Fairford Church

The River Coln runs through the Cotswold town of Fairford, with church
tower on the right. See our Fairford Church Photo Gallery for all views.

Approach from the southeast.

View from south.

A 15th-century climbing boy on the south exterior.

Guardian beneath a stone padlock on the tower.

View of the nave from the south aisle, with platform and colorful
decorations in place for a play being held in the church.

Tower arch from the nave, with colorful decorations. The three niches
once held the Virgin Mary, Christ, and St. John. Above are murals of
angels with shields bearing the Five Wounds of the Passion.

St. Bartholomew with tanner's knife (W17) and St. Apollonia, patron saint
of dentists, with tooth and forceps (W13).

Mary's parents, Anne and Joachim, make time for romance in Window 2.

God the Father waits in heaven to receive the Virgin Mary (W4).

The impenitent thief, with a devil waiting above him (W5).

Cain killing Abel in Window 16.

Welcomed by Peter, the righteous head up the stairs into heaven (W15).

The unrighteous are chained and carried to hell by demons (W15).

The Prophet Obadiah in Window 18.

Three bad guys in the clerestory (Window 27).

The choir, with stalls that probably came from Cirencester Abbey.

Misericord (carved c.1300) of a fox with geese.

Misericord (carved c.1300) of a drunken man sleeping.

Vault of the early 15th-century tower with bell ropes (and stage on left).

The resident church cat naps on a bench outside.

Inquisitive cows in a meadow west of the church (tower on the right).

The River Coln winds away from Fairford north of the church.

Location map and aerial view of Fairford Church. For a larger interactive view, see our England Map.

The Church of St. Mary in Fairford, Gloucestershire, is an exceptionally harmonious and well-preserved English parish church. Funded by a wool merchant and consecrated in 1497, Fairford Church boasts the most complete set of medieval glass remaining in Britain, along with a fine set of misericords. The surrounding town is also well worth a visit, with its peaceful atmosphere, flowing river, and pretty stone buildings of Cotswold stone.

History

The first recorded mention of a church at Fairford is in the 11th century but only a few traces of the original building remain today (13th century foundations at the NE corner; early 14th-century piers with ball-flowers on north and south faces of the tower within the aisle; early 15th-century tower). The grand church that stands today is almost entirely the work of the late 15th century.

After being passed down through various noble families (including the Despensers, whose fine chantry chapel is in Tewkesbury Abbey), the Manor of Fairford came to rest with the Crown in 1478.

In 1479, the Crown leased the site to John Twynyho and his son-in-law John Tame (d. 1500), a wool merchant in Cirencester. John Tame moved to Beauchamp and Warwick Court in Fairford, just north of the church.

John Tame began the construction of a new church around 1491. A visit from the Bishop of Worcester is recorded in that year, probably to sanction the destruction of the old church.

The new Fairford Parish Church, built in a late Perpendicular Gothic style, was consecrated by the same bishop in 1497. However, construction continued for some years more under John's son Edmund. It must have been complete by 1520, when King Henry VIII stayed in Fairford and heard Mass in the church.

The medieval glass that is the glory of the church was made in 1500-17 by the King's glazier, Barnard Flower, working out of his workshops at Westminster. Many of the glaziers and glass painters who worked on the project were Dutch, which shows in the styling of the windows.

It is remarkable that the medieval glass has survived so intact, but it has suffered some damage over the centuries. Some of the windows may have been whitewashed over by Reformers (1500s) and Puritans (1600s), and the latter seem to have removed some of the heads of figures, but at least the glass was not smashed to bits as in so many English churches.

The west window suffered severe storm damage in 1703 and most of the glass was replaced. In July 1940, all the windows were carefully removed by Oscar Farmer and stored for safekeeping during the war in the cellars of Fairford Park. They were reinstated in 1945-47, with some minor repairs and re-leading.

Since 1988, nearly all the windows have been beautifully cleaned, restored, re-leaded and protected by the Barley Studio in York. The church was featured in a BBC television show A Passion for Churches, broadcast in March 2006.

What to See

St. Mary's in Fairford is a three-aisled church with no transepts, a large central tower, and chapels flanking the chancel at the east end. Entrance is through the south porch. The interior is characterized by especially harmonious Perpendicular Gothic architecture – it has not been modified since its complete rebuilding in 1497.

The central tower is the only significant survival from the previous church. The bottom section, up to the clock, was built by the Earl of Warwick in the early 15th century in a Decorated Gothic style. The upper part was added by John Tame in the late 15th century, in the Perpendicular Gothic style. Grotesque guardians stand at each corner of the tower beneath stone-carved padlocks, one of which needs three keys to open.

Inside, the Early English arch of the tower has three niches, designed as a background for the figures on the rood beam of the Virgin Mary, Christ, and St. John. Above on each side are murals of angels with shields bearing the Five Wounds of the Passion.

