St Mary and St Thomas of Canterbury, Knebworth, Hertfordshire

I Location

Site Location: Knebworth
National Grid Reference: TL 231 210
County: traditional: Hertfordshire
now: Hertfordshire
Diocese: medieval: Lincoln
now: St Albans
Dedication: medieval: not confirmed
now (or name of monument): St Mary and St Thomas of Canterbury
Type of building/monument: Parish Church

II General Description

: General view.

: General view.

: Interior, general view.

: Chancel, N wall, remains of window moulding, general view.

: Chancel, N wall, remains of window moulding, detail.

: Chancel, N wall, remains of window moulding, detail.

: Chancel, exterior, S wall, details of restoration work.

: Chancel, exterior, S wall, W window. (restoration)

: Chancel, exterior, S wall, doorway. (restoration)

: Chancel, exterior, S wall, E window. (restoration)

The church comprises an aisleless nave, chancel and W tower with a memorial chapel attached to the chancel on the N, and the vestry attached to the nave on the N. In the 12thc. the church consisted of an aisleless nave and chancel. The W tower was added in the 15thc. and the Lytton chapel, which abuts the chancel, was added in the 16thc. The E and S walls of the chancel were rebuilt in the 19thc. by Edwin Lutyens. The vestry on the N side of the nave is 19thc. and the attached kitchen and utility rooms are 20thc. A plain, blocked 12thc. window with roll -moulded jambs survives in the N wall of the chancel. A S doorway to the chancel and two flanking round-headed windows were replaced in Lutyen’s restoration. Simple sculpture survives on the chancel arch and on a section of cross-shaft reused as a quoin stone on the SE angle of the chancel. Much of the original walling has been rendered, although a small section on the N wall of the nave (W end) has the original flint walling exposed. The tower is of flint as are the 19th and 20thc. alterations. Lutyen’s walling is of knapped flint. The church is located in the grounds of Knebworth House.

III Exterior Features

3. Exterior Decoration

d. Miscellaneous

(i) Section of cross-shaft

: Nave, exterior, reused fragment on SE angle.

: Nave, exterior, reused fragment on SE angle.

Reused fragment carved on the S face with a band of interlace flanked by fret ornament. No carving survives on the E face, although the surface has been roughened at some time, perhaps to provide a key for render.

Dimensions

h.	0.50 m
w.	0.33 m
d.	0.20 m

IV Interior Features

1. Arches

a. Apse/Chancel arches

(i) Chancel arch

: Chancel arch, general view from W.

: Chancel arch, N side, jamb.

: Chancel arch, S side, jamb.

: Chancel arch, general view from E.

: Chancel arch, N side, capital.

: Chancel arch, N side, base.

: Chancel arch, S side, capital.

: Chancel arch, S side, base.

Round-headed, of one order. The bases are simply double torus mouldings. Nook shafts support double scallop capitals with triple roll necking. The capitals have a wedge flanked by a fillet between the cones. The impost is chamfered with a groove along the upright, this continues to the east side of the arch. The arch is plain.

Dimensions

h. of capital including necking	0.14 m
h. of capital not including necking	0.11 m
w. of capital	0.14 m

VII History

The advowson of the church has always belonged to Knebworth manor. At the time of DS the manor belonged to Eudo Dapife, son of Hubert de Ryes. In the mid-12thc. it passed to Warine Fitz Gerold and his successors.

VIII Comments/Opinions

IX Bibliography

N. Pevsner and B. Cherry, The Buildings of England: Hertfordshire, Harmondsworth, 1953 (1977), 219-220
Domesday Book: Hertfordshire, Ed. J. Morris, Chichester, 1977,
The Victoria County History: A History of the County of Hertford, London, 1912, 3:116