Norwich: St Etheldreda
Overview
Grid reference: TG 236 79
Occupying a low position in the town and being in character a low building, this church makes little impact on the townscape from a distance. Its effect is more noticeable in the immediate vicinity where its churchyard contributes some mature trees which are valuable among the new housing which surrounds the perimeter wall. The west tower is only slightly taller than the nave of the church and is a pretty combination of flint and bright red brick.
Visiting and facilities
Building is closed for worship
Building
Ground Plan Description and Dimensions
Ground plan:
Round west tower, aisleless nave of four bays with south porch; chancel of two bays.
Description of Archaeology and History
Tower and south door Norman; the rest of the church seems 15th century but was heavily restored in 1883 at which time much earlier detail seems to have been obscured, new windows were inserted and the thatch was replaced by tiles.
Exterior Description
Occupying a low position in the town and being in character a low building, this church makes little impact on the townscape from a distance. Its effect is more noticeable in the immediate vicinity where its churchyard contributes some mature trees which are valuable among the new housing which surrounds the perimeter wall. The west tower is only slightly taller than the nave of the church and is a pretty combination of flint and bright red brick. The lower part is circular, faced with flint, and a string-course separates this from the upper stage a little more than halfway up. The upper stage is octagonal, also faced with flint, the quoins being of brick as is the string-course. The tower has recently been restored. The only window is a two-light round-headed opening in the west set in round-headed plate tracery with a small roundel above and between the two lights. The belfry has four openings in alternate faces of the octagonal part; these are of brick and have triangular heads.
Nave and chancel are of the same width but the chancel roof is a little lower than the nave. Both are faced with a mixture of flint and stone of varying quality, some evidently mediaeval and some 19th century; some parts have been repaired well, others less competently. Both parts of the church have tiled roofs. The north wall of the nave has a door in the first bay from the west (now blocked) and then beyond a buttress a two-light window with curvilinear tracery. East of another buttress is a pair to this window; then the orderiness is interrupted by a larger Perpendicular window which appears where the next buttress should be. Between this and the chancel the wall is blank. The scheme has the air of a 19th century attempt to regularise what was evidently thought to be a rogue arrangement, and the buttresses are certainly of this date. The scheme starts well, but is thrown off-course by the intrusive Perpendicular window. The north wall of the chancel has a window similar to the pair with curvilinear tracery in the nave, then a buttress with a door close up against it. This is a small priest's door and is approached up several steps from the churchyard. It has a two-centred arched head with a dripstone.
The east wall of the chancel has angle buttresses and a large four-light window of which the main lights are cinquefoiled and the leaf-like tracery in the head is strongly cusped. The south chancel wall has a window with Y-tracery set high in the eastern part; this is 19th century and is separated by a buttress from a lower window on the same level as those in the nave. It has two cinquefoiled lights and a damaged sexfoil in the head.
The south wall of the nave is the most regular of the building having three windows of identical size, all with two lights and slightly varying tracery. These are separated by buttresses (19th century) and then in the west bay is the porch, the entrance to the church. This has small two-light windows in each side wall (the mullion is missing from that on the east) and a doorway in the gabled south wall which is four-centred and has a square hood-mould.
Interior
Interior Description
The architecture is very simple, the windows having plain reveals plastered like the walls. A tall narrow arch opens into the roughly circular space in the ground floor of the tower, and this has single attached piers each side. Each side of the arch is a shallow blank recess. The font base still remains just inside the door, but apart from the pulpit and a few monuments on the floor and the walls, nothing else is left in the nave. The floor is paved with stone flags amid which are some ledger stones. The wooden base for the pews remains. The chancel arch is of two orders, the outer being a simple moulding which runs from the floor to the apex, while the inner order is carried on attached columns of half-octagonal section. The capitals and bases are also half-octagonal. There is one step into the chancel at this point, then two further on before the level of the altar footpace. The wooden reredos of three arched panels is the only fitting to remain in the church. The floor is red and black quarries. The roof of nave and chancel are of scissor-braced construction.
Fixtures and fittings
Panelling
Benefactions board in the tower
Pulpit
19th Century
The pulpit is 19th century, an oak panelled construction on an octagonal stone plinth.
Reredos
The reredos is of three panels, each filled with blind tracery. It is wooden.
Churchyard
Grid reference: TG 236 79
Burial and War Grave Information
It is unknown whether the building is consecrated.
It is unknown whether the churchyard has been used for burial.
It is unknown whether the churchyard is used for burial.
It is unknown whether the churchyard has war graves.
National Heritage record for England designations
There are no records of National Heritage assets within the curtilage of this site.
Environment
Ancient, Veteran & Notable Trees
Caring for God's Acre is a conservation charity working to support groups and individuals to investigate, care for, and enjoy the wildlife and heritage treasures found within churchyards and other burial grounds. Look on their website for information and advice and please contact their staff directly. They can help you manage this churchyard for people and wildlife.
To learn more about all the species recorded against this church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas. You can check the spread of records through the years, discovering what has been recorded and when, plus what discoveries might remain to be uncovered.
There are no records of Ancient, Veteran or Notable Trees within the curtilage of this site.
Renewables
| Renewable | Installed |
|---|---|
| Solar PV Panels | N/A |
| Solar Thermal Panels | N/A |
| Biomass | N/A |
| Wind Turbine | N/A |
| Air Source Heat Pump | N/A |
| Ground Source Heat Pump | N/A |
| Ev Charging | N/A |
Species summary
There are no records of species within the curtilage of this site.
Caring for God's Acre is a conservation charity working to support groups and individuals to investigate, care for, and enjoy the wildlife and heritage treasures found within churchyards and other burial grounds. Look on their website for information and advice and please contact their staff directly. They can help you manage this churchyard for people and wildlife.
To learn more about all the species recorded against this church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas. You can check the spread of records through the years, discovering what has been recorded and when, plus what discoveries might remain to be uncovered.
'Seek advice' Species
More information on species and action to be taken upon discovery.
Caring for God's Acre is a conservation charity working to support groups and individuals to investigate, care for, and enjoy the wildlife and heritage treasures found within churchyards and other burial grounds. Look on their website for information and advice and please contact their staff directly. They can help you manage this churchyard for people and wildlife.
To learn more about all the species recorded against this church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas. You can check the spread of records through the years, discovering what has been recorded and when, plus what discoveries might remain to be uncovered.
Further information
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