Ickworth Church (more formally known as St Mary's Church, Ickworth) is a former

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

in Ickworth Park near Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

History

The church is within view of

Ickworth House Ickworth House is a country house at Ickworth, near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. It is a neoclassical building set in parkland. The house was the residence of the Marquess of Bristol before being sold to the National Trust in 1998. H ...

, now owned by the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

. The church served Ickworth village, which no longer exists. With the growth of the Ickworth Estate, the church became mainly associated with those living and working in

and its Park. It is also the main burial place of the

Hervey family Marquess of Bristol is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom held by the Hervey family since 1826. The Marquess's subsidiary titles are Earl of Bristol (created 1714), Earl Jermyn, of Horningsheath in the County of Suffolk (1826), and B ...

, who owned and lived at Ickworth from the mid 15th century to 1998.

Church fabric

The church is medieval with major 19th-century alterations. The chancel is mid C13, the north nave doorway is C13 or C14. The chancel has a C15 restored south nave window. A C15 plain Octagonal limestone font. A C17 octagonal pulpit, converted around 1775 into a 3-decker with balustrading and original graining. 20 C17 and C18 marble wall and floor slabs in the chancel, many with carved achievements to members of the Hervey family. 14 C17 and C18 wall tablets in the nave to members of the Hervey family and others. A C15 red-line wall painting of the angel of the Annunciation on east wall of chancel. Roundels of painted Flemish glass dating from C14-C19.

Hervey family tombs

The Herveys, who owned Ickworth for almost 500 years, are buried in the vault under the church and in the churchyard. The line of those laid to rest here begins with Thomas Hervey (d. 1467), who was the first of this family to own Ickworth. After him, almost every

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...

and every

Marquess of Bristol Marquess of Bristol is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom held by the Hervey family since 1826. The Marquess's subsidiary titles are Earl of Bristol (created 1714), Earl Jermyn, of Horningsheath in the County of Suffolk (1826), and B ...

has been buried there, as were many of their daughters and wives. The 6th Marquess (d. 1985) was buried in

Menton Menton (; , written ''Menton'' in classical norm or ''Mentan'' in Mistralian norm; it, Mentone ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera, close to the Italian border. Me ...

(

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

) for 25 years until the 8th Marquess had him reinterred in the vault of Ickworth Church in October 2010.

The Ickworth Church Conservation Trust (ICCT)

The ICCT was set up by the 8th Marquess of Bristol to safeguard the future of Ickworth Church. His half-brother the 7th Marquess bought the church from the Church Commissioners (after they made it redundant in the 1970s) in 1986, after which it fell into a state of disrepair. The 8th Marquess created the ICCT in 2006, and transferred ownership of the Church to the ICCT, of which he is Trustee and Chairman. The Church has now been restored and is open to the public after a lengthy restoration project costing £1.2 million.

Popular culture

Prior to the restoration of the church it was visited by writer and television producer

Steven Moffat Steven William Moffat (; born 18 November 1961) is a Scottish television writer, television producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work as showrunner, writer and executive producer of the science fiction television series ''Doct ...

who used the chained-up gates and statues in various states of disrepair in the churchyard as inspiration for popular '' Doctor Who'' monsters the

Weeping Angel The Weeping Angels are a race of predatory creatures from the long-running science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. They were introduced in the 2007 episode "Blink", making repeat appearances in later episodes. They also appeared in the spin-off s ...

s, first introduced in the 2007 episode " Blink".

References

External links

* {{coord, 52.2184, 0.6518, type:landmark_region:GB-SFK, display=title

Ickworth Ickworth is a small civil parish, almost coextensive with the estate of the National Trust's Ickworth House, in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, eastern England, south-west of Bury St Edmunds. The population of the parish was only minimal ...

Grade II* listed churches in Suffolk Borough of St Edmundsbury