Chale - Isle of Wight

Saint Andrew - Chale, Isle of Wight [Link]

© Godric Godricson

Saint Andrew - Chale, Isle of Wight [Link]

© Godric Godricson

Saint Andrew - North Burlingham



Henry Marshall
Died 30th April 1914

© Godric Godricson



Locked and bolted - North Burlingham



© Godric Godricson



© Godric Godricson

© Godric Godricson

Moss and Cross

Saint Andrew - Chale, Isle of Wight [Link]

© Godric Godricson

Saint Andrew - Chale, Isle of Wight [Link]

© Godric Godricson

Saint Andrew - Bacton

Saint Andrew - Bacton (Link)
A Church interior being repaired
© Godric Godricson

The interior of the Church of Saint Andrew at Bacton looking East. This is one of those East Anglian Churches that are a long way from their present community with no sign of being part of a community. A path leads from the graveyard out into the lonely fields. In magnificent isolation on the day that I visited Saint Andrew's was being renovated. The floors were up and the building was largely dark and uninspiring to the sound of hammers.

I was left with the idea of Churches in the medieval period that were 'failing' or perhaps under threat, This must be what it feels like to be in a semi derelict Church. Perhaps this was what it was like to be inside the Beachamwell Churches as they became derelict? I hope to go to Bacton when the work is completed.

The ruins of Saint Andrew - Southolm Juxta Hale

I'm interested in Church ruins because they often contain lost graveyards and a source of social history. Regrettably the site of  Saint Andrew (Southolm Juxta Hale) is a bit of a mystery. I know where the Church should be in the landscape although there is clearly nothing on the surface. Industrial ploughing has taken away the site of the building in the plough soil and the locals have robbed out the stone and flint. Whilst the remains of the departed are no longer commemorated they continue to rest in this magnificent environment.

From the Anglican Church website.... "Holme Hale was originally two lordships: Holm and Hale, both held in the 14th century from Lord Fitzwalter: Holm by Sir Robert de Hulmo and Hale by Sir Edmund de Illeye. The two lordships were separate, distinct places, each with a church dedicated to St Andrew. The Black death in 1349 decimated the population, and the two lordships were eventually combined in about 1375, doubtless on the authority of Edward III"

It's a pity that the modern Church of Saint Andrew in the nearby village of Holme Hale has always been locked when visited. Doubtless through the needs of the Anglican clergy and community.



Saint Andrew - The deserted village of 'Southolm Juxta Hale'.
The faithful departed under the field
© Godric Godricson