All Saints Church, East Horndon
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All Saints' Church is a redundant
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
church in the village of
East Horndon East Horndon is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of West Horndon, in the south of the borough of Brentwood in Essex in the East of England. It is situated just south of the A127 road near Herongate. The village Church of Al ...
,
Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II*
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 ...
, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands north of the village, and northwest of the junction between the
A127 The A127, also known as the Southend Arterial Road, is a major road in Essex, England. It was constructed as a new arterial road project in the 1920s, linking Romford with Southend-on-Sea, replacing the older A13. Formerly classified as a tr ...
and A128 roads, some south of Brentwood.


Early history

The church was built in the last quarter of the 15th century by the Tyrell family of nearby Heron Hall () to replace an earlier church on the site. The south chapel and the porch were added in the first quarter of the following century. The upper stage of the tower was rebuilt in the 17th century. During the 19th century, the fabric of the church deteriorated, by the 1890s it was "almost ruinous", and it was closed in 1898. During the next ten years the church was restored by George Frederick Bodley to return it to as near as possible to its original condition. However, it was allowed to deteriorate again. During the Second World War, a bomb exploded close to the church, destroying much of the stained glass and weakening its structure. After the war, a tramp set the tower alight, and thieves stole items from the church, including its four bells. Then vandals caused more damage. The
font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a typeface. Each font is a matched set of type, with a piece (a "sort") for each glyph. A typeface consists of a range of such fonts that shared an overall design. In mod ...
and the surviving monuments were removed to museums for safe keeping.


Architecture


Exterior

All Saints is constructed in red brick, with English bond brickwork, and stone dressings. Its plan consists of a three-
bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...
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 ...
with north and south two-storey
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...
s, a
chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...
with north and south chapels, a south porch, and a west tower. The tower is in two stages, with large corner
buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (s ...
es. The buttresses continue upwards and become
turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Objective turret, an indexable holder of multiple lenses in an optical microscope * Mi ...
s at the corners. In the upper stage are round-headed bell openings. The
parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). Whe ...
is stepped. On top of the tower is a shingled pyramidal roof, surmounted by a
weather vane A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ''vane'' comes from the Old English word , m ...
. In the centre of the south side of the church is a
gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...
d transept. In its lower storey is a square-headed three-light window, above this is a small window with a brick surround, and in the gable is a
sundial A sundial is a horological device that tells the time of day (referred to as civil time in modern usage) when direct sunlight shines by the apparent position of the Sun in the sky. In the narrowest sense of the word, it consists of a flat ...
. To the west of the transept is a porch, continuous with the transept, with a
pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...
buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (s ...
at the junction. Above the entrance to the porch is an arched recess, and at its west corner is a diagonal buttress. Inside the porch is the original seating. The porch leads to the doorway into the church, which dates from about 1500. In the spandrels over the archway are carvings of a shield and a
Tudor rose The Tudor rose (sometimes called the Union rose) is the traditional floral heraldic badge, heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the House of Tudor, which united the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The Tudor ...
. To the west of the porch is a tall window with a brick surround. To the east of the transept, protruding from the chancel is a two-bay chapel. This contains two square-headed windows, one with two lights, and one with three lights. On the corners are diagonal buttresses. On the north side of the church there is also a central transept. It has similar windows to those in the south transept, plus another square-framed window. To the east of this, in the north wall of the chancel, is a window with an arched head. There are no windows in the north chapel, but there are two large crosses on pedestals. The east window in the chancel has a three-light window with a stone surround, dating from the 19th century.


