November 1470 A.D. St. Stephen’s Priory, Bristol

November 1470 A.D.  St. Stephen’s Priory, Bristol

Bristol is about 107 miles due west of London.

No author. “St. Stephen’s.”  Looking at Buildings in the UK.  N.d. http://web.archive.org/web/20050527145950/http://www.lookingatbuildings.org.uk/default.asp?Document=3.C.2,8.  Accessed 3 Nov 2014.

St Stephen's

Bristol 
St Stephen's Church

St Stephen's Avenue

ST. STEPHEN’S, St Stephen’s Avenue
Opening: weekdays 10am – 4pm, and Sunday services.Access: three very shallow steps down at the porch. Map

A fine late Perpendicular citizens’ church of c.1470-80, but of 13th century foundation. The rebuilding was mostly in expensive dressed stone (ashlar), indicating the wealth of merchant John Shipward who paid for it. It has Bristol’s best Perpendicular tower, a majestic four stage ‘Somerset’ type increasing in elaboration towards the showy openwork crown with angled corner panels, similar to Gloucester Cathedral. Fine south porch with deeply moulded arch, two rows of leaf carvings, and fan-vaulted interior.

Inside, a high nave with full length N and S aisles and no structurally separate chancel; a typical Perpendicular plan form. Elegant piers with thin shafts and angel capitals. The tall clerestory is a further indication of wealth. The floors, reredos, pulpit, font and all the window tracery and glazing except the W window date from the large-scale restoration of 1875-98. Of the furnishings, the highlights are a C15 brass eagle lectern from the blitzed St. Nicholas church, and the magnificent wrought iron SWORD REST and GATES with gilded monograms, by William Edney, c.1710 from the same church. The gates now form the entrance to the N aisle CHAPEL OF ST. NICHOLAS AND ST. LEONARD by J. Ralph Edwards, 1958. GLASS: E window by Hardman & Co, 1882; N aisle all by Clayton and Bell (1898). MONUMENTS; S aisle, Sir George Snygge (d.1617) in judge’s robes in a large frame of Corinthian columns and strapwork. In the N aisle, three C14 ogee tomb recesses. Two with effigies from elsewhere. At the W is thought to be Edmund Blanket †1371 on a panelled chest. Then Sir Walter Tyddesley † 1385. N of the pulpit, an oval plaque to Martin Pring †1626, with naïve figured surround added 1733.

November 1470 A.D. St. Stephen’s Priory, Bristol

November 1470 A.D.  St. Stephen’s Priory, Bristol

Bristol is about 107 miles due west of London.

St Stephen's Church, Bristol

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

St Stephen's Church
St Stephen's Church
Location within Bristol
General information
Town or city	Bristol
Country	England
Coordinates	51.453538°N 2.593727°W
Completed	14th century

St Stephen's Church (grid reference ST587729) in St Stephen's Avenue, is the parish church for the city of Bristol, England.

It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building.^[1]

Contents 

• 1 History
• 2 Tombs and monuments
• 3 See also
• 4 References
• 5 External links

History

It was built, on the site of an 11th-century church, in the 14th century and rebuilt around 1470. The tower and east window were paid for by John Shipward, four times Mayor of Bristol, who died in 1473,^[2] the tower being built by the mason Benedict (or Benet) Crosse. The site was on the banks of the River Frome, which was diverted at around this time to create Bristol Harbour.^[3] The clerestory was repaired after a storm in 1703. The aisle and east windows were restored in 1873.

The tower measures approximately 18 ft by 20 ft at its base, and rises to a total height of 152 ft. It originally contained six bells but these have been replaced over the years and the number increased to twelve.^[3] The tower is typical of Somerset churches, but with the addition of a "Gloucestershire crown" of arcaded battlements, pinnacles and open-work arcading.^[4]

The 15th-century brass eagle lectern and the iron sword rest by William Edney of about 1710 were moved to St Stephen's from St Nicholas church, which was damaged in the Bristol Blitz.^[5]

Tombs and monuments

Edmund Blanket, a 14th-century clothier and wool merchant, has a tomb on the north side of the church.

Another significant tomb is that of Martin Pring, who died at the age of 46 in 1627. He was a navigator, explorer and merchant and discovered what is now called Cape Cod Bay. The monument is draped with painted mermaids andmermen and verses to his exploits.^[4]

Tomb effigy of Sir George Snygge

Sir Walter Tyddesley, who died in 1385, and Sir George Snygge also have ornate tombs in the church.

Also commemorated, but this time in a wall-mounted plaque, is Robert Kitchin, who died in 1594, a donor of one of the famous "nails" found outside The Exchange in Bristol.

See also

• Churches in Bristol
• Grade I listed buildings in Bristol

References

1.      Jump up^ "Church of St Stephen". Images of England. Retrieved 2007-03-16.

2.      Jump up^ Burrough, THB (1970). Bristol. London: Studio Vista. ISBN 0-289-79804-3.

3.      ^ Jump up to:^a b "History". St Stephen's the parish church for the city of bristol, england. Retrieved 2007-03-31.

4.      ^ Jump up to:^a b Brace, Keith (1996). Portrait of Bristol. London: Robert Hale. ISBN 0-7091-5435-6.

5.      Jump up^ "St Stephen's". Looking at Buildings: an educational resource created by the Pevsner Architectural Guides. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-03-31.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to St Stephen, Bristol.

• St Stephen's Website
• Pevsner Trust Architectural Guide