Notice Board:
Unmarked Graves
The Churchwarden would be very pleased to hear from anyone who has any information on any unmarked graves in Widdington churchyard.
There are still some unknown graves and we would very much like to obtain as much information as possible. If you can help or know anything or anyone who could help please contact Christine or Sonia. Or email me
St. Mary the Virgin
, Widdington is a small traditional Essex church dating back to the early twelfth century
The church was refurbished in the Victorian era and is an unpretentious, lovingly maintained, traditional building with a peaceful ambience.
Church sketch dated 1817
A pencil sketch of our village church back in 1817; this sketch was drawn before the new clock tower and the internal restoration works
1817
1650
Our church with its wooden steeple
back in 1650,
Well this is what I think it could have looked like.
No vicar would accept the post.
In the sixteenth and seventeenth century the church fell into disrepair and the living was
so poor that frequently no vicar would accept the post. There was a
period of re-building in the eighteenth century but by 1850 the church was again in a state
of disrepair. Apart from the chancel the church was practically entirely rebuilt in 1858-9
Church Restoration
WIDDINGTON, St. Mary (1865-1873)
Plan of New Bell Tower marked in red & Restoration
Builder Edward Brown from Kings Lynn
Ground plan created by Mr E CHRISTIAN, (Architect)
EWAN CHRISTIAN. (Architect)
He was born 20th September 1814; died 21st February 1895. Mr Ewan Christian, the eminent architect, was a Manxman by descent, (
Isle of Man Manx) belonging to the family of Christian of Milntown. During his long and busy life he designed about 40 new churches, 200 parsonage houses, numerous schools, country houses, banks, and business premises. He also restored nearly 150 churches. But these figures by no means give the full extent of his influence in the ecclesiastical buildings of the last half-century. Mr Christian since 1850 had been the consulting architect to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners of England, His last important work was the addition to the National Gallery, London, to form a National Portrait Gallery, at a cost of £80,000, he received the gold medal given by the Royal Institute of British Architects. In replying he said: " Mine has been a life of independent service, not of exploits. My highest ambition has been that of doing to the best of my ability the duty from time to time set before me to accomplish, and of maintaining unsullied in every sense the high character of an honourable and independent architect. " This describes his character and his aim in life worthy of all respect, worthy of imitation by all.Reverend W. Holman 1720,
According to the Reverend W. Holman who wrote in about 1720, That the Monks of priors Hall and the owner of the Widdington Hall, Who had their own small chapel decided to build a church
in the village, this was erected in the early 12th century,
and dedicated to St. Mary the Virgin.
In 1594 the church was in a sorry state of decay.
In a Visitation held in 1686 (1.) It was reported that
the tower of the steeple is cracked.
Things were allowed to go from bad to worse, for the
parish register under the date 15th May 1771
contained this entry: the whole steeple from top to
bottom, with ten feet in breadth of both sides of the
body of the church, fell down.
Three brass bells out of the five were dug out
of ye rubbish unhurt,
With the tower down there was a big hole in the wall
and damage to the roof.
To pay for the church repairs the then churchwarden sold
the bells and with the proceeds. built from red brick a
new end wall. The roof was patched and a new dovecote
was placed on top with a small bell hung in it.
(1) THE VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
May 31 – July 2
After the angel Gabriel had announced to Mary that she was to become the mother of Our Lord, Mary went from Galilee to Judea to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth, soon to be the mother of John the Baptist. This visit is recorded in Luke 1:39-56. Elizabeth greeted Mary with the words, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb." Mary burst forth with the song of praise, which we call the Magnificent, beginning, "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord." We are told that even John the Baptist, still unborn, leaped for joy in his mother's womb. Thus we are shown, side by side, the two women, one seemingly too old to have a child, but destined to bear the last prophet of the Old Covenant, of the age that was passing away; and the other woman, seemingly not ready to have a child, but destined to bear the One Who was Himself the beginning of the New Covenant, the age that would not pass away.
It is this meeting that we celebrate today.
Brass effigy
In 1872
This little 14th century Brass effigy was found
beneath the old stone church floor.
When the brass civilian was discovered it
was still affixed to its stone slab.
After the restoration it was affixed to the north wall of the Nave, where it can be seen to this day
I found a snippet suggesting the brass effigy is of
John Green, 1400- 1443 ?
He originated from Cheshire but came to live in Essex.
He was a gentleman of great worship
and a patron of the church.
The dress and hairstyle is of that era
Unusual doorstep. In time gone by when funds were tight it was common practise to use anything at hand for repairs
The clock, which cost over £70, was placed in the tower in 1897, to commemorate the 60th year of Queen Victoria’s Reign.
It was presented by the Rector and Parishioners of Widdington
Thanks to P.S for this picture
The building is an open church which is frequently visited by people seeking a place for prayer or quiet reflection. It stands in its own, well-maintained, open churchyard. St. Mary's is now the only place of worship in the village.
Francis Smith 1874 presented the lychgate
All I can find out about Mr Francis Smith is that he was a landowner
A Lychgate is a covered open structure, found at a church entrance. The structure normally consists of four or six oak posts embedded in the ground in a rectangular shape. On top of this are a number of beams to hold a steeply sloping straight-pitched roof covered in wooden or clay peg tiles.
The name is derived from the Saxon Lych meaning "corpse" and gate meaning entrance. Hence corpse entrance.
lychgates were built from about the mid 15th century. It was the custom at that time for the priests to conduct the first part of the funeral service under its shelter.
The rich were the only people buried in coffins most people were buried in just shroud the dead were carried to the lych gate and placed on a large flagstone or on a bier, for the priest to start the funeral service.
(A bier was often a wooden board on which the dead were placed)
The Great Storm 1987
