History of St Mary’s Church
Wood Niewtone (Woodnewton) was held by Reginald from Eustace in 1086, and there was no church recorded at that date, but it existed by 1107-16 when the prebend of Nassington was created by Henry I. In 1845, under the Ecclesiastical Commission Act of 1836, the prebendary of Nassington was dissolved, and Woodnewton after that time, was annexed to Apethorpe and served by the same Incumbent, under the patronage of the Bishop of Peterborough. When Apethorpe Estate was purchased by Mr Henry Leonard Campbell Brassey MP, the patronage changed to his ownership.
It was in 1986 when there was a change of Incumbent at St Mary’s, that the parish of Woodnewton became part of the benefice with Nassington and Yarwell. This formation remained in place until the parishes of Wansford and Thornaugh became vacant in 2011 and joined with Nassington, Yarwell and Woodnewton. A new Benefice was formed in 2014, taking in Apethorpe and the other five parishes and was named the ‘Watersmete’ Benefice”.
The church, dedicated to Our Lady, stands on a mound at the west end of the village and is of a cruciform plan and now comprises of a chancel, nave with south aisle, central area, south transept, west tower and south porch. The church is of interest for its abnormal plan and development. It is very difficult to actually date the church in its surviving form as the building had an extensive rebuild in the 13th and alterations in the17th centuries.
Town Street now Main Street, borders the churchyard on the south and the road leading to Apethorpe is on the west.
The church walls are of limestone rubble with freestone quoins and ashlar dressings. Flanking ashlar buttresses have been added over the centuries. The two on the west face of the tower and the two on the north wall are stepped buttresses. The Chancel buttress is of a chamfered plinth, roll-moulded string pilaster design with a low buttress beneath the east window.
The majority of the building has a low-pitched roof; however, the chancel is steeply-pitched and stone-slated. In 1818 the chancel roof was said to be out of repair1 and by about 1830 it appears to have been roofless2.
The priest’s door on the south wall of the chancel may be attributed to the Norman Age as it has a low semi-circular arch displaying a single ornamented zig-zag moulding. The jambs are plain and chamfered.
The south end of the south transept being in a ruinous state was curtailed3 in 1808 and the south wall was rebuilt in continuation with the aisle wall.
Because of the extensive alterations to the building, the windows represent designs from several periods:
- Chancel 15th century east window set within jamb of an earlier 13th century window and 13th lancet windows
- North wall 17th century – two square-headed with ovolo-moulded mullions
- South Transept 13th century remodelled
- South Wall 13th century
A square tower of two stages has battlemented parapets and crocketed pinnacles; (pinnacles were said to make the tower look taller). A clock face, which was donated in the 20th century, sits on the east wall.
The churchyard closed for burials in 1989, and a new cemetery at the corner of Orchard Lane and Apethorpe Road was consecrated by the Bishop of Peterborough in 1991. The Garden of Remembrance for cremated ashes is still open in the churchyard.
When Archdeacon Bonney completed his visitation register in the early 1800’s, he wrote that the tomb, which sits at the east end of the chancel, had the following inscription on it which was nearly defaced. “Here lieth the Body of Wilyam Porter Benefector to this town forsoever, Who died the 18th daye of Jun….Ano Do 16….” (1686).
To read more about the history of the church, click on the button “The Church Building”.