Church of St. Nicholas, Fisherton de la Mere

The parish church of St. Nicholas consists of a chancel, nave with west and south doors, north transept, vestry and a south porch with a tower above. The church has been restored three times, but there are fragments remaining from the 12th century. There are several stones carved with chevron and nail-head ornament built into the south wall of the nave. These were originally part of a Norman arch. Parts of the chancel arch are also Norman, as is the font.

The chancel itself was probably completed by the mid 13th century and although rebuilt in 1861, it retains most of its original features. In the 14th century two-light windows were inserted in the nave and also near the east end of the chancel. It is probable that the north transept was added at this time. Approximately a century later, a low tower was built on the south side of the nave.

In 1583 and 1585 the churchwardens presented serious problems with the fabric of the church, and in 1595 money was collected for repairs. In 1662 the churchwardens again presented the church as being 'in decay'. Substantial repairs and alterations were carried out, including the partial reconstruction of the tower and the addition of a wooden belfry. The chancel arch was raised and renewed. During the 18th century it is possible that the east wall of the church was strengthened with angle buttresses and the east wall with a pilaster buttress.

The earliest surviving plan dates from 1824 when the church was visited by Sir Richard Colt Hoare. His drawing of the church shows that the chancel measured 25 feet long by 15 feet 6 inches wide. The nave was 63 feet 6 inches long by 20 feet 4 inches wide. His brief description was as follows: 'The church bears many marks of antiquity, and of having seen better days. It has no aisles; the turret is over the south entrance, and is finished with a rude wooden roof, which serves as a pigeon house'.

In 1833 the church was restored and altered by John Davis, who had bought the manor of Fisherton from the Duke of Somerset in 1803. He rebuilt the nave and transept, raising the walls by two feet and therefore altering the pitch of the roofs. The wooden belfry was removed and replaced with a stone tower in the Perpendicular style. (Its large windows, battlements and pinnacles added considerably to the pressure placed on the tower walls which had to be reinforced with iron ties and braces). A vestry was built on to the east wall of the chantry chapel. The west gallery and the plastered ceilings in the nave and transept also date from this restoration.

The second restoration took place in 1862 and was paid for by a later John Davis. The work was supervised by the surveyor W. Hardwick from Warminster. The chancel was taken down and rebuilt. The main alteration was the removal of the larger 14th century windows in favour of smaller lancet windows, which was an attempt to recreate the original design of the chancel.

The third restoration in 1912 was intended to enrich the atmosphere of the chancel as a particularly holy place. The alterations were overseen by the prominent high churchman Athelstan Riley, who was patron of the living. He commissioned the architect F.C. Eden to design the carved oak rood-screen with loft which now separates the nave from the chancel. At the same time the organ was moved to the transept, the floor repaved and the ceiling decorated, and a new altar rail and clergy seats were made of oak. In the nave, the pews were removed, a new floor put down and new oak pews were made. The pulpit was replaced by a Jacobean one said to have come from East Anglia. The west gallery that had been added in 1833 was given a new front.

On the south wall of the church are the royal arms of George III. The framed wooden panels with the Lord's Prayer, Ten Commandments and Creed probably date from 1833 and were formerly behind the altar.

In 1553 there were just three bells in this church. In 1844 there were two bells dating from 1745 and three more were given by John Davis. One of the bells was moved to Wylye church in 1975 to make a ring of six there.

The most notable monument in the church commemorates two infant children of the Rev. Thomas Crockford, who was vicar 1613-34. It depicts two children side by side in their beds. There are also several monuments to members of the Davis family.

In 1851 the religious census recorded 85 people at morning service and 102 in the evening. By the end of the 19th century both the congregation and the community had become much smaller. This pattern of decline continued into the 20th century, and by the 1970s the congregation was beginning to think seriously about its future. In February 1981 the PCC reluctantly came to the decision that the church should be closed. They were, however, adamant that it should not be deconsecrated, and the following year the church was passed into the care of the Redundant Churches Fund, now the Churches Conservation Trust. Tucked away in a quiet Wiltshire village, this little church is open every day and receives many visitors.

The parish registers dating from 1561 are available to view at the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre in Chippenham.

Additional sites of interest for this church*

Churches Conservation Trust  (added 2022)

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