A very ancient history, featuring Lady Godiva, the Ethiopian minstrels, a Suspended Head, Nazi art thefts, and some Chinese lanterns.
It's a lot older than most people realise and a lot older than the modern town of Kingsbridge itself. Facts are sketchy but we do know that a stone cross existed on what was a meeting point of four roads just outside where Dodbrooke church still stands today. That crossroads was a mere meeting of footpaths more than 1100 years ago and probably longer ago than that. It is so long ago that there were few if any churches at all. It was probably only four or five hundred years before that, that Christianity even arrived here from Brittany. It had taken that long for the new religion to spread across the continent from its roots in the Middle East.
Today, this is the walk up to Dodbrooke Church. It is well hidden away at the top of the hill for a reason. It was a place of refuge from seaborne invaders who could and did come up the estuary from the English Channel, over hundreds of years.
By the entrance to the church, up above you on the left is what today serves as the War Memorial. But guess what? This is what remains of that wayside cross of 1100 years ago, later moved into the churchyard where it now serves a new purpose. Before there were actual churches there were crosses where people met to worship, and this was it.
Later, as the religion became more established, the Saxons started to build churches, and these were timber and thatch structures. Records suggest that right here, stood a wood, wattle and thatch chapel with an altar and a bell tower in around the year 900.
One of the earliest records of the area is the later Domesday Book of 1086 which describes the manor of Dodebroca as a community of some 200 people living in wattle and cob houses. The Lord of the Manor at that time was a woman called Godiva, not the one who famously wandered around on her horse naked, by the way. This was Godiva, the wife of Brictric and that is pretty much all we know. We think Brictric himself made some unlucky choices and ended up on the wrong side of history.
One early account has it that he spurned the advances of Matilda of Flanders which would have been of little consequence had she not then gone on to marry William the Conqueror. Having conquered England, William left Matilda at some point to run the place as Regent, and guess what? She hadn't forgotten old Brictric, and you know what they say about a woman scorned. Most of his land was seized, he was thrown into prison and she threw away the key. He died incarcerated and was never seen again.
The church we see today, as most ancient churches, is a mix of ages and styles, but is primarily what is termed the perpendicular style, as are most South Hams churches. It mostly dates from the 15th century. As is often the case, the tower, or at least its base, is older, at least 14th century, or even older than that. Church towers also served as refuges and defences in times of danger. One ancient church I visited in Shalfleet on the Isle of Wight had a tower with no door at the base, because the inhabitants used a ladder to escape inside which they then pulled up behind them.
If you are in the habit of visiting ancient churches, and why wouldn't you, they are fascinating relics of our history, you may have noticed that with age comes the strange sight of church entrances that seem to be below ground level. Why do the bases of these churches always appear to be cut down to a lower level? Well, they aren't, it's in fact the graveyards around them that grew in height. You don't need much imagination to realise why a graveyard in continual use for over a thousand years might, over that time get slowly higher and higher.
Churchyards were traditionally cleared from time to time if needed to make room for more burials, with grave markers removed, and any disarticulated bones reburied, and soil sometimes imported to provide greater depths. Over time this often results in the ground level inside the churchyard being substantially higher than that outside, reflecting many generations of burial. Caring for Gods Acre.
The church and its exterior is resplendent with aged features and relics, like these gate posts welcoming visitors at the rear where the old packhorse way once led to Dartmouth. Look closely and you can see that the stone features were once another wayside cross, the shaped tops being the two halves of the original cross and the posts being it's base.
I particularly like pre Planning Department features like this one, where a door has been added into an original window. English Heritage would never allow you to do something like this today, and yet it is what makes old buildings like these unique.
Much restoration and even more damage was done by our Victorian ancestors during a very busy period of change in the 19th century. At a time of much increased wealth due to the Industrial Revolution and increasing world trade, there was money in abundance to make up for centuries of neglect. Most ancient churches were either saved or destroyed by the resulting enthusiasm with original features often ripped out and replaced rather than conserved as they would be today. This church itself underwent major change as we shall see.
