erect the monument the east window was blocked up, but its shape can be clearly seen on the outside of the building.
in Victorian times a view from the gallery shows the monuments in the Pickwell Chapel, the boxed pews, low carved stone screen across the chancel & chapel and a pulpit with a canopy with the figure of an angel www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/D93S36L6fY
Thomas Hole, patron & rector who died in 1889 caused the church to be restored AD 1876 "through his munificence and by the benefaction of a relative" www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/8Fn9598ShV Faculty plans of the church drawn before the Victorian changes show a smaller vestry with its external door on the west rather than the current east door, an extra vestry window and two small windows in the chancel. The restoration by J Fowler removed much of the classical features when he also rebuilt the chancel.
Major repairs to the bell tower where made in 1926 when the old oak frame which had become very dangerous was replaced by an iron frame. This required all bells to be lowered to the ground while this was done. Part of this frame was replaced in 1998 with galvanised steel costing £11,000. As an alternative to fully ringing the bells, they are fitted with an auxiliary set of ropes, pulleys and hammers to enable tunes to be chimed by one person. The chimes on the 6 larger bells were thought to be fitted in Victorian times, but the mechanisms for the 2 smaller bells were not added until 1998.
Georgeham Devon
Plan of the Church of St George, Georgeham Devon www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/0h049179QS
The original name in Saxon times was simply Ham and it is mentioned as this in the 1087 Domesday Survey which states that Hama belonged to Tetbald, son of Berner and it was previously held by Etmar in the reign of Edward the Confessor. Parts of the village are still known as Higher Ham and Netherham. Later the village was been known as Ham St George, George Ham and finally Georgeham. There were other manors nearby in Pickwell, Croyde, North Buckland, Putsborough, Hole and Spreacombe. "Pediccheswella" / Pickwell Manor is most closely associated here and was held by Ulf at the time of Edward the Confessor, and in 1087 was held by Drogo on behalf of the Bishop Coutances. In 1186 it was held by Reinald. There were no distinct parishes at this time.
Legend has it that after the death of Thomas Beckett in 1170, three of the murderers fled to Pickwell. They were captured here and beheaded in front of the house. Whenever there is a full moon on December 29th (the anniversary of Beckett’s death) it’s reputed that the 3 knights can be seen riding from Pickwell to the beach – without their heads!
There may have been an early church on this site in Saxon or Norman times but there is no evidence of this. However there is a reference to an outdoor palm cross here
The founding date of the church is unknown but seems likely that a stone-built church was in existence in the 13c. In 1231 Robert de Edington is known to have been persona (parson) de Hamme and church patron. The Lord of the Manors of Georgeham & Pickwell & patron of the church in this period was Mauger de St Aubin who died in 1294 whose effigy now lies in the south side chapel www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/e04Qu53Zs0 On the north side of the chancel is a small mutilated 13c stone carving of the Crucifixion. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/5509z5s6H3 discovered in Victorian times behind a blocked doorway to the rear of the pulpit which is believed to have originally led to a loft or rood screen. In the corners are two figures representing a Knight and his Lady kneeling in prayer, possibly Mauger & his wife .
Another monument with many portraits is dedicated to Tobie Newcourt son and heir of John Newcourt who bought the manors of Georgeham and Pickwell in 1560 from Peter Carew www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/7uN7m7763z
There is also evidence that a north aisle existed possibly as part of a 13c building. The north wall is considerably thinner than the south wall and during Victorian restorations and the digging of a grave in 1975, traces of wall and paving were uncovered 15 feet outside the present north wall. These approximate to a continuation of the line of the outer wall of the Vestry.
The three stage late 14c / early 15c tower with stair turret n the north side.is the only part of the church largely untouched by later building work. Externally on the east side can be seen traces of alterations to the height of the nave showing that it was higher than at present. (possibly with a thatched roof) It was added after the 13c / 14c nave & south aisle were rebuilt
The main arcade between nave and aisle with its 4 graceful arches is most likely 15c work. The southern half of the arch between the chancel and Pickwell south chapel are similarly styled and is also original. It therefore seems likely that a 13c nave and chancel were rebuilt in the 15c adjoining the 14c tower.
