Relhan Collection : 286 Great Shelford church. Tower as it appeared before falling down

Relhan, Richard, 1782-1844

Relhan Collection

<p style='text-align: justify;'><p>1797</p><p>Relhan would have only been 15 at this date, and it would be three years earlier than any other in the albums, so its originality is dubious. It is possibly drawn from published prints at a later time but is in his hand, as is its sequel (<b>286</b>). St Mary’s church has architectural fragments built into the walls demonstrating there was a church here from C12 but, apart from its tower, it was mostly rebuilt around 1400 by Thomas Pattesley, Rector of St Mary’s and also Archdeacon of Ely (d. 1418). His brass is in the chancel. The inscription is now lost but was recorded by Cole, who quotes a Harleian mss which mentions books, vestments, stained glass and many ornaments bequeathed to the church by Pattesley. The monastery, later cathedral, of Ely owned the church and rectory, probably from 990, but in 1600 it passed to Gonville and Caius College. After the Reformation vicars here were generally inadequate, either unable to preach or to hold services and not resident in the parish, and the church building was badly neglected. The vestry collapsed c. 1700 and the spire was blown down 1703. The tower was repaired with octagonal crown work as shown by Relhan but cracks appeared and it looks a sorry sight in this1797 drawing, just before a storm destroyed nearly half of it in 1798. Happily it is today (2020) in a sound state, keeping an octagonal castellated top to the tower, which now has arched windows and is topped with a small spire.</p><p>Palmer 1932; Rogers in Hicks 1997; Saunders P pers comm; VCH 1982 </p></p>