Description

PRINCETHORPE
SP37SE
4/38 Princethorpe College, Church
of Our Lady and All Angels

GV II*

Shown on Ordnance Survey map as St. Mary Priory.
Church, built as convent chapel. 1897-1901 by Peter Paul Pugin at the expense of
Hilda de Trafford. English bond bright red brick with moulded cornice and
moulded stone plinth and dressings. Slate roofs have ridge cresting and stone
coped gabel parapets with goblet kneelers. Nave, transepts, polygonal apsidal
chancel and ambulatory, south range, and linked detached south-west tower.
Gothic Revival Decorated style with curvilinear tracery. Tall 4-bay nave, 2-bay
crossing, 3-bay chancel. East end has nine 2-light windows with continuous hood
moulds. Wrought iron cross finial, low irregular single-storey range around
chancel links church to the former convent buildings. South range has large
5-light window with hood mould. Gable has small openwork stone panel, and
decorated stone cross finial. Transept is much higher. Two large 2-light windows
flank elaborate canopied image niche and statue. Rose window above of 4
quatrefoiled roundels. Gable apex of stone, with small opening. West side has
two 2-light windows. Low single-storey 4-bay range across transept and eastern
part of nave and 2-bay range across nave to tower have moulded parapets.
Transept range has Tudor-arched doorway with carved spandrels and plank door to
second bay. Straight-headed 2-light window to left and 3-light windows to right.
Nave range has segmental-arched 4-light windows. These and other minor windows
throughout have trefoiled round-arched lights. Nave has angle and side
buttresses of 2 offsets. North and south sides have paired 2-light clerestory
windows with continuous hood moulds to each bay. West front has large 5-light
window with hood mould and head stops. Segmental-arched 3-light windows below
flank image niche and statue. Sable apex of stone has blind tracery. Cross
finial. Low single-storey link to tower has parapet. One- and 3-light
straight-headed windows. Low lean-to north range has moulded west doorway with
segmental-pointed outer arch and hood mould with head stops, and double-leaf
doors. North side has 3 bays of segmental-arched 3-light windows. North transept
has west projection. Tudor-arched 4-light window has transom and tracery and
hood mould. North side has image niche and tracery. Large tower of 3 stages and
5 storeys is almost entirely detached. Angle buttresses with weatherings become
octagonal clasping buttresses to third stage. Octagonal stair turret to
south-east corner. To each side first stage has segmental-arched 3-light window
With round relieving arch and sill course continued across buttresses. Second
stage of 2 storeys. Lower storey has 2 trefoiled lancets with hood moulds. Upper
storey has trefoiled ogee lancets with straight heads and carved spandrels,
flanking canopied image niche with statue. Above is a stone band of 6 bays of
blind arcading, with ogee arches and carved capitals, and 3 narrow lancets.
Third stage has very large 3-light bell openings with mullions and transom to
lower part, elaborate tracery, and hood moulds with head stops. Elaborate stone
openwork parapet and balustrade. Canted sides of buttresses have canopied image
niches and statues corbelled out. Turret has attached shafts and string courses
to top part. Turret and buttresses have stone spirelets. Lavish interior is
plastered. Panelled barrel roofs throughout have moulded wood arched braces and
ribs, wallposts and stone corbels carved with angels. Chancel has attached
shafts and radiating rib roof over apse. 9 moulded arches to ambulatory have
composite piers. Nave and chancel arches of 2 moulded orders have inner shafts
with foliage capitals and continuous outer order. Moulded transept arches have
stone screens of 2 segmental arches with foliage ornament and openwork
balustrade. Nave has west gallery with stone openwork balustrade. Fittings: very
large lavish painted and gilt Gothic ciborium altar. The carved white marble
altar, standing on black marble steps, is said to have been made in Rome.
Ambulatory has 3 carved Gothic altars and reredoses of stone, stone and wood,
and wood respectively. Elaborate wrought iron screens and gates to ambulatory
and rood screen with Crucifixion. North chapel has elaborate carved and painted
reredos. Nave has elaborate Gothic wood panelling and misericords. Panelling
below gallery has 2 canopied seats flanking image niche and statue. Complete set
of original stained glass. The convent was built for French Benedictine nuns and
was known as St. Mary Priory.
(V.C.H.: Warwickshire, Vol.VI, p.245; Buildings of England: Warwickshire,
pp.376-377; Kelly's Directory of Warwickshire, 1894, pp.167-168).

Listing NGR: SP3946871011

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Princethorpe College at Wikipedia
• Princethorpe College official website
• Wikidata IDs Q17550796 Q7244919

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects, Supplement 2014
• 
  Essex: Buildings of England Series (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Lancashire: Liverpool and the South-West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Handbook 2 Books Bundle Collection (Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair,Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability)
• 
  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper