The Church of St Dubricius in Porlock,

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England dates from the 13th century. The church has been designated by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

as a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. The dedication is to Dubricius (also known in

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

as Dyfrig and in corrupt

Norman-French Norman or Norman French (, french: Normand, Guernésiais: , Jèrriais: ) is a Romance language which can be classified as one of the Langues d'oïl, Oïl languages along with French language, French, Picard language, Picard and Walloon language, ...

as Devereux) (c. 465 – 550 or 612), a 6th-century Briton ecclesiastic venerated as a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

and may indicate he travelled to the area. The church stands on the site of an earlier church which may date from around 1120. Restoration work was undertaken in the 15th century. The spire was damaged in a storm of 1703. Further

restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

was undertaken between 1888 and 1891. Within the church is the very fine late 15th century alabaster tomb of John Harington, 4th Baron Harington (1384–1418) who fought alongside King

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...

in France in 1417, and his wife Elizabeth Courtenay (died 1471), daughter of Edward de Courtenay, 3rd Earl of Devon (died 1419). Elizabeth survived her first husband and married secondly

William Bonville, 1st Baron Bonville William Bonville, 1st Baron Bonville (12 or 31 August 1392 – 18 February 1461), was an English nobleman and an important, powerful landowner in south-west England during the Late Middle Ages. Bonville's father died before Bonville reached ...

(died 1461). The style of armour worn by Baron Harington is of the period c.1470, as was worn in the time of his widow's death, and is not therefore an accurate representation of the armour worn at the time of his death in 1418. The monument and effigies are believed to have been erected at the expense of Elizabeth's step-daughter the great heiress Cicely Bonville, Baroness Harington and Marchioness of Dorset (1460–1529), and are considered from their very high quality "more befitting a cathedral than a retired country church". At the back of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

is a clock dating from the early 15th century which struck the tenor bell hourly. It has no hands or clock face. The clock was used until 1897 when a new clock was installed to celebrate

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

's jubilee. The parish is part of the

benefice A benefice () or living is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The Roman Empire used the Latin term as a benefit to an individual from the Empire for services rendered. Its use was adopted by ...

of Porlock and Porlock Weir with

Stoke Pero Luccombe or Luckham is a village and civil parish in the Exmoor National Park in the English county of Somerset. It at the foot of the moor's highest hill, the Dunkery Beacon, and is about one mile south of the A39 road between Porlock and Mineh ...

, Selworthy and Luccombe within the Exmoor deanery.

References

External links

Porlock Parish website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porlock, Church of Saint Dubricius Church of England church buildings in West Somerset 13th-century church buildings in England Grade I listed churches in Somerset Grade I listed buildings in West Somerset

See also

References

External links