St
Nicholas’ Church, Worth, is one of the oldest churches in the country and has
been a place of Christian worship and devotion for well over 1000 years. It is
known that the church is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and parts of it have been dated
to between AD 950 and 1050, in particular the chancel arch and apse. It was
built in what, at the time, was a forest. As it was a large church isolated in
the forest, it is unlikely it was just for local needs. After the Norman
conquest of England in 1066, William the Conqueror gave the church to his son-in-law
William de Warenne, whose coat of arms is still visible in the stained glass
windows of the church. In the 14th century, the church was passed from the de
Warrenne family to the Fitzalan family, who lost it in 1415 to Nevills, Earl of
Abergavenny.
In
1986 workmen were treating roof timbers of the church for protection against
vermin when a fire broke out. The fire brigade quickly put out the blaze,
saving the main building, but the roof timbers were severely damaged. This
rendered the building unstable, however, which resulted in much scaffolding
being put up, which in turn required pews and flooring to be removed. The roof
was redesigned and the walls were strengthened. New floors and pews were
fitted. The new pews, unlike the pre-restoration ones, are easier to move,
giving the church more flexibility. The old pews were considered impossible to re-install
in the church. The restoration cost about £510,000 and was complete by 1988. It
was during the extensive renovation work that archaeologists were able to
confirm the dating of the church’s original construction.
The
current tower, with its broached and shingled spire, was added in 1871 by
Anthony Salvin to replace an earlier building which rested on tree trunks!
All photos by Ian Mulcahy. E-mail crawleyoldtown@gmail.com
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