In about 1542 John Leland, the librarian to Henry VIII and an antiquary visited Fairford and wrote in his ‘Itinerary’ ‘John Tame began the fair new Church of Fairforde, and Edmunde Tame finishid it’. John Tame was a wealthy wool merchant and the new church was built in the late Perpendicular style on the site of the previous one during the 1490s. The structure was finished by 1497 when it was consecrated. John Tame died in 1500 and the church was completed by his son, Sir Edmund. The windows were installed by 1515.
A Corner Guardian of the Tower
The lower part of the church tower is all that remains of the previous church. On the corners of the tower are four hatted weatherworn guardians, each one different. On the north, south and east sides of the tower are the arms of the de Clare, Despenser, and the Beauchamp, (the ragged staff and bear of the Warwick) families, all previous Lords of the Manor. On the west side of the tower are the
Tame Crest
arms of John Tame depicting a wyvern combating a lion. This can also be seen in the church porch.
Trade emblems of a tailor, forester, farrier, salter, glover, miller, fisherman and John Tame’s merchant’s mark also adorn the tower.
On the west side of the tower is a statue of Christ showing the five wounds; the cult of the five wounds was popular in the 15th century, it can only be seen if you stand back from the church and look from the northwest side.
Around the bell openings are niches where statues would have been placed.
Elaborate pinnacles are dispersed along the battlements which match the ones of the tower. Work had begun on the restoration of the pinnacles by mason Peter Juggins in the 1970s and 17 new ones had been replaced when a tornado hit the Church:
‘on Sunday 19th December, 1971 – a tornado swept through Fairford at approx., 10.47am (when church clock stopped}, and considerable damage was done to the stonework on the south and southwest sides of the church. The pinnacles and the whole line of battlements over the clerestory windows on the south side were left flat on the roof of the Nave. An enormous pair of twin pinnacles on the southwest side of the Tower had fallen on to the roof of the Tower. The impact had cracked three of the joints holding the boards of the roof. Morning prayers was brought to an early end and the Church was cleared. No one was hurt and there appeared to be no damage at all to the windows of the church. Evensong was able to be held as usual.’
From the Church log book Glos Archives P141 IN 4/3
In 1703 an even greater disaster had happened when the ‘Great Storm’ blew out much of Windows 14, 15, and 16. The author, Daniel Defoe, asked for accounts of the event and Edward Shipman, the then vicar of Fairford, gave his account which was published in Daniel Defoe’s book ‘The Storm’ published in 1704. [See also MB’s windows]
The Virgin Mary
The Figure of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the niche above the church porch was installed in 1971 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the induction of the Reverend Edward Keble at St Mary’s Church. It is probable there was a statue there when the Church was first built but was removed after 1534 when Parliament passed the Act of Supremacy which defined the right of Henry VIII to be supreme head on Earth of the Church of England, thereby severing ecclesiastical links with Rome.
Climbing Boy
Along the string course are various grotesque gargoyles, the climbing boy on the south side is the most well-known, this was renewed in the 1970s but there are other weatherworn birds and animals which bear inspection.
Fairford History Society
Updated 1st February 2025