|
window has been filled in, but it is not possible to be
certain on the basis of either external or internal evidence, according to
Tatton-Brown. The central part of the nave is probably still of
approximately the original proportions but the roof level has been raised.
The later north aisle is clearly seen from the west and the large window
in the centre of the main nave is post-twelfth century. The flint cladding
hides a great deal, but it is just possible to make out some quoins which
Newman and Kahn both believe to be pre-Conquest. At the west end of the
south aisle there is a small round-headed window which appears on
stylistic grounds to date from the twelfth century. It seems to have been
restored and, possibly, reset.
There are two round-headed windows in the south wall of
the chancel, one close to the nave and one in the sanctuary,21 with
a small door between them at the nave end. Small doors in the chancel were
quite common in English churches of this period,22 but
are less common in twelfth-century churches in France. However, there is a
similar door in the south wall of the chancel at Cintheaux which also has
doors into the south and north of the nave and no west door. The south
portal is, as already mentioned, below the tower, in line with the centre
of the nave. This unusual position means that the congregation, once
through the entrance area under the tower, is immediately almost in the
middle of the main body of the church. The general form of the portal is
reminiscent of |
|
twelfth-century
churches in Normandy and elsewhere in France — where, however, the main
entrance is usually at the west end.
Patrixbourne’s tower looks square but is in fact a little
broader than it is deep. There is a string-course just above the present
roof level and a round opening in each side above the string-course.
Although he does not mention Patrixbourne specifically, Rigold suggests
that towers in a lateral position were often to be found in France but
rarely in England except in Kent. He also writes, ‘Stone towers may
collapse but in poor parishes they are not demolished lightly: they are
more likely to be brought up to date, and most unlikely, to be pulled down
and not replaced at all’. There is another post-twelfth-century,
square-headed window in the south wall of the south aisle to the west of
the main door. Below that window and to the left, there are cornerstones
that may have supported an earlier window.
The north aisle is certainly later but there is a
round-headed north door that would seem to pre-date the wall into which it
is set. Livett believed that the door was ‘Norman’, or
twelfth-century, and had been removed from ‘elsewhere’ and set in its
present position. He also thought it was originally made for a thicker
wall. Certainly the appearance of the door supports this view since it is
thicker than the |