Totnes Weekly Times - Saturday 05 November 1887
DODBROOKE CHURCH. On Sunday Dodbrooke Church, of which the Rev James Surridge is rector, and which has been closed for more than year, was reopened for Divine service, after having undergone a complete restoration as well as enlargement, a description of which has already appeared in our columns. The Bishop of Exeter rededicated the church, and preached the morning service.......He rejoiced that God had helped their pastor and those who had laboured in restoring so beautifully that House of prayer.
Totnes Weekly Times - Saturday 29 August 1891
DODBROOKE CHURCH. Towards the Restoration of Dodbrooke Church, a bazaar and fete were held in the rectory ground.
The showery weather, and the fact of its having been postponed from the previous day for the same reason, greatly interfered with the success of the undertaking. The grounds were opened to the public at two o’clock. Flags and streamers were displayed in the town, and the church bells rang a merry peal.
Stalls arranged around a large tent contained plain and fancy needlework, articles of domestic use, some choice pieces of furniture, placques, household requisites, and a large quantity of poultry (both alive and dead), dairy produce, vegetables, and other edibles.
A special stall of useful china and glassware was attended to by Mr J. Donovan, churchwarden, a fishpond by Mr R. Watson, Aunt Sally by Mr Aldridge, and buttonholes by Miss Lewis. Drawing-room concerts were held at intervals under the management of Mr Blaxland, organist of the church; and there were Ethiopian minstrels, Jarley’s waxworks, etc.
After playing through the streets of the town, the, Kingsbridge Subscription Band, under Mr E. Carter, performed selections from a stand on the lawn. In the evening the grounds were prettily lit with Chinese lanterns, candles in vases, etc.
Aunt Sally is a traditional English game usually played in pub gardens and fairgrounds, in which players throw sticks or battens at a ball, known as a 'dolly', balanced on top of a stick; traditionally, a model of an old woman's head was sometimes used. Leagues of pub teams still play the game, throughout the spring and summer months, mainly in Oxfordshire and some bordering counties. In France, the game is called jeu de massacre ("game of carnage").
The French can always be relied upon to turn most events into a riot of some description. Where else would the Right win in an election prompting the Left to burn down the capitol city, and only a week later the Left win prompting the Left, again, to burn down what was left of the capitol city. One riot was a protest and the second a celebration.
This is the main South door, below, which features a statue of St Thomas à Becket. Thomas of Canterbury served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then notably as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his death in 1170. He engaged in conflict with Henry II, King of England, over the rights and privileges of the Church and was murdered by followers of the King in Canterbury Cathedral. Soon after his death, he was canonised by Pope Alexander III. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion.
The church was dedicated to Thomas of Canterbury very early on, and just a small way up the coast, the church of Kingswear is also dedicated to the same man. This part of the coast was an early arrival point for pilgrims from Europe and those making a pilgrimage to Canterbury would often start that journey here. It was clever marketing when you chose who your church was going to be dedicated to.
The porch dates from Tudor times, probably replacing an earlier 15th century one. This one is a larger grander affair for a growing community.
The sundial which of course was always placed facing south is dated 1763 and bears an inscription in Latin that features a pun, a play on words. "Lex Dei;Lux Diei" or "The law of God is the light of day. " They were fun times, and stand up comedy had not yet been invented.
Before entering the inner door a small niche or stoup in the wall once contained Holy water, used to bless the individual before entry. This rite probably originated from Judaism where tradition required the worshipper to cleanse their hands and feet before entering the building. If they had invented anti-bac gel back then we'd probably be looking at an ancient granite gel dispenser.
It was traditionally in the porch of the church that much of the official church business of the day was performed, like the Coroner's Court, the paying out of legacies by executors and the reading of marriage banns.
The church comprises of a chancel where the altar sits, the knave which is the main body of the church, the north and south aisles seen here, below, north to the left and south to the right, and the bell tower that we have already seen.
