Norfolk Heritage Explorer

Location

Full description

Tower begun 1431, not finished 1435, rood screen.
See (S1).

18th century records north aisle, porch, thatched chancel, 'strong square tower' with internal brick relieving arches, niche under east window.
See (S2).

1826. In digging a grave in churchyard.
At a depth of 60cm (2 feet) and wrapped in a woollen cloth were found six base groats of Henry VIII: two being of the Bristol mint; two of the London mint of which one 'had Civitas London in Anglo-Saxon characters'; one of the York mint and one with 'Redde cuique quoe suum est' on reverse.
See (S3).
E. Rose (NAU).

Originally the church of Holme, to which Hale was consolidated. See NHER 8713.

1960. Building listed Grade I
Parish church. Medieval and later. Flint with ashlar and some brick dressings. Slate and pantile roofs. West tower; nave with north aisle and north porch; chancel. C14 and C15 west tower with angle buttresses. Ground floor with opposed chamfered doorways of 2 orders to north and south sides. Moulded string with irregularly formed brick and flint relieving arches above to each side. First floor with cusped single lights to each side (interior also). Second floor with loops to south and west. Very large 3-light Perpendicular bell openings. Crenellated parapet. South wall of nave with wave moulded doorway and 3 fine 3-light panel-traceried windows with cusped soufflets. North aisle with 4 3-light panel-traceried flat headed windows and one 2-light west window in Decorated style. Porch with rendered brick dressings to 2-light side windows and entrance arch. Wave moulded north door- way. 4 2-light panel-traceried clearstorey windows and one 3-light window in eastern nave gable. Chancel with one blocked flat headed window and a wave moulded priest's door to north; a modern 3-light cusped east window and 2 traceried 3-light flat headed south windows. Interior. 4-bay C14 north arcade of circular piers supporting hollow chamfered arches of 3 orders with a hollow roll. Hood moulds with finely carved label stops. Small moulded tower arch. Restored C15 hammer beam roof with renewed angels. Restored screen with some original tracery. Surviving rood stair. Chancel with angle piscina of 2 cusped arches and colonnette. Re-used C12 cushion capital serving as base to colonnette.
Information taken from building listing
H. White (NLA), 24 March 2009

August 1986. In digging soakaway trench on south side chancel.
Footings of large wall of flint mortared together, containing some tile, uncovered. 2m south of chancel - evidence of south chapel? or earlier chancel? Not enough exposed to be sure.
See (S4) in file.
J.J. Wymer (NAU), 14 August 1986.

June 1995. Bare soil immediately north of previous south edge of churchyard which now extends to south. At TF 8873 0749.
One body sherd glazed Grimston.
A. Rogerson (NLA), 8 May 1996.

(S5) adds following points:
The bells are inscribed John Draper 1624, John Brend 1652, Thomas & Gardiner of Norwich 1746. The building was restored in 1868 and the east window was erected 1895. The organ came from Cromer church. The tower door is offcentre to the north and there is no tower arch. A west gallery was removed in 1868. The chancel contains 18th century slabs of the Eyre/Bedingfeld family. A bequest is noted to a new tower in 1431.
See [1].
E. Rose (NLA), 21 January 1997.

(S6) notes a brass inscription to the de Illeye family of 1349, of the London 'B' school, which has been reset upside down above two matrices of shield brasses.
E. Rose (NLA), 5 February 2001.

April 2013. Statement of Significance.
Of particular special interest in the description is the position of tower doorways to north and south and not to west. Caused by the closeness of west boundary which must pre-date the 14th century church. Wills from 1383 - 1499 refer to 'new church'. Mortared flint wall found in church yard when digging a drain may be part of the previous (Norman) church (see S 4). The chancel has an angle piscina with re-used Norman cushion capital and two sets of sedilia - one next to piscina, the other at the foot of the altar steps in a recess. The priest's door has a niche for a holy water stoup in the buttress just to the side of the door. See (S7)
S. Heywood (HES), 26 April 2013.

May-September 2014.
This was one of four Norfolk churches included in a pilot study looking at the management of bats in historic churches. This study looked to research and develop management techniques that will allow the protection of heritage in ways that won't cause long-term detrimental impact on local bat populations. This and the other three churches were selected due to the known presence of Natterer's bats.
See report (S8) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 22 August 2019.

Monument Types

• CHURCH (Medieval to 21st Century - 1066 AD to 2100 AD)
• WALL (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Associated Finds

• POT (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• ROOD SCREEN (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• COIN (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• COIN HOARD (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• TEXTILE (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Protected Status

• Listed Building

Sources and further reading

Related records - none

Find out more...

• Parish Summary: Holme Hale (Parish Summary)