The parish registers are interesting :
1571 - This yeere the plague was in Georgeham - 27 buried
1660 - Collected towards the rebuilding of the Kay of Watchett in Somersett the some of six shillings and eight pence
1663 - Collected in the congregation of Georgeham towards the brieffe for the rebuilding of the town of Marleborrow the sume six and twenty shillings and nine pence
1672 - Collected then in the congregation of Georgeham towards a brieffe for thous sufferers by fier of the psh of Kingston-upon-Thames in the Countie of Surrey 5/-
1680 - The great blazing Star or comet appeared December ye 14th
1746/7 - 21 persons died by a violent pleurotic feaver or peri-pneumone most of them in 4 or 5 days
An early 17c record mentions several coats of arms which are no longer on the walls including those of Carew, Talbot and Chichester whose families held Georgeham and Pickwell manors in the 14c or 16c, also those of Bouchier and Fitzwarren, related to Sir John Dinham whose family held North Buckland Manor.
In 1553 there were 4 bells in the tower and new bells were cast in 1714. Later records in 1727 say there were 6 bells. The 14c tower now houses a splendid peal of 8 bells with a combined weight of 2.8 tons. Five were cast in 1748, one in 1765 and the last two smaller ones in 1926. The bells have the following inscriptions:
Tenor "The Revd Mr Chichester, rector, John Harris esq A.R 1748"
7th "We were all cast at Gloucester by Abel Rudhall 1748"
6th "In concord such they'd please as much A.R. 1748 "
5th "As we that cheer the listering ear A.R. 1748"
4th "Mr John Richards, gent, H Warden T.R. 1765 "
3rd "Let men agree as well as wee A.R. 1748 "
2nd "In memorium S I Peacock patria sul deo dedit Helen Stuart Robertson Putsborough 1926"
Treble "My morning ring doth call them in"
There were radical changes made to the church from 1762 when the church interior was changed to a Classical or Romanesque style and most of the windows were altered. The original wooden screen between the nave and Pickwell side chapel dates from this period. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/316PAnFUtR New boxed seating for the congregation was installed in 1767.
In 1771 Honor Harris of Pickwell Manor applied to the diocese for permission to erect a 12-seated gallery at the west end of the church at the south side of the archway to the tower. The cost of erection was paid by her father John Harris, MP for Barnstaple There had already been a smaller gallery built by Gregorie Chichester, but John Harris replaced it with one made of oak without obtaining a faculty. Later in 1776 Honor applied for a licence to erect a monument in the south Pickwell Chapel to her parents John and Dorothy and three children who died in infancy. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/gWB324KB5X In order to erect the monument the east window was blocked up, but its shape can be clearly seen on the outside of the building.
in Victorian times a view from the gallery shows the monuments in the Pickwell Chapel, the boxed pews, low carved stone screen across the chancel & chapel and a pulpit with a canopy with the figure of an angel www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/D93S36L6fY
Thomas Hole, patron & rector who died in 1889 caused the church to be restored AD 1876 "through his munificence and by the benefaction of a relative" www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/8Fn9598ShV Faculty plans of the church drawn before the Victorian changes show a smaller vestry with its external door on the west rather than the current east door, an extra vestry window and two small windows in the chancel. The restoration by J Fowler removed much of the classical features when he also rebuilt the chancel.
Major repairs to the bell tower where made in 1926 when the old oak frame which had become very dangerous was replaced by an iron frame. This required all bells to be lowered to the ground while this was done. Part of this frame was replaced in 1998 with galvanised steel costing £11,000. As an alternative to fully ringing the bells, they are fitted with an auxiliary set of ropes, pulleys and hammers to enable tunes to be chimed by one person. The chimes on the 6 larger bells were thought to be fitted in Victorian times, but the mechanisms for the 2 smaller bells were not added until 1998.