Interior

On the north wall of the nave are monuments to the Powell family, forerunners of Robert Baden-Powell. Beside the south door is a damaged stoup. The north transept contains a narrow brick staircase leading to the upper storey. The upper room of the transept is joined to the corresponding room in the south transept by a beam, the only remaining part of a
rood A rood or rood cross, sometimes known as a triumphal cross, is a cross or crucifix, especially the large crucifix set above the entrance to the chancel of a medieval church. Alternatively, it is a large sculpture or painting of the crucifixion ...
screen. The
pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...
dating from about 1700 was destroyed by vandals in 1971. In the chancel, a small chapel known as the Founder's Tomb projects from the north wall. A single fragment of
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
stained glass is in one of the chancel windows. The 15th-century chancel roof was damaged during the Second World War, but the parts that have survived include bosses carved with flowers, fruit, shields and angels. There is a two-bay arcade between the chancel and the south chapel. This is known as the Tyrell Chapel and contains memorials to members of the Tyrell family. The oldest monument is to Lady Alice Tyrell who died in 1422. This had been moved to Layer Marney in 1969 for safety, but was returned here in 1976. There are marble wall monuments to other members of the Tyrell family, with dates in the 17th and 18th centuries. Under the floor of the chapel is a small crypt, now sealed. In the south transept is an altar tomb dating from about 1520, and in the upper storey is a medieval fireplace and chimney. A staircase leads from the upper storey room down to the porch. Many of the fittings have been stolen or moved elsewhere. A font dating from about 1200, formerly in the north transept, has been moved to Great Wakering in Essex. An
escutcheon Escutcheon may refer to: * Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms * Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door * (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...
formerly above the Founder's Tomb has been moved to Layer Marney church. A black
marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...
floor slab to the memory of Sir John Tyrell who died in 1675 is in Heron Hall. The most important monument was made by Joseph Nollekens to Sir John Tyrell, 5th baronet, who died in 1766. This is now in the
Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
.


Recent history and present day

In 1970 a committee was formed in an attempt to save and preserve the church. Work was undertaken to make the building as safe and as waterproof as possible. The All Saints Society was formed to raise money, donations were received from individuals, and grants were made by the Friends of Friendless Churches, the Ford Trust of Britain, and Essex County Council. The church was declared redundant on 13 November 1970, and it became
vested In law, vesting is the point in time when the rights and interests arising from legal ownership of a property is acquired by some person. Vesting creates an immediately secured right of present or future deployment. One has a vested right to an ...
in the Redundant Churches Fund, the forerunners of the Churches Conservation Trust. The Trust has organised further repairs and restorations. An organisation known as the Friends of All Saints East Horndon arranges events in the church. On New Year's Eve 2020, the church was broken into and an illegal party was held, despite the considerable COVID-19 regulations in force at the time. Police, called to clear the church of several hundred partygoers, had objects thrown at them and were threatened. Several men were arrested on
Drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...
and
Public Order In criminology, public-order crime is defined by Siegel (2004) as "crime which involves acts that interfere with the operations of society and the ability of people to function efficiently", i.e., it is behaviour that has been labelled criminal ...
offences. It is estimated that at least £5,000 worth of damage was caused to the church by the party. In 2021, a new volunteering team was formed who began to address issues of antisocial behaviour on and around the church grounds. New CCTV was part-funded by Brentwood Borough Council and a local security firm, who continue to provide security at the church 24/7. The church grounds are now considered a "no go" area for criminal and antisocial behaviour, with dozens of offenders fined for various offences from theft and criminal damage to littering and antisocial behaviour. CCTV, manned SIA security guards and drones monitor the church grounds 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.


External features

In the churchyard is a memorial to members of the Freman family. It consists of an enclosure surrounded by railings, containing three 18th-century tombs in
Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building sto ...
. It has been listed at Grade II. Also listed at Grade II and associated with the church is a small 17th-century
timber-framed Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...
stable. There are the
war graves War is an intense armed conflict between State (polity), states, governments, Society, societies, or paramilitary groups such as Mercenary, mercenaries, Insurgency, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violenc ...
of a Northamptonshire Regiment soldier of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, and two
airmen An airman is a member of an air force or air arm of a nation's armed forces. In certain air forces, it can also refer to a specific enlisted rank. An airman can also be referred as a soldier in other definitions. In civilian aviation usage, t ...
of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.


See also

*
List of churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust in the East of England The Churches Conservation Trust, which was initially known as the Redundant Churches Fund, is a charity whose purpose is to protect historic churches at risk, those that have been made redundant by the Church of England. The Trust was establish ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:East Hordon, All Saints Church Grade II* listed churches in Essex Church of England church buildings in the Borough of Brentwood Churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in England