Search the Site
Create a Site
Read the News
Whats On

• Homepage
• CONTACT
• LISTED BUILDINGS
• AVON MEADOW
• AVONDYKE
• BARFORD LANE
• BARNABY CLOSE
• BATTEN ROAD
• THE BOROUGH
• BREAMORE ROAD
• CASTLE MEADOW
• CATHERINE CRESCENT
• CHAPEL LANE
• CHURCH HATCH
• CHURCH LANE
• CHURCH LEAT
• CRANBURY CLOSE
• CROSSWAYS CLOSE
• DOCTORS ALLEY
• DOWNLANDS CLOSE
• DOWNTON ROAD
• EASTMAN CLOSE
• ELIZABETH CLOSE
• THE GLADES
• GRAVEL CLOSE
• GREEN LANE
• GREENACRES
• HAMILTON PARK
• THE HEADLANDS
• HIGH STREET
• THE HIGHWAY
• HYDE LANE
• JOANNA CLOSE
• LODE HILL
• LONG CLOSE
• LOWER ROAD
• MARIE AVENUE
• MESH POND
• MOOT CLOSE
• MOOT GARDENS
• MOOT LANE
• PARKERS CLOSE
• ROMAN MEADOW
• SALISBURY ROAD
• SAXON MEADOW
• SAXONHURST
• SCOTTS CLOSE
• THE SIDINGS
• SLAB LANE
• SNAIL CREEP
• SOUTH LANE
• SQUAREY CLOSE
• STANDLYNCH
• TWYNHAMS CLOSE
• WARRENS LANE
• WATERSIDE
• WEEKE CLOSE
• WHEELWRIGHT MEWS
• WICK LANE
• LINKS

Referred to in some old directories as Church Lane.

WEST SIDE (from junction with High Street)

The Old Malt House

1 Church Hatch

Former occupiers: David Young (1953- 1964).

2 Church Hatch

Former occupiers: William L Ireland (1964).

3 Church Hatch

Former occupiers: Raymond Newman (1964).

Church of St Laurence

A grade I listed building, formerly grade B.

Listing description: Anglican parish church. Mid-Cll nave, C13 transepts, C14 chancel and remodelling, C17 restoration, C18 alterations, restorations of 1812 by D. A. Alexander, 1860 by T. H. Wyatt. Brick and flint with limestone dressings, tiled roof.
Plan: cruciform church with south porch. Gabled porch with 1648 on dtestone over door, cyma-moulded Tudor- arched doorway. Nave has 2-light square-headed Perpendicular window to left of porch and three 4-light chamfered mullioned windows to right, all with hoodmoulds, to right is C14 pointed door with hollow-moulded doorway and canopy, C18 parapet with brick panels and saddleback coping. C13 south transept has angle buttresses, lancet to west, three stepped lancets to south and one roll- moulded lancet and unusual 2-light Perpendicular window to east side, 1743 cartouche. South and north sides of chancel have three 2-light geometric windows, good gargoyles. East end has large C19 5-light geometric window with hoodmould, diagonal buttresses. North side also has pointed doorway with continuous moulding and octagonal stair turret in angle with north transept; pointed doorway and loops. North transept has two 2-light Perpendicular windows to north and a lancet and pointed chamfered doorcase to west. North aisle under catslide roof has three pairs of cusped lights and one 3-light C19 window. West end has large 4-light geometric window and Tudor-arched moulded doorcase with heraldic terminals, north aisle has 2-light cusped window, south aisle has 2-light Perpendicular window. 2-stage crossing tower in flint and limestone bands has 2-light round-arched windows with hoodmoulds, offset diagonal buttresses, late C18 battlemented parapet and pinnacles retained when tower lowered 1860. Roof has coped verges and ridge-cresting.
Interior: Inner south doorway has continuous roll-moulded pointed arch and restored ledged door. 5-bay nave has three late Cll western bays with cylindrical columns, square abaci and scalloped capitals to pointed arches, two east bays have taller pointed arches, 6-bay arch-braced collar truss roof. Fine C13 double-chamfered arches with fillet mouldings and stiff-leaf capitals to grouped-shaft responds of crossing. Lady Chapel in south transept has Medieval braced tie-beam roof, north transept has similar roof with hollow-chamfered timbers, trefoiled piscina on east wall, and ogee arch to north. Chancel has C19 6- bay tie-beam roof on foliated corbels, Tudor-arched squint through to Lady Chapel, restored C13 sedilia with four arches and shuttered window to south side.
Fittings: C13 Purbeck marble font at west end of south aisle, wall painting on west wall possibly depicting The Flight into Egypt. Fine C18 hexagonal pulpit sounding board is now table at west end. Victorian pews and pulpit. Fine group of mid-C18 marble monuments with obelisks in chancel to Feversham family, by Peter and Thomas Scheemakers, good tablets in Lady Chapel such as a fine baroque marble to Charles Duncombe died 1711. Some C14 glass in north aisle, C19 glass includes fine east window by E. Frampton of London, 1896 and 1901.

