Parish Church of St. Magnus the Martyr and St. Nicholas of Myra, Moreton
Grade: II, NGR: SY 80540 89281 Lead author: PS
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Moreton is a village eight miles east of Dorchester and situated on the River Frome. The Frampton family have been Lords of the Manor here since at least the 14th century. In 1832 James Frampton gained notoriety when, as High Sherriff of Dorset, he arrested the Tolpuddle Martyrs and resurrected a disused marine statute against association to have them transported to Australia. It is also the place where T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) is buried in the local graveyard (1). The simple headstone is Portland limestone (2).
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1. The grave of T.E. Lawrence
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2. Loupe of the Portland stone of T.E. Lawrence gravestone
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History The church in the style of early Gothic Revival was built in 1733 replacing a medieval church but using the same footprint and foundations. The dedication was changed from St. Magnus to St. Nicholas in 1490 but both are used in the official name today. Alterations took place between 1840 and 1848 when the north aisle and the west porch were added and the floor paved with Minton encaustic tiles (3). |
3. The encaustic tiled floor
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The church sustained a direct hit during the Second World War. The north aisle and arcade were completely rebuilt over the next decade using the original stone where possible. Plain glass was inserted in the windows but gradually this was replaced by beautifully engraved glass made by Sir Alan Charles Laurence Whistler (21.1.1912 – 19.12.2000) starting in 1955 with the five apse windows. The last window was installed in 1984. Photographs of the glass engravings are not included in this account and a visit to the church is recommended.
The exterior (4, 5, 6)
The main roof is covered with graduated Purbeck stone slabs. All the main stonework for the windows and walls is Portland stone but from different sources or beds.
The main roof is covered with graduated Purbeck stone slabs. All the main stonework for the windows and walls is Portland stone but from different sources or beds.
4. The church from the north
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5. The church from the south east
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6. The south side of the church
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The walls are ashlar blocks of Portland Freestone from the Isle of Purbeck (7a, 7b).
7a. The exterior stonework
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7b. Loupe of the exterior stonework
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The porch doorway (8) and windows are Portland stone from the Isle of Portland (9). There is single piece of carved masonry behind a drainpipe on the west wall (10) (note the graffiti on the pipe in the photograph).
8. The west porch
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9. Loupe of the Portland stone used in the west doorway and windows
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10. An oddity
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The interior (11)
The north arcade (12), which was rebuilt after bomb damage, has two types of Portland stone.
The north arcade (12), which was rebuilt after bomb damage, has two types of Portland stone.
11. View from the west end
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12. The north arcade
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One type is very shelly and similar to Purbeck Spangle (13a, 13b, 13c).
13a. Part of a pillar in the north arcade
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13b. Loupe of a pillar 2
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13c. Loupe of a pillar 1
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The other has no visible shell and could be Purbeck Pond Freestone or Inland Freestone (14). The stone on the south side of the interior is also possibly Pond Freestone. The font (15) is probably Pond Freestone but has been coated with a clear varnish (16). The plinth is Purbeck Marble (17). The altar step is also Purbeck Marble.
14. Loupe of a pillar 3.
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15. The font
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16. Loupe of the font Portland stone (varnished)
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17. The Purbeck Marble plinth
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References
1) Hill M., Newman J., Pevsner N. (2018), The Buildings of England, Dorset, Yale U. Press, p.426
2) An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 2, pp. 173-178. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/dorset/vol2/pp173-178
1) Hill M., Newman J., Pevsner N. (2018), The Buildings of England, Dorset, Yale U. Press, p.426
2) An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 2, pp. 173-178. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/dorset/vol2/pp173-178
