The Church of St Matthew in
Wookey
Wookey is a village and civil parish west of Wells, on the River Axe in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of Henton and the nearby hamlets of Yarley and Bleadney where the River Axe travels the length ...
,
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 twelfth century and is 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 church was granted to the dean of
Wells by
Bishop Robert, rebuilt by
Bishop Reginald and assigned to the sub dean of the
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
in 1209. The south chancel is thought to have been built to house the memorial to Thomas Clerke in 1556.
The tower dates from the 15th century it held five bells until 1949 when a sixth was added. In 1906 the tower was struck by lightning.
[
A major ]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
...
in the 19th century included a new roof but preserved the 15th century beams.
Beside the church stands the 19th-century Mellifont Abbey, which is named after the abbey of the same name in Ireland.
The parish is part of the benefice of Coxley with Godney
Godney is a village and civil parish near Glastonbury on the River Sheppey on the Somerset Levels in the Mendip district of Somerset, England.
History
Near the village are the sites of the Iron Age Glastonbury Lake Village, and the now drained ...
, Henton and Wookey within the Shepton Mallet deanery.
Monuments
In the tower, behind the organ, there is a monument to Sir Jacob Wolff, 1st Baronet who was also a Baron of the Holy Roman Empire
(; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...
. He and his wife resided in Mellifont Abbey (now a care home) next to the church.
See also
* Grade I listed buildings in Mendip
Mendip is a local government district in the English county of Somerset. The Mendip district covers a largely rural area of ranging from the Mendip Hills through on to the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 11,000. The admin ...
* List of Somerset towers
The Somerset towers, church towers built in the 14th to 16th centuries, have been described as among England's finest contributions to medieval art. The paragraphs and descriptions below describe features of some of these towers. The organization ...
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wookey, St Matthew
Grade I listed churches in Somerset
Church of England church buildings in Mendip District
12th-century church buildings in England
Grade I listed buildings in Mendip District