Aynho in Northamptonshire

St Michael’s Church – I had read somewhere that it was unusual and so it was. I was greeted by a man coming out of the church with a mouse in a mouse trap. He said the church was normally shut but he let me have a quick look inside.

 

The church is Grade 1 listed and is unusual because it comes from two completely different periods. The tower is all that remains of the original church from Edward III’s time. The tower is in the Decorated style with an embattled top. During the civil war the church was severly damaged and all but the tower was demolished in 1723.

The Nave was then rebuilt in the Classical style with pediments and high arched windows to match the architecture of the adjacent Aynho House. The name Aynho comes from a Saxon name meaning Spring on the Hill. Inside you are transported into a typical city church comprising a large nave with no separate chancel. There are box pews set in four blocks and a small gallery at the west end.

A feature of the church is the east window and a pair on the south wall. Originally the windows would have been clear glass but in 1857 the window above the altar was installed. It is the work of Thomas Willement who was at the forefront of promoting a Gothic revival in stained glass. He was heraldic artist to George IV. The roundels depict ‘The Last Supper’, ‘The Crucifixion’, and ‘The Resurrection’. In the bottom right side of the picture you can also see the Mouse Catcher.

On the south side of the nave are two windows (circa 1900) by Charles Kemp whose most famous work can be found in Winchester Cathedral. He was inspired by 15th century stained glass. The two windows are ‘St Michael spearing a red dragon’............. 

......and ‘The Annunciation’.

 

Kemp included small sheaves of corn as a symbol of his work in windows after 1895 – can you see them?