NHER 2064 (Building record) - St Giles' Church, Barsham

St Giles' Church. Rebuilt in c. 1879. Architect W. Nesfield. Reusing older masonry. Important example of his work.
See notes in file.
E. Rose (NCM) October 1990.

March 1959. Listed, Listed, Grade I.
Listing Description Excerpt:
"Parish church. Largely 14th-century fabric rebuilt 1877 by William Eden Nesfield, architect. Flint with stone dressings and red tiles. West tower, south porch, nave and chancel. 14th-century tower with trefoil heads to each of four bell openings, with 15th-century two-light west window."
Information from (S1).
Please consult the National Heritage List for England (S1) for the current details.
H. Mellor (HES), 15 June 2018. Amended by H. Hamilton (HES), 8 November 2019.

April 1980. Field Observation.
Visited by E. Rose (NAU).
Largely rebuilt in 1879, but vicar claims it was an accurate copy of the original. Flint, with many stone blocks. West tower with pyramid cap, nave and chancel in one. South porch in Perpendicular (15th-century) style. Tower has cusped bell openings in style of c.1300. West window Perpendicular and perhaps original, but tower arch rebuilt. East window, early Decorated (first half 14th century) seems genuine. South wall has next to porch a wide single-light pointed window, too wide almost to be called a lancet, which looks utterly unconvincing.
Then are two- and three-light Perpendicular windows, then a round-headed lancet which if an accurate copy should be of c.1200. Finally another Perpendicular three-light. The Perpendicular windows look convincing copies. North wall has a fairly reliable three-light Perpendicular window, and two cusped Y-tracery windows; but it is difficult to tell, in their present Victorian form, if they are meant to be of c.1300 or the Perpendicular reversion to this style sometimes found. South-east window has sedilia and a simple piscina beside it. South doorway Perpendicular, north doorway Decorated. Exterior niche beside east window is all modern in present form at least and is balanced by a war memorial. Upper rood door survives. Good painted Perpendicular screen. Poppyhead benches. 17th-century communion rail. Old chest. Ledger stones, 'orate' brasses, 17th-century floor tombs and an 18th-century memorial. Plate according to Pevsner (S2) is chalice, Norwich 1567; paten-cover, London 1788. Bells according to vicar - one medieval, one uninscribed, one 1611 by Draper of Thetford.
Compiled by E. Rose (NAU), 30 April 1980. Information from record card (S3).
P. Watkins (HES), 28 December 2022.

According to [1] the church was rebuilt from foundations in 1879 but it was specified that as much of the original stonework as possible be reused. Interior is a rare example of an unaltered Nesfield layout. Specifications are in Norfolk Record Office.
Compiled by E. Rose (NAU), 24 October 1990. Information from record card (S3).
P. Watkins (HES), 28 December 2022.

November 2020. Watching Brief.
Maintained during various improvement works, including installation of a 'trench arch' drain to the north of the church and a new water pipe running between the church and the entrance to the churchyard.
The water pipe trench exposed a small portion of the foundation for the north wall of the tower, the form and composition of which was notably different from that of the overlying wall. This suggests that the extant tower (which dates to the reconstruction of 1879) was built on the foundations of the medieval tower. This work revealed nothing to indicate that the medieval church extended beyond the footprint of the extant building, with no other structural remains identified.
See report (S4) and NHER 66640 for further details.
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2021.68).
P. Watkins (HES), 28 December 2022. Amended 24 August 2025.