CHURCH OF ST NICHOLAS, LOWER STREET, LEEDS MAIDSTONE, KENT
Church of St. Nicholas 26.4.68. GV I Parish church. C11, C12, C13, C14, C15 and C16; restored 1879. Ragstone and tufa with plain tile roof. West tower, nave with north and south aisles, south porch, chancel with north and south chapels terminating short of east end of chancel. West tower: Early C12, large squat, plinthless and battlemented, of 2 stages, with pilaster buttresses and tufa quoins and dressings. Short wooden spire erected 1963; reference to spire from 1492. Round- headed north and south windows to second stage and 2 west lancets to lower stage. Pointed-arched and shifted C13 sandstone west doorway set in round-arched tufa-dressed opening. Studded door with moulded stoup to north side. South aisle: possibly C12 walls with tufa to lower quoins, otherwise C14, with C19 alterations. Plinthless, with roll-and-hollow moulded cornice and stone-coped ashlar parapet. Lean-to roof. Buttress and canted south-east rood- stair loft stair turret. 2-largely C19 south windows in C14 style. South porch: C19 in C13 style. Pointed arched inner door with moulded architrave and hood mould. Ribbed and studded Medieval door. South Chapel: C14, with remains of moulded plinth. Stone quoins, but tufa fragments in walls. Gabled roof. C15 three-light south window in moulded stone architrave with rectangular, possibly C19, door immediately below. C15 east window, with tufa relieving arch below. Chancel: probably rebuilt in C16. On shallow moulded plinth with single-light round-headed north and south windows with rectangular dripmoulds. Cuspless east window. North chapel: late C15, on moulded plinth with roll-and-hollow cornice and stone-coped ashlar parapet. One C15 three-light east and one north window. Gabled roof. Projects slightly north of north aisle. West buttress. North aisle: C12. Plinthless, with cornice and parapet similar to south aisle and north chapel. Stone quoins. 3 north buttresses 2 two-light and quatrefoiled north windows with hoodmoulds, one with heads to label stops. 2 very small blocked north lancets with tufa dressings, rebated to outside and deeply splayed to much larger three-centred arched inner architraves. Small blocked rectangular window to west end of north elevation, with hollow-chamfered jambs and iron grille. Small west lancet with tufa dressings, set higher, with later stone inner archi- trave and leaded light. Interior: Structure: partly restored early C12 tower arch; 3 orders to each side with plain round-headed arches and fat roll either side of inner order. Cushion capitals to all but outer order. 3-bay C15 north and south nave arcades; hollow-chamfered octagonal piers with moulded capitals and bases, (the latter somewhat irregular) and arches of 2 hollow chamfers with cove between. C15 chancel arch and west arches to chancel chapels, each of 2 hollow chamfers, inner order springing from corbelled imposts. Single arch between chancel and each chapel, each with 2 hollow chamfers and attached columns, those to north round, those to south semi-octagonal; moulded capitals and bases. 2-centred arched doorway with hollow chamfer and broach stops to rood-loft stair turret, with cill about 4' above ground. 2 short blocked Saxon windows with eliptical heads high up in north wall of north arcade. C15 three-light squint between north chapel and chancel, with hollow-chamfered mullions, three-centred arched heads and hollow spandrels. Plain squint between south chapel and chancel behind sedilia. Roof: Nave has 6 plain, chamfered crown-posts with 4 curved upward braces and straight chamfered tie-beams. Ashlar-pieces and moulded cornice. Pendant posts arch-braced to cornice with C20 traceried spandrels. South chapel has one octagonal crown-post with moulded capital, square moulded base and 4 squat upward braces. Chancel roof barrel-vaulted with moulded members and central boss. Fittings: 3-seat sedilia in south wall of chancel with 4 slender off-set buttresses and moulded cornice, cuspless and possibly C16. Pillar piscina to south wall of chancel. Moulded opening, probably for piscina, in south wall of north aisle. Cusped ogee-headed piscina to south wall of south chapel and by south aisle door. Plain octagonal stone font. C15 eleven-bay rood-screen across east end of nave and both aisles, with finely-cusped tracery. Slender attached columns between bays with moulded capitals providing springing for intri- cately carved C19 fan vault and corniced walkway. Woodwork of 3 of bays split to form double doorways to north and south chapels and chancel. Partly restored C15 parclose screen to each chapel. North chapel screen provides front for C17 pew with lozenge panelling and carved frieze. C17 staircase with turned balusters against north wall of tower, leading to bell chamber. Brass chandelier in nave dated 1778. Monuments: 2 small early C16 brasses to centre of nave, one to William Merden, d. 1509, the other to Katherine Lambe, d. 1514. Marble wall tablet on south wall of south chapel to Sr. Roger Meredith, Baronet, d. 1738. Erected after 1742. By Palmer,with ionic columns flanked by elongated scrolls, with moulded cornice and open-topped segmental pediment with urn. Large standing wall monument on north wall of north chapel to the Rt. Hono'ble Jane Countess Dowager of Carbery, d. 1643, erected after death of son, Sir William Meredith, d. 1675. In black and white marble, with elongated scrolls, ionic capitals, bolection moulding to tablets, large coat of arms with achievements breaking through open- topped segmental pediment and surmounted by imposing vase. Wall monument on north wall of north chapel to Henry Meredith Esq., d. 1710, erected at direction of daughter, d. 1758. Marble tablet with 2 cherubs, urn and broken-base triangular pediment, following a design in Gibb's Book of Architecture, 1728, p. 123 (J. Newman, Buildings of England Series, West Kent and the Weald, 1980).