Stained Glass Windows

The 28 medieval stained glass windows of Fairford form a visual lesson in the Christian faith, with depictions of prophets, apostles, saints, good and evil, and the life story of Jesus. There is pleasing parallelism in the nave and side aisles: the Four Evangelists stand across from Four Latin Fathers; the Twelve Prophets are opposite the Twelve Apostles; and Twelve Persecutors face off with Twelve Martyrs in the nave.

Details of the windows can be seen in our photo gallery and below is a summary of the windows and their subjects. The numbering system is that given by the church guide and referenced in our photo gallery; it begins at the north door and moves clockwise. Links go to corresponding photos.

The Old Testament [N transept]
1. The Fall
2. Moses and the Burning Bush
3. Gideon and the Fleece
4. Queen of Sheba and King Solomon
The Virgin Mary [Lady Chapel, N]
1. St. Joachim and St. Anne
2. St. Anne and the newborn St. Mary
3. St. Mary dedicates herself at the temple
4. the Betrothal of Mary and Joseph
The Birth of Christ [Lady Chapel, N]
1. Annunciation
2. Nativity
3. Adoration of the Magi
4. Presentation in the Temple
The Child Christ [Lady Chapel, E]
1. Christ among the Doctors
2. Assumption of Mary (with God waiting above)
3. the Flight into Egypt
The Passion [E window]
1. bottom level: Triumphal Entry
2. Gethsemane
3. Christ before Pilate, who washes his hands
4. The Scourging while Caiaphas and Ananias(?) look on
5. Christ Bearing the Cross
6. top level: Pilate on horseback beneath weeping angels
7. Mary and John beneath the penitent thief
8. Crucifixion of Christ
9. a centurion beneath the impenitent thief
10. two horsemen
The Death of Christ [S chancel window]
1. Descent from the Cross by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus
2. Burial
3. Harrowing of Hell, starting with Adam and Eve, while angels attack devils above
Resurrection Morning [Corpus Christi Chapel, E]
1. Appearance to Mary outside her bedroom (apocryphal)
2. Transfiguration
3. Appearance to the Holy Women
The Risen Christ [Corpus Christi Chapel, S]
1. Appearance at Emmaus
2. Appearance to St. Thomas
Ascension and Pentecost [Corpus Christi Chapel, S]
1. Appearance at Sea of Galilee
2. Ascension
3. Pentecost
Apostles [S transept]
1. Peter
2. Andrew
3. James
4. John
Apostles [S aisle]
1. Thomas
2. James Minor
3. Philip
4. Bartholomew
Apostles [S aisle]
1. Matthew
2. Simon
3. Jude
4. Matthias
Four Latin Fathers [S aisle, W end]
1. Jerome
2. Gregory
3. Ambrose
4. Augustine
Judgment of David, which results in a death [W end, S aisle]
1. bottom level: the Amalekite who stretched forth his hand against Saul, the Lord's Anointed, is beheaded
2. upper level: reassembled fragments, including Veronica's handkerchief
The Last Judgment [W window]
1. bottom level: The righteous (among them bishops and kings) ascend golden steps into heaven
2. St. Peter, with keys and a kind face, welcomes believers
3. The righteous dead rise from their graves towards heaven; one is carried by an angel
4. St. Michael in golden armor weighs souls while demons attempt to cheat by climbing in
5. The unrighteous dead rise from their graves towards hell; one woman is carried on the back of a blue demon
6. A woman is carted off in a wheelbarrow by a horned devil; another is prodded by a forked-tail demon; others are chained and carried by demons
7. Scenes of punishment and fire in hell; a monstrous Satan waits at the bottom right
8. to 14. upper level [modern, but based on original]: Christ in Judgment sitting on a rainbow surrounded by saints and angels
Judgment of Solomon, which saves a life [W end, N aisle]
1. Bottom level: men confer off to the side; above is a roundel of struggle with a lion
2. One of the women claiming the child
3. King Solomon and a soldier with sword raised over the child
4. The other woman, kneeling
5. Bystanders; at the top is a roundel of Cain killing Abel
6. to 10. Upper level: various onlookers lean out of tower windows
Four Evangelists [N aisle, west end]
1. Matthew
2. Mark
3. Luke
4. John
Prophets with OT Texts [N aisle]
1. Obadiah
2. Daniel
3. Malachi
4. Micah
Prophets with OT Texts [N aisle]
1. Joel
2. Zephaniah
3. Amos
4. Hosea
Prophets with OT Texts [N aisle, next to #1]
1. Jeremiah
2. David
3. Isaiah
4. Zechariah
Martyrs and Confessors [S nave, E end]
1. Dorothy with palm and wicker basket
2. Sebastian pierced with eight arrows
3. Agnes with a lamb
Martyrs and Confessors [S nave]
1. Catherine with sword pointing at head of Maxentius (reassembled with new head and shoulders in 1995)
2. Archbishop, probably St. Thomas of Canterbury
3. Margaret emerging from the back of a dragon
Martyrs and Confessors (Saintly Rulers) [S nave]
1. a king
2. an emperor
3. a king
Martyrs and Confessors (Saintly Priests) [S nave, W end]
1. a cardinal
2. a pope
3. a cardinal
Persecutors of the Faith (Wicked Priests) [N nave, W end]
1. Annas offering money
2. Judas with his money bag
3. Caiaphas counting 30 pieces of silver
Persecutors of the Faith (Wicked Rulers) [N nave]
1. King, probably Maxentius with the head of St. Catherine
2. Maybe the King of the Huns
3. Herod the Great murdering an innocent babe
Persecutors of the Faith (with grinning devils in small lights) [N nave]
1. Herod Agrippa with a sword
2. murderer of a saintly bishop
3. a woman-slayer
Persecutors of the Faith [N nave, E end]
1. Armed figure with bow and red shoes, with A-AMH on belt
2. Armed figure with head of a male saint on a pike
3. Nero