The following structures within the churchyard are grade II listed buildings in their own right:

Lychgate and attached walling to south of churchyard of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Lychgate and walling to either side with stile. 1892, the gift of Richard Payne. Flint and limestone wall and plinth to lychgate, timber-framed sides to gate, tiled roof. Curved section of wall has wooden stile. Lychgate has fine cusped and traceried panels to sides and finely carved bargeboards. Carved lettering inside commemorates the gift of Richard Payne.

Churchyard Boundary Wall immediately North of Church of St Laurence and South West of Manor House
Listing description: Churchyard boundary wall. C18 with earlier work and some C19 rebuilding. Mainly English bond red brick, possibly early C18, with some earlier flint and brick at centre and C19 section rebuilt in flint and brick at west end. Forms boundary of churchyard immediately north of church of St Laurence and the front garden of the Manor House.

Churchyard cross about 8 metres south of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Churchyard cross. C14. Limestone. Four circular steps up to square plinth for octagonal shaft with moulded top. (Ancient Monument, Wiltshire No. 319).

Gibbs monument in the churchyard, about 6 metres north of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Chest tomb. Late C18. Limestone. Plinth, two oval fielded panels and central pilaster to south side, north side has two recessed oval panels with central floral decoration, moulded flat top and corner pilasters. John Gibbs died 1788.

Gibbs monument in the churchyard, about 9 metres north of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Chest tomb. Early C19. Limestone. Plinth, two fielded panels to main sides, and flat moulded top with inscription. John Gibbs died 1821.

Hooper monument in the churchyard, about 9 metres north of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Chest tomb. Mid- Cl9. Limestone. Plinth, two fielded panels to main side, moulded flat top. John Hooper died 1839.

Five Fanstone monuments in the churchyard, between 16 and 21 metres south of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Group of four chest tombs. Late C18 to late C19. Limestone. Three tombs to same design; each with moulded plinth, two fielded panels to main sides, chamfered flat top with illegible inscription. The south-west tomb has one plinth, one fielded panel to main sides with paterae in angles and reeded corner pilasters, moulded flat tops with inscriptions.

Four Baily monuments in the churchyard, between 7 and 12 metres south of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Group of four chest tombs. Late C18 to Late C19. Limestone. Each of same design; plinth, two fielded panels to main sides and to end panels, moulded flat tops with inscriptions, mostly illegible. Earliest legible inscription is to James Baily died 1822.

Two Strading monuments in the churchyard, about 13 metres west of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Two chest tombs. Early C19. Limestone. South tomb has plinth, fielded panels to sides and end panels with paterae in angles, reeded corner pilasters, moulded flat top with illegible inscription. The north tomb is wider and has plinth, flush rectangular panel with flanking panels with lozenges, moulded flat top; Henry Strading died 1818.

Brown monument in the churchyard, about 32 metres west of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Chest tomb. Probably early C19. Limestone. Gothic style. Plinth, rectangular panel to main sides with ogee traceried and cusped panels to either side, moulded flat top. Illegible inscription.

Lear and Shuckburgh monuments in the churchyard, about 34 metres west of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Two chest tombs of notable vicars of Downton (sic). Mid C19. Limestone. Both of same design, two beaded rectangular panels to main sides, chamfered flat top with inscription. Thomas Lear died 1828, Charles Shuckburgh of The Moot, died 1833 (also see marble tablet to him in the Lady Chapel of the Church, by Osmond of Sarum).

