Church of St Michael, Blackford

Church of St Michael
LocationBlackford, Somerset, England
Coordinates51°02′01″N 2°29′21″W / 51.0337°N 2.4891°W / 51.0337; -2.4891
Built11th or 12th century
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameChurch of St Michael
Designated24 March 1961[1]
Reference no.1056557
Church of St Michael, Blackford is located in Somerset
Church of St Michael, Blackford
Location of Church of St Michael in Somerset

The Anglican Church of St Michael in Blackford, Somerset, England was built in the 11th or 12th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.[1]

History

The church was built in the 11th or 12th century. The tower was added in the 14th century and there were other changes around that time including the addition of south porch.[1] The musicians gallery was added in the 18th century.[2] The west gallery has been removed.[3]

The church is part of the Camelot Group of Parishes in the Diocese of Bath and Wells.[4]

Architecture

The stone building has Doulting stone dressings and a stone slate roof.[1] It consists of a three-bay nave and two-bay chancel with a south porch.[1] The two-stage west tower has battlemented parapets and is supported by corner buttresses.[1] The tower contains three bells, the oldest of which was cast in 1620.[2]

The interior fittings include a 17th-century pulpit and 11th century circular font.[1][5]

There is a screen designed by Frederick Bligh Bond that was added in 1916,[6] and the current organ arrived in 1970. The east window was made by the Charles Eamer Kempe studio and installed in 1882. However the paint flaked and after lengthy discussions and deliberations a replacement was commissioned from John Hayward (who also made the new window in Sherborne Abbey) with the subject 'The Good Shepherd'.[2]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to St Michael's Church, Blackford.
  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Church of St Michael". National Heritage List for England. Historic England. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Blackford St Michael". Camelot Parishes. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Blackford St Michael". West Gallery Churches. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  4. ^ "St Michael's". A Church Near You. Church of England. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  5. ^ "St Michael, Blackford, Somerset". The Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland. King's College London. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  6. ^ "Blackford Pages 242-247 A History of the County of Somerset: Volume 7, Bruton, Horethorne and Norton Ferris Hundreds". British History Online. Victoria County History. Retrieved 22 April 2018.