St Mary’s, Bacton

St Mary’s Church, Bacton is a remarkable building. Dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, it replaced a church that existed in Saxon times (it is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1085) probably on the same site. It is built from flint, rubble and lime mortar with knapped flint used for much of the decoration. The first record of a rector is of one John de Gysslingham, installed by the Bishop of Norwich in 1311. Although the tower was given a 100ft slate-roofed spire in the 18th century, this was removed in 1935 when it was deemed to be unsafe. The hammer beam roof is actually a false double hammer beam roof because the upper tier of hammer beams themselves do not carry columns to support the rafters above and serve only as decoration, the upper part of the roof being supported by arches. Probably constructed by a family of Bacton carpenters, who were also responsible for a number of other roofs around Suffolk and other counties, this seems to have been a feature of their roofs. As with many other churches in East Anglia and around the country, hammer beam roofs were frequently adorned with Angels on the ends of the hammer beams, the first of which were in Westminster Hall in London. The angels on many roofs were destroyed in the 1640s when radical Protestants believed that such icons were an obstruction to true Reformation. Overseeing this destruction throughout East Anglia was one William Dowsing, then living at Stratford St Mary in Essex who, unfortunately for East Anglia, seems to have been particularly zealous in his task. His power ended when his patron, the Earl of Manchester, fell from favour saving the angels of many roofs from destruction but, unfortunately, not those of St Mary’s. The Friends tried for several years to start a programme for the replacement of the angels but for a number of reasons, not just financial, this has never come to fruition. Cardboard cut-outs were made and put in place temporarily to help visualise what they might have looked like. Further reading: The Angel Roofs of East Anglia by Michael Rimmer, Lutterworth Press, 2015. ISBN 978 0 7188 9369 9 The parclose screen which was moved to replace an earlier rood screen across the chancel has been removed and, following some restoration, is now on view in the organ loft. The original rood screen was probably destroyed in the 16th century. The East window behind the altar was installed as a memorial to Bacton parishioners who died during the First World War, whilst the east-facing windows in the North and South aisles are of medieval glass and bear the arms respectively of Bishop Nykke (or Nix), Bishop of Norwich and Lord of the Bacton manor from 1501 until his death in 1536 and of the Underwood family (John Underwood was rector from 1519 to 1527). The Doom painting in St Mary’s, dating from the 15th century, may not be the finest example of its kind but it is no less important for that. It depicts souls at the gates of heaven on the day of judgement being confronted by St Peter. The Friends made a significant contribution toward the conservation of the Doom painting which was completed by the conservator, Andrea Kirkham, in 2018. The work first required substantial repairs to the exterior of the chancel wall on which the painting is located and the re-routing of some electrical cabling before the work could be started. The painstaking and time-consuming work means that the painting will remain a great feature of St Mary’s, safe from the ravages of time and damp, to be enjoyed for many years to come. See the project archive for more information . There are many more interesting features of the church, its decorations, its memorials and its history described in detail in the church Guide Book available in the church. (The church is normally open during daylight hours). In addition to the memorial to those parishoners who died in the two world wars, there are four Commonwealth War Graves in the churchyard .