In this photo the most striking feature you can see is the screen, a carved wooden partition that separates the nave and chancel. This carries some restoration with approximately two thirds of the lower part being the original Rood Screen. The section in the north aisle was extensively restored in the 1880's works, when the entire north aisle was rebuilt.
New pews were fitted in the nave and many changes made to the chancel. In ancient times what you see here now would have mostly been empty space. There was little or no seating, and no pulpit as there were no sermons. People usually stood or knelt during services and the large space also served as a community meeting space where The Lord of the Manor held meetings, the Coroners Courts were held, and as the only secure and solid building made of stone, arms and gunpowder were stored.
As the congregation was mostly illiterate, the walls would have been painted with Bible stories. It was during the reign of Elizabeth I that edicts went out to whitewash the interiors of churches. Old churches are still occasionally discovering long covered up paintings even today. Idolatry and mystery were frowned upon, churches were simplified and streamlined as part of the rise in power of the Protestants and the decline of Catholicism.
The High Altar has a beautifully carved and extensively decorated oak reredos, which is the term for the artwork above the altar. As well as the Christ figure it features paintings of St. Michael and St. Gabriel. The lower panels feature angels in the style of The Annunciation by Master painter, Fra Angelico.
If you have read any of my ancient South Hams church posts before, ancient churches not ancient posts, you may have already guessed that the font in this church would be the oldest part of the church. Fonts are the holiest part of the church and very often survived the removal of an older building. The Dodbrooke font is around 12th century, so that makes it at least 200 years older than the 14th century tower.
It is carved from granite and it is a fairly awe inspiring thought that this object has stood here and has been used for baptising local babies for almost a thousand years. The carved design is described as "arcade panelling". When you see the rows of arches in the church between the nave and the aisles you can understand where the term originates.
This style of carving and design is redolent to me of sculpture from the 1960's and therefore has a very modern feel to it.
The pillars and capitals are fairly simple in design but very elegant. The simplicity is no doubt encouraged by the hardness of the granite said to have been transported here from Haytor quarry.
Because there is so much good quality stained glass in Dodbrooke Church I have decided to make a seperate post featuring the windows.
Western Morning News - Thursday 03 November 1887
REOPENING OF DODBROOKE CHURCH.
PUBLIC DINNER.
The services in connection with the reopening of Dodbrooke Church continue through this week. On Tuesday was performed the ceremony of unveiling the window given by the Freemasons. At three o'clock the members of the Duncombe Lodge assembled at their lodge-room and walked in procession to the church, wearing their regalia and jewels, and headed by the town subscription band.
On arriving at the gate they were met by the surpliced choir and clergy, when they re-formed and all entered the church singing the hymn “Brightly gleams our banner.” Prayer being said by the Rev. James Surridge, rector, the choir and clergy proceeded to the window, which is placed in the west-end of the new north- aisle, singing on their way “All people that on earth do dwell” This having ended, Bro. Joseph Balkwill, W.M., unveiled the window with the words, “In the name of Duncombe Lodge I unveil this window, presented by us and other brethren to Dodbrooke Church for the honour of God and for the beautifying of His house.”
A small detail of the south window dedicated to Mary and Helen Pearse.
Exeter and Plymouth Gazette - Friday 26 October 1894
DODBROOKE CHURCH ORGAN FUND. A sale of work has been held in the Town Hall, Kingsbridge, in aid of the Dodbrooke Church Organ Fund. The hall was gaily decorated with flags, and arranged on the platform was a beautiful collection of plants and ferns from the Rectory garden. The stalls, eight in number, were tastefully fitted up with useful and fancy articles, and were in charge of Captain and Mrs. Twysden...... There was a large attendance during the day, and a good sale was effected.
Concerts were given at intervals, under the direction of Mr. A. H. Griffin. Violin solos by Miss Bond and Miss Elsie Blake were much enjoyed, and the performances of Mr. Griffin and Miss Bluke the pianoforte (which was kindly lent by Mr. W. H. Blake) brought forth hearty applause.
