St Mary, Fishley

St Mary's lies essentially in the middle of a wide field, along a farm road which, for the first few hundred yards, rather challenges the suspension of your average saloon car. Set among a small copse of trees on a mound, it is a lonely, atmospheric spot.

The round tower is probably Norman, topped with a 15th Century brick bell chamber. This has pretty crenellations and a 14th Century window reset in it. The rest of the church is most probably 13th Century, but much restored. Fishley lost its village in the early Norman period, and had to rely on the local lords of the manor to maintain the fabric. A local guidebook claims the 13th Century rebuild was the result of the generosity of Sir John de Veile, but that little further was done until the 19th Century, by which time the church was predictably ruinous. 

Enter then Miss Sophia Edwards of Hardingham Hall, near Wymondham. She inherited the estate in 1859, and immediately set about improving things, funding an extensive restoration in 1861 to the designs of her cousin, the amateur architect Revd. John Barham Johnson, Rector of Welbourne. This was so thorough that the interior is now almost entirely Victorian in feel. The Church is essentially a single cell, with a small north aisle, with the oddity of an iron post holding up the roof plate in place of an arcade. At the east end of this aisle is a charming rounded quatrefoil window. The church also has a hand-pumped chamber organ of 1781 - originally from Fishley Hall.

Sophia not only provided the estate with a restored church, but also a large rectory, and a school at Upton. An interesting feature is that the glass is all green, purple and white - the suffragette colours. The glass predates the movement by some 40 years, but they somehow seem appropriate for this strong-minded, single woman.

The Church services are listed on the website, and it is a very popular venue for weddings. It is generally open for prayer and visits on Fridays 11-16h.

St Mary, Off South Walsham Road, Fishley, NR13 6DA