Whitmarsh monument in the churchyard about 34 metres west of Church of St Laurence
Listing description: Chest tomb. Early C19. Limestone. Plinth, two beaded panels to main sides, chamfered flat top with inscription. George Whitmarsh died 1821. (Listing NGR: SU1802021625).

PEVSNER: ‘A large and interesting church with transepts and a crossing tower. Externally the nave and aisles are mixed, but predominantly Perpendicular and Victorian (alterations 1812-15 by Asher Alexander, according to the Ferriday Index). Eraly C18 panelled brick parapet on the S aisle. The S doorway is Perpendicular, and the oddly placed secondary doorway on the same side under a hood is Decorated. The transepts are clearly Early English, with the superstructure and ambitious Decorated remodelling. The transepts have lancet windows, the most trustworthy being N transept W and S transept E, the latter with an external and an internal continuous roll moulding. In the chancel a priest's doorway with a hood has been removed. A second N doorway has continuous Early English mouldings. But the chancel windows are tall and Early Decorated, of two lights with, in the head, a trefoil with three barbs. The westernmost S window has one light extended downward as a low- side window. Similar, but straight- headed windows in the transept E walls as well. The crossing tower has the same kind with bands of brown stone. But the details are all C17. So much rebuilding must have gone on.
Inside, the story looks different. The nave turns out to be Norman, or at least the three W bays. Circular piers and square abaci. Multi-scalloped capitals with decorated scallops. The S arcade renewed. The surprising thing is that the single-step arches are pointed. On the N side indeed they reach up higher than the original roof- line of the aisle, i.e. are clearly a later heightening. The two E bays were added when it had been decided to enlarge the church to its present size (or were these bays only rebuilt? The Norman nave could have continued E of the presesnt C12 arcades - see the offset on the N side of the N arcade wall). The two bays have slim circular piers with circular abaci and double- chamfered arches. The arch from the N aisle into the transept is similar, that from the S aisle has triple responds with fillets and excellent stiff-leaf capitals, the leaves still arranged in one tier. The arches are again double-chamfered. The crossing piers to N, S and W have the same triple responds with fillet as we have just seen. Only the chancel arch proper has richer shafting and also a more richly moulded arch, whereas the crossing W arch is double-chamfered, and the arches to the N and S have double hollow-chamfers. The chancel has the two N doorways clearly in the Early English style, te one further W with a depressed two-centred arch on short vertical pieces (cf. Salisbury Cathedral). The upper parts are all Decorated, the sedilia nearly entirely Victorian. Only the two E vaulting- shafts and the traces of corresponding ones in the W corners may refer to the Early English chancel. The W window dates from 1892.
Furnishings. Font - Square, with chamfered corners. Of Purbeck marble, C13. With the usual shallow blank arches. Pulpit - The excellent Early Georgian sounding-board is in use as a table in the transept. Door - Plain medieval S door, C14. Stained Glass - In one N aisle window two C15 figures and some fragments. Plate - Chalice, 1620; Flagon with Cover, 1624; Paten, 1628; two Salvers, 1778.
Monuments. In the N transept damaged tomb recess, cusped arch with an ogee top. Sir Charles Duncombe died 1711 - Tablet with two columns. Below it a marble wall screen or part of another, late C18, monument. Fluted pilasters and, in relief, arms and cherubs' heads, trumpets, skulls with bats' wings etc. In the chancel Georgian Feversham monuments. The floor of the chancel with the black marble ovals was put in with the monuments. Lady Feversham died 1755 - Signed by Peter Scheemakers. Large standing figure by an urn, in front of a grey obelisk and without figures. Lord Faversham died 1763 - Signed by Thomas Scheemakers and dated 1784. Similar but bigger. Also George Duncombe died 1741 - Big sarcophagus on very large lions' feet. Again in front of a grey obelisk. This is by Peter Scheemakers.
Churchyard Cross. Base and shaft with a knob at the top.
Lychgate. Pretty, with traceried bargeboards, dated 1892.’

Downton was held by the Bishop of Winchester from at least the late 8th century and so it is likely that there was an early church here. Later this probably had the status of a minster church and locally would have served the Saxon communities of Charlton, Wick, Witherington, Walton (New Court), Standlynch and Barford as well as villages farther afield.