A phonograph in an adjoining room was an attraction for those of scientific taste, while many paid visit to " The Suspended Head," an optical illusion, in charge of the Rev. Warington Stock. Altogether, it was found that the receipts amounted to about £78, which was considered highly satisfactory, the expenses being very small. (£78 equates to £6400 today)
This is the restored screen in the north aisle. The organ is placed on the site of the original Champernowne Chapel. The original north aisle was owned by the Champernowne family who for centuries were the local Lords of the Manor. The fortunes of the family waned in the 17th century leading to the aisle and chapel falling into a state of disrepair. This was one of the main changes that took place during the 1880's restoration. The aisle was pulled down and rebuilt. Parts of the original stonework were later used in the building of the War memorial. Other parts are scattered around the churchyard.
The Champernownes of Dartington were an Anglo Norman family of great wealth and power, and English history is scattered with famous Champernownes. Their star may have faded in Dodbrooke but many Chapernownes held important political posts throughout history. Joan Champernowne was a Lady in Waiting at the court of Henry VIII, Katherine Champernowne was a friend and helper to Elizabeth I, Arthur Champernowne a 15th century politician and MP for Totnes, and we can't forget the more recent David Champernowne noted mathematician after whom the Champernowne Constant is named.
David was a contemporary and friend of Alan Turing, and he published work on what is now called the Champernowne constant in 1933, whilst still an undergraduate at Cambridge. In 1948, working with his old college friend Alan Turing, he helped develop one of the first chess-playing computer programs.
C2 = 0.11011100101110111... 2 is an example of The Champernowne Constant. Obviously. More generally, a Champernowne sequence (sometimes also called a Champernowne word) is any sequence of digits obtained by concatenating all finite digit-strings (in any given base) in some recursive order. Now do you get it?
The rebuild was made in the original style and incorporated imported features from the ruined church of St Andrew in South Huish. I have already made a post about this ruined church which is well worth a visit.
Elsewhere the original parts of the screen clearly display their great age. Part of the purpose of the Rood Screen was to support an upper floor called the Rood Loft, long ago removed. There are very few of these lofts remaining as they were ordered to be removed during the reign of Elizabeth I in 1561. There is only one medieval Rood Loft left in the whole county of Devon, which I am hoping to visit soon.
The figures painted on the screen panelling include angels with musical instruments in the restored north aisle, apostles and evangelists in the nave, and bishops and confessors in the south aisle.
In the Lady Chapel in the south aisle is this altarpiece "The Adoration of the Lambs" which is a copy of the Van Eyck Brothers masterpiece found in Ghent Cathedral, in Belgium. If you have seen the movie "The Monuments Men", you may recognise this scene as the original played a major role in the film. The Nazis stole the altar piece and shipped it back to Germany.
The Ghent Altarpiece during recovery from the Altaussee salt mine at the end of World War II. Other panels from the altar are seen leaned up in the background.
Not very long after I visited the church to take these pictures, Dry Rot was discovered in the roof timbers. Last autumn Serpula lacrymans, commonly called Dry Rot, was found to have infected the sanctuary and Lady Chapel. The main body of the fungus has been removed and a deep clean is taking place as the areas are cordoned off during the process. The work is expected to cost at least £60,000 and a fund has been started to raise money.
To make a donation e-mail: csstephens@btinternet.com
In the south aisle a roof boss features the face of a "Green Man". Dodbrooke church actually features two Green Men which is very rare. I will leave you to find the other one if you visit.
In the nave hangs this list of all the known rectors that have served the church without interruption since 1338. You will notice the major change of 2013 when Jaqueline Taylor became the first woman to join the list.
I'll leave you with this thought.
Champernowne proved that 𝐶10 is normal in base 10, while Nakai and Shiokawa proved a more general theorem, a corollary of which is that 𝐶𝑏 is normal in base 𝑏 for any b. It is an open problem whether 𝐶𝑘 is normal in bases 𝑏≠𝑘. For example, it is not known if 𝐶10 is normal in base 9. For example, 54 digits of 𝐶10 is 0.123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313. When we express this in base 9 we get 0.108888888538230263265121113050277572014000015176608358879.
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