St Mary, Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire

I Location

Site Location
Fowlmere
National Grid Reference
TL 423 459
County
traditional: Cambridgeshire
now: Cambridgeshire
Diocese
medieval: not confirmed
now: Ely
Dedication
medieval: not confirmed
now (or name of monument): St Mary
Type of building/monument
Parish church

II General Description

Exterior general view from S

Exterior general view from S

Originally aisleless church with nave, chancel and central tower, all of c.1300. In the early 14thc. a N aisle and transepts were added. The main entrance is on the N, facing the road, and a Perpendicular porch was added on this side. A vestry to the S of the chancel was added in the 19thc. Construction is of flint and pebble, and the tower has a Hertfordshire spike. The church was restored in 1869-70 and 1956-61. A reset impost and a loose capital (reported but not found) provide evidence earlier than any of the standing fabric.

III Exterior Features

3. Exterior Decoration

d. Miscellaneous

(i) Carved fragment
Reset impost in N porch

Reset impost in N porch

Reset inside the N porch, S wall alongside doorway, a section of chamfered impost with 3 saltires chip-carved on the chamfer. The stone has a thick layer of whitewash which obscures the detail of the carving.

Dimensions
overall h. 0.13 m
overall l. 0.17 m

VII History

In 1086 Fowlmere was held by Robert Gernon; 10 hides which he held himself. A further hide was held by two knights from Count Alan. No church was noted.

VIII Comments/Opinions

IX Bibliography

  • G. R. Bossier, Notes on the Cambridgeshire Churches. 1827, 41.
  • The Ecclesiastical and Architectural Topography of England: Cambridgeshire (Architectural Institute of Great Britain and Ireland), Oxford 1852, 9.
  • C. H. Evelyn-White, County Churches: Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely. London 1911, 179-80.
  • D. E. Hitch, A Mere Village: A History of Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire. 1993.
  • M. Hunn, St Mary's Church Fowlmere: A Guide. 1995.
  • F. S. L. Johnson, A Catalogue of Romanesque Sculpture in Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely. M.Phil (London, Courtauld Institute), 1984, 251.
  • D. and S. Lysons, Magna Britannia. Cambridgeshire II, pt I, London 1808, 199.
  • N. Pevsner, The Buildings of England. Cambridgeshire, Harmondsworth 1954 (2nd ed. 1970), 387.
  • The Victoria History of the County of Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely, VIII, 1982, 163-64.