St Michael's Church is located by the side of the River Derwent in the dispersed settlement of Isel, in the civil parish of

Blindcrake Blindcrake is a village and civil parish within the Isel Valley, in the Lake District National Park, in Cumbria, England, historically part of Cumberland. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 287, increasing to 348 at the 2011 Cen ...

, Cumbria, England. It is an active

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 ...

parish church in the deanery of Derwent, the archdeaconry of West Cumberland, and the diocese of Carlisle. Its

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 ...

is united with those of nine local churches to form the benefice of Binsey. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

History

The church was built in the early 12th century, and was

restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian music musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004 by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard ...

in 1878 by C. J. Ferguson.

Architecture

Exterior

St Michael's is constructed in

calciferous sandstone Calciferous sandstone is a geological term relating to strata at the base of the Carboniferous formation, below the entire sequence of coal measures. This term may be unique to the UK. Typically this part of the geological sequence, as in the T ...

rubble. The roofs are in green

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

, and have coped gables with cross

finial A finial (from '' la, finis'', end) or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature. In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a d ...

s. Its plan is simple, consisting of a four-

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 with a south porch, and a three-bay chancel with a north vestry. On the west gable is a twin open bellcote. The south doorway is

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

, with an arch of two orders with zigzag decoration. Incorporated into the porch are fragments of medieval carved stones. Also on the south side of the nave is a round-headed window and three rectangular windows. The south wall of the chancel has a blocked priest's door, a round-headed window, a

lancet window A lancet window is a tall, narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural element are typical of Gothic church edifices of the earliest period. Lancet wi ...

, and a two-light window. The east window has two lights. At the west end is a two-light window flanked by buttresses. The north wall of the nave contains a blocked doorway and two round-headed windows.

Interior

Inside the church, the chancel arch is Norman. 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 ...

is medieval with an octagonal bowl. The choir stalls and

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 ...

were designed by Ferguson. Also in the church are the

Royal arms The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, or the royal arms for short, is the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. These arms are used by the King in his official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom. Varian ...

of George I dated 1721, and two fragments of a cross-shaft dating from the 10th or 11th century.

Gallery

File:Isel church cumbria.jpg, Isel church, exterior File:Isel church interior.jpg, Isel church, interior showing Norman arch

References

External links

Photographs from Visit Cumbria
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isel, St Michael's Church Church of England church buildings in Cumbria Grade I listed churches in Cumbria English churches with Norman architecture Diocese of Carlisle