A new church seems to have been built in the 12th century. In the nave the three western bays of the arcade date from this time, when the nave appears to have been short but wide. In the early 13th century, when The Borough was founded, the church was greatly enlarged by the addition of two eastern bays to the nave, a central tower and transepts, and a larger chancel. This was high quality work and would have both attracted new Burgage holders and accommodated them, once they had built houses in The Borough.

In 1295 William Burnell endowed a chantry, the chapel being dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the early 14th century the chancel and transepts were re-modelled and raised to their present height while the aisles may also have been rebuilt during this century. In the 15th century the western doorway was inserted in the nave and some windows were re- modelled. Much work was carried out in the early 17th century, including the reconstruction of the upper part of the tower and tracery in the windows was replaced by mullions. In 1648 the porch was either added or rebuilt. In 1791 the tower was raised 30 feet higher than its present height so that Lord Radnor could see it from his estate. Battlements and pinnacles were also added.

A restoration occurred in 1859-60 and the tower was then restored to its former height, with the Georgian pinnacles and battlements being retained. Much work was carried out on the chancel which, until this time, had been separated from the nave by a wall, having been used by the Bishops of Winchester as a chapel when visiting Downton. The west gallery of 1734 and the vestry were removed at this time. Further works in 1890-91 included the re-plastering of the interior and new tracery in the west window.

Outside there is a medieval cross on a raised base to the south east of the porch. The bells were increased from six to eight after the Second World War and include one from the mid 14th century.

The village fire engine was once kept in the church. It can now be seen in Salisbury Museum.

The Reverend Dickenson served as Senior Chaplain to The Forces during World War One. His son, 2nd Lieutenant Aubrey Greville Newton Dickenson of the 2nd Battalion, Kings Royal Rifle Corps died on 1 July 1916 of wounds he received on that date – the first day of the Somme. By cruel coincidence, Whittaker Coombs, the son of the Baptist Minister, died on the following day of wounds received at the same battle.

Former Rectors or Parsons of Downton: William de Hamelton (1281); John de Montibus Purgundie (1282); William Burnell (1290); Robert de Maydenstane (1297); William Burnell (1303); Robert de Herewedon (1304); William de Honygham (1315); Robert de Sandale (1318); Thomas de Chorleton (1319); Thomas de Escrik (1325); Richard de Ayremynne (1327); Thomas de Chorleton (1328); John de Colonna (1328); William de Mere (1330); John de Droghton (1336); John de Colonna (1338); Thomas de Dalton (1346); John de Carleton (1348); Thomas de Edyngton (1361).

In 1382 the Rectory (now the Manor House – see separate entry under Barford Lane) and rectorial income were transferred to the newly founded Winchester College to provide it with funds and the post of Rector was succeeded by that of Vicar.

Former Vicars of Downton: Nicholas de Alresford MA (1383); Thomas Turke MA (1401); John More (1410); John Pomeray (1411); Thomas Stratton (1412); John Henton (1416); William Hulle (1417); Nicholas Yonge (1420); William Hawkyns (1428); John Knolman (1444); William Baker (1448); Richard Hasard (1485); Thomas Benet LLD (1528); Ralph Lane MA (1528); Thomas Allyne (1555); John Stevens (1559); Thomas Huddles (1580); William Wilkes DD (1587); John Chalkhill MA (1637); William Morris (1641) (intruded); Samuel Coxe MA (1641); William Gale (1661); George Gifford (1715); Nicholas Webb MA (1721); Thomas Lear MA (1775); Liscombe Clarke MA (1824); Richard Payne BCL (1841); Arthur du Boulay Hill MA (1883); Robert Garland Plumptre MA (1893); Lenthall Greville Dickenson MA (1910); George Edward Salmon MA (1917); John Robinson MA (1923); Alan Birch DSO MA (1939); Alfred Henry Purcell Fox AKC (1947); John Eric Overton MA (1955); Charles Arnold Simister MM (1960); Donovan Victor Evening (1963); David John Letcher RD (1972); Michael Collins Francis Gallagher BA (1986); Francis Herbert Gimson (2003 – the current incumbent).