Church of St Nicolas

Details

HOVE

TQ2506SE SOUTH STREET, Portslade 579-1/10/174 Church of St Nicolas 19/07/50 (Formerly Listed as: PORTSLADE SOUTH STREET, Old Portslade Church of St Nicolas)

GV II*

Parish Church. C12 nave, south aisle and base of tower, early C13 chancel and second stage of tower, bell stage late C14, porch added subsequently, 1849 north aisle, 1869 north-west chapel, for Brackenbury family, and turret, C17 singing gallery removed late C19, chancel floor relaid in the 1930s, 1959 roof restored, vestry and organ gallery added. Random rubble stone, stone dressings, knapped flint to Brackenbury Chapel, coursed rubble to tower, Horsham stone slates to roofs of nave and aisles, also to pyramid roof of tower, clay tiles with coped verges to chancel and porch. Plan: chancel set at an angle to the 3-bay nave with north and south aisles, Brackenbury chapel west end addition to north aisle with stairway adjoining west tower, south porch, large NE vestry additions. 3-stage crenellated tower, unbuttressed, lancet openings on west face, round arch head west door chamfered in 2 orders, all single light windows to body of the church, irregular fenestration to north aisle, gabled porch, pointed arch opening with square-headed ribbed door, square-headed door to south aisle. East end of aisle with headstones to the Blacker family attached, dating from 1817 to 1869, 3 lancets to south face of chancel, 2 tall lancets with small round window above at east end, similar at east end of north aisle, 3 windows to north aisle, west end of Brackenbury Chapel with crocketed buttresses and 3-light window, doorway with lugged head to stairway lit by tiny 2-light mullioned windows. Interior: rendered. Remains of medieval wallpaintings depicting The Last Judgement were discovered in 1847, subsequently painted over they are illustrated in the first volume of the Sussex Archeological Collections. 3-bay king post roof to nave, plastic sheeting masking rafters, unmoulded wallplate. Monopitch rafter roof to south aisle, double pitch to north aisle. C19 scissor truss roof to chancel. Pointed chancel arch, chamfered; pointed tower arch; scallop capitals to pointed arch openings of arcade. Sedillia and piscina in chancel. Panelled chancel and altar table of late C19-early C20 date, mid C20 altar table set in front of the sanctuary with late C20 altar rails. Stone pulpit with wrought iron handrail continued as chancel railings. Many headstones laid as floor paving in nave and aisles including 3 of black marble dating from the C18, parquet flooring to chancel. Memorials: 3 marble tablets to the Clutton family who were the incumbents for 3 successive generations in the C18 and C19; remains of brass to the Scrase family, dated 1499, removed from the Church of St Peter, West Blatchington (qv) when it was derelict. The former reredos, probably C17, comprising 4 incised stone panels reset at west end. Brackenbury Chapel: glazed partition between the chapel and north aisle, formerly a metal grill, 3-bay blind arcades with foliate capitals and foliage decoration to cornice, stone ribbed tunnel vault roof, stained glass, chest tomb of black marble with crucifix. (Sussex Archaeological Collections: 1848-; Dale A: Brighton Churches: 1989-).

Listing NGR: TQ2554706348

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

365614

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Dale, A, Brighton Churches, (1989)
Sussex Archaeological Collections in Sussex Archaeological Collections, (1848)

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