To say that entering St Martin's Glandford was a real surprise, would be a bit of an understatement on my part. It is the most jaw dropping church experience I've had in many a year. Simon Jenkins in England's Thousand Best Churches described it with dry matter of factness as the finest example of Victorian woodcarving. Whilst Pevsner simply found it all a bit overpowering. And I guess in truth it is a bit of both.
St Martin's is a small church, and probably could only house 150 to 200 in its congregation. Yet every square foot of it is packed full with the most ornate of carved decorative details. Every where you turn, there's a finely carved rood screen, characterful pew ends, a beautifully turned font cover, a glorious angel roof that would have had a medieval woodcarver wetting themselves with envy. For such a small nave and chancel it can feel a tad OTT. Everything is just that fraction too large and in your face for this small scale building. But as someone who tends to love things that are in your face, and likes individuals who take the very Un- English risk of being passionate, ebullient and sumptuous, I love this church so much. Its hard to put into words quite why. Apart from - boy is this camp.
So why here in this estate village of Glandford? By 1730 the original church was completely in ruins. In 1882 Sir Alfred Jodrell inherited the Bayfield Hall estate. He decided to completely rebuild the church from scratch, a previous restoration from 1875 was pulled down. So you'll find nothing here predating 1899 when this restoration began.,everything else has been visibly removed. This rebuild took several years to finish. Jodrell was extraordinarily wealthy, and a renown Victorian philanthropist. He went on to improve the Bayfield Estate generally, but also had a hand in financing the restoration of St Nicholas's in Blakeney. Which having now seen his work in Glandford I can recognise the footprint and quality of his interventions there.
Jodrell wanted to build the new church to honour the memory of his recently deceased Mother - Adela Moncton Bowyer-Smijth.** As an Anglo-Catholic his taste was all for heightened Victorian Gothic. Unlike Pugin, Jodrell chose not to slather pattern, paint and gilding all over his interiors, but to have a uniform honey coloured wood, that can make it look like the church was made entirely from gingerbread. It would not have turned out quite so glorious had he not had some of the finest Victorian woodcarvers his deep pockets could buy. Building something completely from scratch, means Glandford does possess a visual coherence across all its interior furnishings. Most of the stained glass was made by Herbert Bryans and Ernest Heasman, with a few earlier pieces by Kempe & Co. The woodwork is largely from the workshop of Walter Thompson & Frank McGinnity. The north chapel which houses the angelic marble memorial to Jodrell's Mother was, according to Pevsner, carved by Pietro Bazzanti of Florence. Which sits under the canopy of a beautifully executed intricately carved wood paneled ceiling.
This is quite the most extravagant high Victorian Gothic church you will find in Norfolk, if not the entire UK. Do not miss seeing this if you should ever be in the vicinity.
**Sir Alfred Jodrell was married, but he died without issue, so his was the fourth and last Baronet. The ostentatious nature of his aesthetic, and frankly over the top relationship with his dead Mother, does make one question whether he was closeted, and his marriage one of convenience. Though it is perfectly possible for a straight man to be as camp as a row of tents. I hasten to say,lest anyone start throwing words like 'woke' around.
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