This
church of St. Helen appears to have been altered and enlarged
at various times, and little regard has been paid to the
old work. The lower portion of the tower belongs to the
Early English period. The much mutilated west doorway
and the tower arch, with the “keeled” columns
and plain chamfers, point to a date about 1250, whilst
the belfry stage, parapets, and stone spire were evidently
added in the fifteenth century.
The
spire has no spire lights, or ribs, but it has a considerable
entasis in the upper portion. The wall inside the south
porch is also apparently a remnant of Early English work;
the doorway has a pointed arch on the outer side and a
semi-circular arch within. Next in point of time is the
chancel, with a large east window of five lights of intersecting
geometrical tracery, with shallow cuspings in the top
of the central division only. This, and the cross on the
east gable, would date from about 1300.
There
is a double aumbry in the north wall of the chancel, the
doors of which are missing, but the iron hooks that carried
them may still be seen. The nave arcades of three bays
and the south aisle belong to the Decorated period, as
does also the window at the east end of the same aisle;
there is a clerestory on the south side only, consisting
of square-headed windows without cuspings; the north arcade
is at a lower level, and the westernmost arch has a lower
spring than the others.
In
the vestry is a description of the bells, two of which
are pre-reformation, and the inscriptions are recorded
as :—i. + Ave Maria gratia plena dominus tecum.
“The angelus bell, so called from having the salutation
of the angel Gabriel upon it . . .” ii. + I.H.S.
naserenus rex judeoru fili dei. iii. John Streets jr and
John Smedley, Churchwardens MDCCCLIII.
The
church is in the deanery of Bulwell, and has been much
restored. The last time it underwent this process was
in 1876-7, when £2,000 was spent upon it, the Revd.
Dr. Scott being the vicar. There is seating accommodation
for 440. The churchyard was closed for interments in 1883.
The last lord of the manor was Mr. John Jackson, who resided
at the manor house. He died intestate, and his estate
was administered in chancery. Mrs. Sherwin-Gregory,
of Bramcote, eventually bought this property in 1885.
As lord of the manor Mr. Jackson laid claim to a pew in
the chancel, and at the present time two sittings on the
south side of the nave are acknowledged as belonging to
the manor farm.
In
the churchyard is the tomb (surrounded by iron palisades)
of Captain William Sleigh, who died in 1842, aged 62.
A large portion of the stone side, which carried the inscription,
has shaled off, but sufficient is left to show that he
saw much service with the British army in the beginning
of the nineteenth century :—
In
memory of Captain William Sleigh / who died Ap….
1842 aged 62 /
He first served with …..t Egypt A.D. 1801 / and
afterwards as…….. in Canada /
He shared the glory ….t actions against / the enemy,
espec………WA July 5,
1814- where be was sl………/…….having
r…….. service,
be spent / the evening……….. his place
in / hospitable……..
friends and/in well…….tim……….NS
to the /………
There
seems to have been a priest and a church here in the Confessor’s
time. William Peveril held land in demesne here, and his
feudatory was Robert de Heriz. Civicia (or Avicia) wife
of Richard Cazmera, “the Lady of Stapleford,”
gave the church to Newstead Priory. In 1338 the head of
this family thought he was dying, and gave the estate
to found a charity at Newstead, but, getting better, he
revoked his deed and gave it to his sister, who gave a
part only to Newstead and the remainder to her heirs;
they seem to have adopted the name of the village as their
surname.
The
tombs in the church are to members of the Teverey
family. This family became identified with the place
in the time of Edward III., by the marriage of Johannes
Teverey, of Long Eaton, in Derbyshire near by, with Margareta
de Stapleford, an only child and heiress, whose dower
was a considerable property here.
The
oldest of these memorials is an incised slab in front
of the chancel step, bearing the figures of Robert Teverey
and his wife, Katherine Chaworth, with a shield bearing
their respective arms impaled, the Tevereys having apparently
adopted the arms of the Staplefords, viz: Argent on two
bars azure, three tin quefoils or. He died “circa
festum Pentecosti a° salutis 1553,” and she
in 1571.Their
eldest son, John, married Anna, daughter and heir of John
de Crevequeur, of Twyford, Leicestershire. This couple’s
mural monument, with a Latin inscription, recorded in
Thoroton, and their impaled arms, is affixed to the south
wall.
The
most imposing tomb was sadly maltreated at the time of
the 1877 restoration, when the lower part became divorced
from its superstructure with a view of gaining some two
or three extra seats. The superstructure remains in its
original situation against the south wall, and the slab
which carries the effigies, with the quaint group of figures
beneath, was transferred to the north of the chancel arch.
The
effigies are those of Gervase Teverey and his wife, Anna
Ashby, of Quenby, in Leicestersbire, on which traces of
paint are still visible, He died in 1639, and the florid
Latin inscription in his memory is said to have been written
by Dr. Huntington Plumptre. Gervase was the last of the
Tevereys; his only son died an infant, and the property
passed by the marriage of his daughter, Maria, to Sir
Brian Palmes, of Harburn Yorkshire, whose posterity sold
it to Arthur Warren, of Toton. On this monument the arms
of Teverey, viz: Azure, a lion rampant argent, within
a bordure engrailed or, are reverted to. The
heraldic stained glass referred to by Dr. Thoroton has
entirely disappeared, probably in one of the numerous
restorations.
Mr.
Arthur Warren married the wealthy heiress of Sir John
Borlase; their grandson was the distinguished admiral,
Sir John Borlase Warren, who was created Baronet on 20th
May, 1775, and received the thanks of both Houses of Parliament
for his services. The property subsequently belonged to
the Wright family, the bankers. It is now being rapidly
sold off in building lots.
By
Mr G. Fellows, Transactions of the Thoroton Society,
10 (1906)
Thanks
to A. Nicholson for the source of
computerised text and pictures: www.nottshistory.org.uk
