History of All Saints in East Budleigh
The church stands at the centre of the village and community and its history is very ancient indeed. No records exist of its early beginnings, but there is no doubt that a church stood here as far back as Saxon times. The church is built of the local red sand stone that we know would have been collected from beneath the sea cliffs. The building would have been very simple, just a nave, chancel and low bell tower. It is still possible to see a line where the original tower finished. The roof would have most likely been thatched originally, and then covered in wooden shingles and finally slates. The walls inside would have been adorned with brightly coloured frescoes. And indeed some traces of colour was found during the mid 19th C alteration to the chancel.
There is no record at Exeter Cathedral of the consecration of the church; so one must assume that the church of ‘’All Saints’’ was already in existence before records began. In 1859 some alterations were made on the North side of the chancel, when worked Saxon stone were found embedded within the wall. The church as we see it today dates mostly from the 12th and 15th C and is of the Perpendicular style.
All Saints church is a Grade One listed building and without the continuous use and care and expenditure by Church members and Friends of All Saints, this lovely ancient building would not be in such excellent repair.
An early 12th C Charter tells us that the church was given to the Church of St Katharine of Posloe (Exeter). The Benedictine order of Posloe nuns came to live in East Budleigh in a priory, which we now believe to have been on the North side of the church. They owned large tracts of agricultural lands, woods, rivers, Manorial mills and foreshore around East Budleigh for the next 350 years, till the estate was purchased by Mr Duke.
All Saints was enlarged during Bishop Lacy’s episcopate around 1420. The north and south aisles (the local word allier is used in the records) were added, as were the handsome columns of Beer stone or ‘’free stone’’ as it was called then. It takes about 45 minutes by car to get to the Roman stone quarries in Beer on today’s tarmac roads, it is difficult to imagine how the huge columns were transported on rough tracks 500 years ago. However Budleigh was in those days a thriving wealthy merchants town, thanks to the seaport of Budleigh Haven just a mile away at the mouth of the river Otter. All Beer stone for the church would have arrived there first.
Today we still use the same road that connected the Haven to Budleigh town then. Beer stone was excavated under ground and soft when first cut. It hardens as it comes in contact with air.
Church bells
When Christianity came to this country, bells to summon the people to public worship soon followed it. The pealing or ringing or tolling of bells took place on every occasion and bells were rung morning noon and evening. Even today bells are as much part of village life as they were 1000 years ago and we have dedicated group of ringers, some who have been ringing for the past 65 years.
It is most likely that East Budleigh would have had one or more bells when the original bell tower was build. The massive structure today is 80 feet high. Our bells have always been rung from the ground floor within the church itself, until 1966, when a ringing chamber was provided. The bell ringers had to give way to the placing of the church organ in the tower space.
3 Bells were listed in 1553 in the church inventory. All 3 were recast and 2 more added in 1755 by the Bilbie family who had a foundry in Cullompton. We can safely assume that Sir Walter Raleigh himself would have heard the same bells ringing across the fields almost 500 years ago.
Today we have a ring of 8 bells. The longest peal was rung at the silver jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977. It lasted 2 hours and 47mins and was rung in 5040 plain Bob trebles.
There is no record at Exeter Cathedral of the consecration of the church; so one must assume that the church of ‘’All Saints’’ was already in existence before records began. In 1859 some alterations were made on the North side of the chancel, when worked Saxon stone were found embedded within the wall. The church as we see it today dates mostly from the 12th and 15th C and is of the Perpendicular style.
All Saints church is a Grade One listed building and without the continuous use and care and expenditure by Church members and Friends of All Saints, this lovely ancient building would not be in such excellent repair.
An early 12th C Charter tells us that the church was given to the Church of St Katharine of Posloe (Exeter). The Benedictine order of Posloe nuns came to live in East Budleigh in a priory, which we now believe to have been on the North side of the church. They owned large tracts of agricultural lands, woods, rivers, Manorial mills and foreshore around East Budleigh for the next 350 years, till the estate was purchased by Mr Duke.
All Saints was enlarged during Bishop Lacy’s episcopate around 1420. The north and south aisles (the local word allier is used in the records) were added, as were the handsome columns of Beer stone or ‘’free stone’’ as it was called then. It takes about 45 minutes by car to get to the Roman stone quarries in Beer on today’s tarmac roads, it is difficult to imagine how the huge columns were transported on rough tracks 500 years ago. However Budleigh was in those days a thriving wealthy merchants town, thanks to the seaport of Budleigh Haven just a mile away at the mouth of the river Otter. All Beer stone for the church would have arrived there first.
Today we still use the same road that connected the Haven to Budleigh town then. Beer stone was excavated under ground and soft when first cut. It hardens as it comes in contact with air.
Church bells
When Christianity came to this country, bells to summon the people to public worship soon followed it. The pealing or ringing or tolling of bells took place on every occasion and bells were rung morning noon and evening. Even today bells are as much part of village life as they were 1000 years ago and we have dedicated group of ringers, some who have been ringing for the past 65 years.
It is most likely that East Budleigh would have had one or more bells when the original bell tower was build. The massive structure today is 80 feet high. Our bells have always been rung from the ground floor within the church itself, until 1966, when a ringing chamber was provided. The bell ringers had to give way to the placing of the church organ in the tower space.
3 Bells were listed in 1553 in the church inventory. All 3 were recast and 2 more added in 1755 by the Bilbie family who had a foundry in Cullompton. We can safely assume that Sir Walter Raleigh himself would have heard the same bells ringing across the fields almost 500 years ago.
Today we have a ring of 8 bells. The longest peal was rung at the silver jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977. It lasted 2 hours and 47mins and was rung in 5040 plain Bob trebles.
