St. Matthew's Church, Langford
St. Matthew's Church in Langford is well known for its exceptional late 11th-century central tower, almost certainly constructed under the patronage of Aelfsige of Faringdon and widely judged a 'superb monument' to Anglo-Norman architectural fusion. (See Frontispiece, Fig. 58, and Plate 12.) Equally exceptional are two late Anglo-Saxon crucifixion sculptures reset in the (later) south porch (Fig. 4), but possibly taken from an earlier building on the same site. Much of the rest of the building was reconstructed to a high standard in the 13th century, and 15th-century remodellings reflect the prosperity generated by the local wool trade. In its present form the building comprises a two-bayed chancel, the central tower, and a three-bayed nave with north and south aisles and south porch, all constructed of uncoursed limestone rubble with ashlar dressings, and roofed with stone slate. Several piecemeal restorations were carried out during the 19th and 20th centuries, most extensively in 1864–7. The central tower is of three stages, with two large arched bell-openings on each side. Its decorative features, notably a band of acanthus and palmette leaves across the roll-moulding of the arches, and the central pilasters with stepped capitals and bases, suggest that it was built by non-local Anglo-Saxon masons in the mid to late 11th century. The architectural details show a knowledge both of Norman Romanesque, and of the Winchester school of manuscript illumination developed in the late 10th and early 11th centuries. The two late Anglo-Saxon crucifixion sculptures are of a slightly earlier date, and survive reset (in one case incorrectly) in the 13th-century south porch. Their provenance is unknown but if, as seems likely, they came from an earlier church on the same site, this may add credence to the possibility of a small late Anglo-Saxon minster established on the preConquest comital estate. Much of the church was rebuilt in the early 13th century, possibly when it was held by the prebendary Walter Map (archdeacon of Oxford c. 1196/7–1210). A parapet and corbel table were added to the tower c. 1200, and about the same time the nave was enlarged by the addition of north and south aisles. The north and south doorways are of similar date, and the south porch, too, is 13th-century. The masons for this later work were probably local, since the combination of round Norman arches and Early English architectural details is characteristic of nearby churches such as Great Faringdon, Little Faringdon, and Fulbrook. Later in the 13th century, perhaps when the vicarage was ordained in 1277, the chancel was rebuilt on an ambitious scale, the unusual design of the windows recalling those at Wyck Rissington (Glos.) around twelve miles away. In the north wall is an unusual 13th-century aumbry with three gables and six compartments, and in the south wall a piscina recess of similar date. Of the same period are the external gabled staircase tower and a tunnel-vault inside the tower itself, which possibly marked an altar. Few changes were made in the early 14th century, with the notable exception of a window with reticulated tracery inserted into the south aisle. During the 15th century, however, parishioners made a significant investment in the fabric, fitting a new pavement and seats, several windows, the surviving octagonal font, and surviving screens with panel tracery at the east end of both aisles. A clerestory was added around the same time, and the nave and chancel were both re-roofed at a lower pitch. The churchyard contains the square base and part of the octagonal shaft of a 15th-century cross, which was presumably mutilated during the Reformation. An 'adjoining' chapel in the churchyard, dedicated to St Mary, was mentioned in the will of Henry Ricards (d. 1467). If Langford church was indeed preceded by a small minster, the chapel may conceivably have had early and possibly pre-Conquest origins. (fn. 519) Nothing is known of its date or foundation, however, and possibly it was newly built as a chantry chapel during the 13th, 14th or early 15th centuries, either by a wealthy parishioner or by one of the vicars or prebendaries. The vicar was obliged to maintain it as late as the 1660s, when it was used as a schoolroom; it was then in disrepair, however, and as no later mention has been found it was probably demolished soon after. Changes Since the Reformation In the later 16th century two flying buttresses were added to the north aisle: one is inscribed 1574, the year in which Walter Prunes presented to the vicarage. Churchwardens' accounts for the 17th and 18th centuries point to numerous repairs, including, perhaps, the botched restoration of the chancel, which was probably shortened by one bay, and its east wall taken apart and badly reassembled. A gallery at the west end of the nave was mentioned in 1723, and the surviving clock mechanism dates probably from the late 17th century. Repair and erection of church seats led to disputes over precedence. Further restoration was undertaken by Richard Pace in 1829, including the provision of an additional 200 seats in the nave, aisles, and gallery. In 1848 the Ecclesiastical Commissioners became liable for repairs to the chancel, which the bishop of Oxford described as dilapidated, and in the following year they implemented the recommendations of their surveyor Benjamin Ferrey. The chancel remained in reasonable repair in 1864 when another survey reported that the whole of the building west of the tower was in poor condition. Francis Lémann (vicar 1855–85) made plans to remove the gallery and pews, establish a vestry in the south aisle chapel, restore the nave and aisle roofs to their original pitch, and make other improvements to the fabric. He had difficulty in raising the estimated cost of £1,100 because the chief tenant farmers were Dissenters and opposed to the levying of church rates, although both the Ecclesiastical Commissioners and the Diocesan Church Building Society made contributions. The restoration work was finally undertaken by Ewan Christian, several of whose rainwater heads are marked with the date 1864 or 1867. The successful raising of the nave roof encouraged the Ecclesiastical Commissioners to pay for the raising of the chancel roof to its original pitch in 1869–70. In the late 19th century the Ecclesiastical Commissioners contributed towards the cost of the churchyard gates, and paid for the lighting of the chancel; they declined, however, to help repair the bells or pay for a new organ, which was placed in a side chapel to which an opening was made in the wall of the tower. In 1907 the Ecclesiastical Commissioners also paid for filling in a circular window in the east wall of the chancel (inserted by Ewan Christian), and for other chancel repairs and heating. Later alterations included the insertion of memorial windows, and improvements to the church's heating, lighting, bells, and organ. The aisle roofs were repaired in 1952, the church was rewired, redecorated and repaired in 1968, and in 1995 about £60,000 was spent on the tower, the cost met by English Heritage and the parochial church council. English Heritage was also involved in repairs to the nave and north aisle in 1999. Further repairs to the nave were undertaken in 2009. Historical information about St Matthew's Church is provided by 'Langford Parish: Langford', in A History of the County of Oxford: Volume 17, ed. Simon Townley (Woodbridge, Suffolk, 2012), pp. 175-208. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/oxon/vol17/175-208 [accessed 3 April 2023]. St Matthew's Church is a Grade I listed building. For more information about the listing see CHURCH OF ST MATTHEW, Langford - 1053385 | Historic England. For more information about St Matthew's Church see Langford Parish: Langford | British History Online (british-history.ac.uk). |
