Nominal: 1240 Hz Weight: 560 lbs Diameter: 29" Bell 1 of 1
Founded by Thomas Rudhall 1767
Dove Bell ID: 56833 Tower ID: 21687 - View Tower Listed: No Canons: Removed Turnings: unturned Cracked: No
Little Rissington: St Peter
Overview
Grid reference: SP 189 199
St Peter’s is a building of high significance, on an isolated upland site some distance from the village it serves. The fabric is mainly of the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries, with a tower added in the fifteenth century. The church was restored several times in the nineteenth century and the north aisle, the roofs and most of the furnishings date from that period. The church has a close association with the former Little Rissington RAF station nearby and many airmen are buried in the churchyard.
Visiting and facilities
Building is open for worship
Building
Ground Plan Description and Dimensions
Footprint of Church buildings: 237 m²
Description of Archaeology and History
The church comprises a chancel, nave with north aisle and south porch and a northwest tower. The earliest part is the nave, which dates from the later twelfth century. The north arcade is of the same date, which shows there was a north aisle. The chancel was rebuilt in the thirteenth century and has the narrow lancet windows typical of that date, while the nave south wall has two-light traceried windows inserted in the fourteenth century. The small three-stage tower was added in the fifteenth century.
The church was restored several times during the nineteenth century. In 1845 the architect William Butterfield repaired the chancel roof and added a new south porch to protect the twelfth century south doorway. His work was continued after 1850 by the local architect Francis Niblett who restored the nave and rebuilt the north aisle. In 1882 the north aisle was again rebuilt on a wider plan, to the designs of W. Bassett Smith, who also extended the nave by one bay to the west.
Exterior Description
The church is mostly built of local limestone rubble, rock-faced at the west end of the nave and in the north aisle. The pitched roofs of nave, north aisle and chancel are all covered with Cotswold stone slates.
Interior
Interior Description
The principal architectural feature of the interior is the nave north arcade, which has two wide round arches with cylindrical piers and scalloped capitals. A clumsy additional stone pier was introduced, presumably in the fifteenth century, to take the weight of the southeast corner of the tower, which bears on the crown of the western arch. The pointed thirteenth-century chancel arch has trumpet capitals, much recut. The internal walls are all plastered; the plaster appears to be wholly of the nineteenth century or later. The open timber roofs also appear to date from the mid-nineteenth century or later, although Verey/Brooks considered that the chancel roof trusses were medieval. The stepped lancet windows in the east wall of the chancel have internal arches on detached shafts. Most of the interior furnishings date from the two later Victorian restorations.
Early furnishings of note include:
- The fifteenth century stone font at the west end of the nave, which has an octagonal bowl with inset quatrefoil decoration and an octagonal stem
- A modest baroque memorial tablet of 1682 on chancel north wall, with cherubs and a skull
- An early eighteenth-century black stone ledger slab at the east end of the north aisle, now partly under the organ case.
Nineteenth century and later furnishings of interest include:
- The oak nave benches, apparently introduced circa 1850 (Verey/Brooks)
- Elaborate Minton floor tiles in the chancel, which may be part of Butterfield’s restoration
- Simpler red, cream and black floor tiles in the nave and north aisle, probably of the 1850s
- Oak poppyhead choir stalls, perhaps also of the 1850s
- Octagonal stone pulpit introduced in 1850
- Stained glass in the east window by Lavers & Barraud, 1863
- Elaborate marble memorial tablet on the chancel south wall to Robert le Marchant, Rector of Little Rissington for 53 years, who died in 1915, and also to his wife and children
- The west window is an RAF memorial designed by J.A. Crombie, installed in 1983.
Bells
Churchyard
Grid reference: SP 189 199
Burial and War Grave Information
The church/building is consecrated.
It is unknown whether the churchyard has been used for burial.
It is unknown whether the churchyard is used for burial.
The churchyard has war graves.
National Heritage record for England designations
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 | No |
| Solar Thermal Panels | No |
| Biomass | No |
| Wind Turbine | No |
| Air Source Heat Pump | No |
| Ground Source Heat Pump | No |
| Ev Charging | No |
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
Sources
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