Church of St Mary, Old Basing

Heritage listing

Details SU 6652 OLD BASING THE STREET 6653 22/31 26.4.57 Church of St Mary I Originally a cruciform Norman church with a central tower. Aisles and chapels (of nearly equal width) were added to nave and chancel, to form the present rectangular structure, with triple gables at the east and west ends; the Norman arches of the Tower survive on the north and south sides. The north (circa 1325) and south (circa 1530) chapels were added by the Paulet family and are separated from the chancel by small doorways, with on each side arched openings above altar tombs; they are finely wrought with Gothic and early Renaissance detail, and with armorial features. The church was wrecked during the Civil War (note Cromwell's famous siegeof the adjoining Basing House in 1645) and the building was substantially rebuilt afterwards in brickwork. Externally, the nave aisles have 3 bays, while the chapels have 4 the raised east end being expressed in the higher roof; tile roofing, red brickwork in English bond (some partly rendered) with stone dressings. The parapet having a coping and a weather band, the latter being ornamented with armorial corbels outside the chapels, cill band to chapel windows, plinth moulding above (medieval) flintwork, slender buttresses and diagonal corner buttresses. The windows have tracery (of chestnut in the north chapel), the 3 eastern 5-light windows being old & encased in earlier flint and stone walling; at the west end the central gable contains a C15 carved figure of the Virgin and child within a canopied niche, the west door is a delicate Renaissance stone arch within a retangular rusticated frame (probably a design of Inigo Jones). The Tower is C17 in red brickwork with stone strings and coping to crenellated parapet, the corner finials in stone being a rece

From the Historic England List Entry under OGL v3.