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A brief history of All Saints Church, Oaksey
The Church at Oaksey is dedicated to All Saints and is thought to have been built in the mid 13th century (maybe even the 12th century) and was restored in the 14th and 15th centuries. The name All Saints seems to have first appeared in 1763. It is a Grade I listed building.
The 13th century elements of the Church can be seen in the south porch, the chancel and in the tower. At the end of the 14th century the north wall of the nave was rebuilt and a niche was added over the doorway to hold figurines of the Virgin and Child. In the south wall there are remains of a spiral staircase which would have given access to a rood loft. The Church is built mainly from ashlar. The clock was built at the end of the 19th century and is thought to have been installed in tribute to a former rector who died in 1882. A peal of six bells was installed at the Church in 1773. They were made by Thomas Rudhall of Gloucester.
The Church registers exist from 1670 and the first entry reads: “William Dick was buryed (sic) Oct 2”. The marriage records show the first was on 19th February 1671 and reads: “Thomas Marshall and Anne Godwyn were Maryed (sic) Feb 19”. Interestingly, marriages were not numerous, with an average of one or two per year. The number of burials fluctuates a lot as well; in 1683 only one was recorded but in 1695 there were 18.
One of the Humphrey de Bohuns of the 12th century gave the Church and its tithes to Monkton Farleigh priory. Rectors came from the priory to Oaksey up until the Dissolution. In 1304, parishioners from Minety attended All Saints while St. Leonard’s at Minety was under an interdict (a penalty from the Church).
Some large wall murals were uncovered in the Church in 1933 and date back to the 15th century. The most notable mural is of St. Christopher carrying the baby Jesus across a stream. There is also a suitably placed mermaid in the water. Another recognisable mural is Christ of the Trades with an image of Christ surrounded by tools and implements. This mural is less well preserved than St. Christopher and was damaged in attempts to preserve it.
There are many stone gargoyles on the outside of the Church as well as a famous and explicit example of a sheila-na-gig, a carved fertility symbol. In her village diary Elspeth Huxley wrote: “Entry through the south door, while it lasted, spared Mrs. Martin’s bevy of domestics the sight of the Sheila-na-gig set in the north wall, which might have kindled wicked thoughts.”
The living at the Church was a rectory further east down Somerford Keynes Road, but in 1956, it was united with the rectory at Minety. The rectory building was rebuilt in the 18th century as a two storied stone house. It was altered again in the 19th century. Now, the rector in Oaksey also covers the parishes of Ashley, Crudwell, Charlton, Hankerton and Minety. These are classified under the Braydon Brook Benefice and the North Wiltshire Deanery.
The parish registers from 1670 (christenings and burials) and 1671 (marriages), other than those in current use, are held in the Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre at Chippenham.
The Church at Oaksey is dedicated to All Saints and is thought to have been built in the mid 13th century (maybe even the 12th century) and was restored in the 14th and 15th centuries. The name All Saints seems to have first appeared in 1763. It is a Grade I listed building.
The 13th century elements of the Church can be seen in the south porch, the chancel and in the tower. At the end of the 14th century the north wall of the nave was rebuilt and a niche was added over the doorway to hold figurines of the Virgin and Child. In the south wall there are remains of a spiral staircase which would have given access to a rood loft. The Church is built mainly from ashlar. The clock was built at the end of the 19th century and is thought to have been installed in tribute to a former rector who died in 1882. A peal of six bells was installed at the Church in 1773. They were made by Thomas Rudhall of Gloucester.
The Church registers exist from 1670 and the first entry reads: “William Dick was buryed (sic) Oct 2”. The marriage records show the first was on 19th February 1671 and reads: “Thomas Marshall and Anne Godwyn were Maryed (sic) Feb 19”. Interestingly, marriages were not numerous, with an average of one or two per year. The number of burials fluctuates a lot as well; in 1683 only one was recorded but in 1695 there were 18.
One of the Humphrey de Bohuns of the 12th century gave the Church and its tithes to Monkton Farleigh priory. Rectors came from the priory to Oaksey up until the Dissolution. In 1304, parishioners from Minety attended All Saints while St. Leonard’s at Minety was under an interdict (a penalty from the Church).
Some large wall murals were uncovered in the Church in 1933 and date back to the 15th century. The most notable mural is of St. Christopher carrying the baby Jesus across a stream. There is also a suitably placed mermaid in the water. Another recognisable mural is Christ of the Trades with an image of Christ surrounded by tools and implements. This mural is less well preserved than St. Christopher and was damaged in attempts to preserve it.
There are many stone gargoyles on the outside of the Church as well as a famous and explicit example of a sheila-na-gig, a carved fertility symbol. In her village diary Elspeth Huxley wrote: “Entry through the south door, while it lasted, spared Mrs. Martin’s bevy of domestics the sight of the Sheila-na-gig set in the north wall, which might have kindled wicked thoughts.”
The living at the Church was a rectory further east down Somerford Keynes Road, but in 1956, it was united with the rectory at Minety. The rectory building was rebuilt in the 18th century as a two storied stone house. It was altered again in the 19th century. Now, the rector in Oaksey also covers the parishes of Ashley, Crudwell, Charlton, Hankerton and Minety. These are classified under the Braydon Brook Benefice and the North Wiltshire Deanery.
The parish registers from 1670 (christenings and burials) and 1671 (marriages), other than those in current use, are held in the Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre at Chippenham.