St Nicholas

A Brief History

The Saxon Tower of St Nicholas Church, West Lexham is thought to date back to the time of the Viking Invasions of the East Anglian coast around 975 AD. When you consider the situation of the church and the immediate surrounds it is easy to imagine that the immediate area around the church was a defensive stockade and the tower allowed a watchful eye to be kept along the River Nar all the way to Castle Acre 3 miles down stream. Any sign of trouble from there would allow the alarm to be raised and the villagers and their livestock to be rounded up and protected within a defensive stockade, until the danger had passed. The Vikings were smash and grab raiders, not siege specialists.

Norman times saw more features added including the Norman style high arches and window shapes we are familiar with today.

During recent restorations, Medieval features were found in the tower in the form of basket openings, small windows using basket weaves to make their shape and the main roof was thatched, as can be seen from the remains of the thatched peak in the tower.

At some stage the round tower was made oblong towards the main body of the church to make the whole building more stable and a better fit.

In 1820 the church was in a sorry state, with a collapsed thatched roof and it was in danger of falling down. The incumbent priest, The Reverend Reavely, who lived at the Rectory between West Lexham and East Lexham, decided to restore the church in memory of his first wife and the altar window in St Nicholas is dedicated to her memory. The Rev. Reavely gave St Nicholas the tiled roof it has today.

Nearly a hundred years on, St Nicholas has once again been restored, thanks to a large grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and local fund raising and further help from the Norfolk Churches Trust and the Round Tower Churches Trust. There was terrible rainwater ingress on all the arches and the tower was crumbling. Several old crafts were used in the restoration, especially the use of hot lime mortar in the tower, a craft that had died out since the last war with the increased use of Portland cement that is moisture resistant. Hot Lime mortar absorbs moisture and breathes it out so that it does not damage the ancient structures in the tower and the rest of the church.

St Nicholas Church has now been fully restored and is ready for the next 100 years for villages and visitors.

N.OLESEN
August 2020

With thanks to The Heritage Lottery Fund;
The Norfolk Churches Trust
The Round Tower Churches Society.