The Church of St. Thomas of Canterbury, Elsfield
The church of St. Thomas of Canterbury in Elsfield consists of nave and chancel, with a south porch and a bell-cote on the west gable. The earliest surviving work, dating from about 1170–80, is the chancel arch, while the font, which is of a plain tub-shape on a square base may date from before 1200. The church was rebuilt in the 13th century, and the new building was consecrated in 1273 by Reynold, Bishop of Cloyne, and dedicated to St. Thomas of Canterbury: the old dedication is unknown. From this rebuilding there remain the trefoiled piscina and, no doubt, considerable portions of the walls. The lancet windows on the north and south sides of the chancel, and the low side window on the south are more or less faithful restorations of what was there before. At some date there was an aisle on the north side of the nave; two large arches and one small one which formed its arcade are built into the north wall of the nave, and traces of them were visible until 1849. In the 14th and 15th centuries alterations were made to some of the windows. The east window of the chancel is in the style of the 14th century, and the lower part of the window in the south-west corner of the chancel was blocked up at an uncertain date, and one end of the sill perhaps used as a bookrest. Both the screen and the pulpit with its hour-glass stand are Jacobean. The bell-cote is modern, and it is owing to the fierce restorations of 1849 and 1859 that the general appearance of the church is strikingly Early English. The stained-glass memorial to the Revd. Richard Gordon in the east window was inserted in 1878, and the mosaic reredos also dates from the late 19th century. The monument of Michael Pudsey (d. 1645) incorporates the tombstone of John of Cheltenham, Abbot of Eynsham (1317–30), the old inscription having been left unchanged. A medieval bell inscribed Sancta Maria Ora pro Nobis was in use until the 19th century, when it was replaced by one made by W. Taylor of Oxford (1846). The other bell now in use is dated 1654 and inscribed 'Michael Derbie made me'. The vestments listed in 1553 included '3 vestyments, 2 of tawny sylke and the other of blew myxt with whytt and lynett', and 2 copes of dark tawny silk. There were also a cross and two candlesticks of latten, a chalice of silver and a pyx of tin. The vestments and most of the other items listed seem not to have survived the confiscations following this inquiry. There is now no old plate: the present silver chalice, paten, and flagon were given in 1859, while a tankard flagon and alms dish are both inscribed 'Ben. Steel, Wm. Butler Church W 1768'. The surviving parish registers begin in 1686, and there are volumes of churchwardens' accounts from 1697. Historical information about St. Thomas' Church is provided by 'Parishes: Elsfield', in A History of the County of Oxford: Volume 5, Bullingdon Hundred, ed. Mary D Lobel (London, 1957), pp. 116-122. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/oxon/vol5/pp116-122 [accessed 17 March 2023]. St. Thomas' Church is a Grade II* listed building. For more information about the listing see CHURCH OF ST THOMAS A BECKETT, Elsfield - 1369209 | Historic England. For more information about St. Thomas' Church see Parishes: Elsfield | British History Online (british-history.ac.uk). |
