St Peter's Church is the parish church of

Selsey Selsey () is a seaside town and civil parishes in England, civil parish, about south of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Selsey lies at the southernmost point of the Manhood Peninsula, almost cut off from mainland Sussex by the sea. It is in ...

, West Sussex, and dates from the 13th century. The church building was originally situated at the location of

St Wilfrid Wilfrid ( – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Francia, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and beca ...

's first monastery and cathedral at Church Norton some 2 miles north of the present centre of population."Heron-Allen. The Parish Church of St Peter on Selsey Bill Sussex". Moore and Tillyer p. 6 The church is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, and there has been extensive renovation work on and inside the building.

History

According to

Bede Bede (; ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Bede of Jarrow, the Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (), was an English monk, author and scholar. He was one of the most known writers during the Early Middle Ages, and his most f ...

, the exiled

Bishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers t ...

, c. 680–81 evangelised the

South Saxons The Kingdom of the South Saxons, today referred to as the Kingdom of Sussex (; from , in turn from or , meaning "(land or people of/Kingdom of) the South Saxons"), was one of the seven traditional kingdoms of the Heptarchy of Anglo-Saxon Englan ...

during his stay there (c. 680–86). Wilfrid founded a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

at Selsey, a former royal estate given to him by King Aethelwealh at the entrance to

Pagham Harbour Pagham Harbour is a biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the western outskirts of Bognor Regis in West Sussex. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, a Nature Conservation Review site, a Ramsar site, a Special ...

(modern-day Church Norton). After Caedwalla conquered the South Saxons c. 685, the area became part of the Diocese of Wessex, with its seat in

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

. However, the bishopric of Sussex was re-established in about 705, and Wilfrid's monastery was taken over as the episcopal seat. A picture painted by

Lambert Barnard Lambert Barnard, also known as Lambert Bernardi (c.1485–1567), was an English Renaissance painter. Origins and style Barnard's place of birth is unknown.Tittler, 2011, ODNB All of his extant works can be found in and around Chichester. His ...

, which hangs in

Chichester Cathedral Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of th ...

, represents the interview between Caedwalla and St

Wilfrid Wilfrid ( – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Francia, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and beca ...

. In the top left corner can be seen a representation of Selsey Church and the priory as it appeared in 1519.Heron-Allen. Selsey Historic and Prehistoric. Duckworth (1911).p. 109 It is probable that the bell tower, shown separate from the church on the Barnard painting, dated from the 11th century or earlier was constructed as some sort of fortification and not actually part of the church. A churchwarden's presentment from 1662 stated ''"That there was never any steeple belonging to the church (at Selsey), but a tower formerly belonging to a ruined castle, somewhat remote from the church where the bells hung..."''. An excavation of the ''mound'' in 1911 discovered the foundations of a square tower and the remains of a

ringwork A ringwork is a form of fortified defensive structure, usually circular or oval in shape. Ringworks are essentially motte-and-bailey castles without the motte. Defences were usually earthworks in the form of a ditch and bank surrounding the site ...

that would have supported the tower. It seems that the old tower lasted till 1602 when it blew down. A replacement tower was constructed, this time attached to the church, in 1662.F. G. Aldsworth. 'The Mound' at Church Norton, Selsey ''in'' Sussex Archaeological Collection Vol. 117 pp. 103–107 In 1075, the see was transferred to Chichester. The location of the old Selsey cathedral is not known for certain, and although some local legends suggest it is under the sea, and that the bell could be heard tolling during rough weather, it is thought unlikely. A more likely explanation is that the replacement church, founded in the 13th century, was built on the site of the old cathedral. By the middle of the 19th century the population had drifted away to Sutton (modern day Selsey), largely because of coastal erosion. It was therefore decided to move the church to the new centre of population. In 1864–66 the church was dismantled stone by stone and re-erected in its present position where it was orientated north rather than east. The chancel remained at Church Norton and was dedicated to St Wilfrid in 1917 and is known as St Wilfrid's Chapel. A new Victorian chancel was added to the mediaeval nave. The re-erected parish church, complete with the new chancel, was consecrated on 12 April 1866. The rectors continued to live in the rectory at Church Norton until a new rectory was built near the removed church in 1903. The old rectory was sold off and renamed Norton Priory.

Building

The church originally stood at Church Norton, until the 19th century when it was moved to the current centre of population. Under ecclesiastical law, the church can be removed but not the chancel. So the old chancel was left.Heron-Allen. The Parish Church of St Peter. pp. 6–7 Plans were made of the church in its original position.

James Piers St Aubyn James Piers St Aubyn (6 April 1815 – 8 May 1895), often referred to as J P St Aubyn, was an English architect of the Victorian era, known for his church architecture and confident Victorian restoration, restorations. Early life St Aubyn was ...

was appointed architect in 1865. The re-erected church therefore was the same as the original church, apart from the addition of a new Victorian chancel and a vestry. The re-erected church consists of two arcades of three bays each between 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 ...

and the aisles, originally built in the late 12th century.Nairn Pevenser.Sussx. p. 319Heron-Allen. Parish church of St Peter. p. 19 The east window is of three trefoil-headed lights with

Perpendicular In geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at right angles, i.e. at an angle of 90 degrees or π/2 radians. The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the '' perpendicular symbol'', � ...

tracery, perhaps late 14th century; the rear-arch may be that of a former lancet triplet.Salzman. The Victoria History of the County of Sussex. p. 205 In the south wall are two pointed-headed niches with chamfered arrises, the eastern is now a credence, the western a

piscina A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Lutherans and Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a pisci ...

; though the style of these suggests a later date than the 13th century the original moulded string-course which runs round the south, east, and north sides of the chancel rises to clear them. Next are two 13th-century lancets with segmental rear-arches, and a priest's doorway with plain pointed exterior arch, 13th century but much repaired with cement, and segmental rear-arch; this is now blocked externally, and its recess serves as a cupboard. Next is a two-light window without tracery, the lights having semicircular heads, perhaps a 17th-century enlargement to light a reading-desk, the inner part of the splay and the rear-arch being those of a 13th-century lancet. In the north wall are two lancets like those in the south; perhaps a third, now blocked, exists west of them. On the outside of this wall there is a weather-mould where the roof of a building adjoined it on the north. The church has a chalice dating from Elizabethan times and also an ancient font. The architect

Ian Nairn Ian Douglas Nairn (24 August 1930 – 14 August 1983) was a British architectural critic who coined the word "Subtopia" to indicate drab suburbs that look identical through unimaginative town-planning. He published two strongly personalised cr ...

, dated the font as being constructed at around 1100. However, this was seen as a little early by other historians. The font, which is made of

Purbeck marble Purbeck Marble is a fossiliferous limestone found in the Isle of Purbeck, a peninsula in south-east Dorset, England. It is a variety of Purbeck stone that has been quarried since at least Roman times as a decorative building stone. Geology S ...

, Heron-Allen suggests was of a type that was very common in the south east counties in the 12th century, having shallow bodies with circular basins standing upon a square base and supported by a large central and small angle shafts. The architect

Philip Mainwaring Johnston Philip Mainwaring Johnston (1865–1936), also known as PM Johnston, was a British architect and architectural historian. Education Philip attended King's College School, London. He studied drawing and painting under Professor Delamotte at K ...

was responsible for the

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

. The church is a Grade II listed building.

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * * – booklet produced by the author(1st Edition 1935) for visitors to St Peters church. * * * * *

External links