Misericords

Fairford possesses another fine collection of medieval art in its choir stalls, which have shield-bearing angels on the arm rests and carved misericords under the seats. They probably came from Cirencester Abbey after the Dissolution and are dated to about 1300 AD. The 14 misericords depict amusing scenes from daily life and the animal world:

Woman beating her husband (she pulls him by the hair and brandishing a paddle)
Drunkard sleeping by a table
Wheatsheaf with two reapers
Two hungry men
Man with two dogs
Two wyverns with entwined tails
Two women plucking a pigeon (or discussing it or fighting over it?)
Dog stealing from a cauldron as his mistress spins
Youth teasing a girl
Large grotesque head
Man and a woman draining a barrel (stolen and replaced with modern reproduction in 2004)
Two geese fighting
Angel with shield
Fox and geese

Wall Paintings

There are some remnants of wall paintings on the pillars of the tower, but they are badly faded. Oscar Farmer viewed these murals in better condition in the 1920s and suggested some interpretations in his guidebook:

The one in best condition today is on the northeast pillar of the tower, which depicts a bishop with a staff and a building above. Farmer identified this as St. Thomas Becket with his shrine.
The southeast pillar had a saint being tortured, with his right side pierced with arrows and two yellow angels above. The arrows suggest he is St. Edmund. The hollow molding on the right has symbols of the Passion: red ladder, reed crossed with spear, dice, St. Veronica's handkerchief and other symbols.
The southwest pillar apparently had a mural of a pelican, a symbol of piety and Christ's sacrifice.
The northwest pillar has a figure in a yellow robe accompanied by two dark figures, probably angels. No identification was suggested by Farmer, and barely anything is visible today.

Ceiling Angels

The ceiling is still made of John Tame's oak, whose beams are supported by 69 carved stone angels bearing scrolls or shields. Eight of the nine orders of angels are high in the sanctuary.

On the north side are Angeli; Arkangeli; Potestes (Powers) with royal cloak, sword and sceptre; Dominacoes (Dominions) with crucifix. On the south side are Cherubim with a book inscribed Ave; Troni (Thrones); Prinsepats (Principalities) with pennant reading IHS; and Virtutes (Virtues) armed with visor and mailed gloves.

Quick Facts

Site Information
Names:	Fairford Church; Fairford Parish Church; St Mary's Church, Fairford; Church of St Mary in Fairford
Location:	Fairford, Gloucestershire, England
Faith:	Christianity
Denomination:	Original/Primary: Catholic Current/Secondary: Anglican
Dedication:	Virgin Mary
Category:	Churches
Architecture:	Gothic
Date:	1491-1520 (consecrated 1497)
Patron(s):	John Tame
Features:	Medieval Stained Glass
Status:	active
Photo gallery:	Fairford Church Photo Gallery
Visitor Information
Address:	High Street, Fairford, GL7 4AF
Coordinates:	51.709065° N, 1.78206° W (view on Google Maps)
Lodging:	View hotels near this location
Phone:	01285 712611
Website:	www.stmaryschurchfairford.org.uk
Official tours:	Available by arrangement through the Parish Office (open 10am-noon)
Services:	Sundays: 8am Holy Communion (BCP); 10am Sung Eucharist; 6pm Evensong
Facilities:	bookshop
Parking:	Free parking available nearby

Note: This information was accurate when published and we do our best to keep it updated, but details such as opening hours can change without notice. To avoid disappointment, please check with the site directly before making a special trip.

Article Sources

Personal visit (October 20, 2007).
St. Mary's Church, Fairford, Gloucestershire. Excellent book published by the church and available in the shop.
St Mary's Church - Fairford Town Council
St Mary's, Fairford - official website

Last updated on August 8, 2010.