English Heritage sites near Tarrant Crawford Parish
KNOWLTON CHURCH AND EARTHWORKS
8 miles from Tarrant Crawford Parish
The siting of this ruined medieval church at the centre of a Neolithic ritual henge earthwork symbolises the transition from pagan to Christian worship and creates an atmospheric scene.
FIDDLEFORD MANOR
10 miles from Tarrant Crawford Parish
The principal parts of a small stone manor house, probably begun about 1370 for William Latimer, Sheriff of Somerset and Dorset. The hall and solar chamber display outstandingly fine timber roofs.
OLD WARDOUR CASTLE
14 miles from Tarrant Crawford Parish
Set in landscaped grounds beside a lake in peaceful Wiltshire countryside, these 14th century ruins provide a relaxed, romantic day out for couples, families and budding historians alike.
CHRISTCHURCH CASTLE AND NORMAN HOUSE
16 miles from Tarrant Crawford Parish
The castle remains include parts of the keep and the 12th century riverside chamber block or Norman House, a very early example of domestic architecture including a rare Norman chimney.
MAIDEN CASTLE
18 miles from Tarrant Crawford Parish
Among the largest and most complex of Iron Age hillforts in Europe, Maiden Castle’s huge multiple ramparts enclose an area the size of 50 football pitches and once protected hundreds of residents.
SHERBORNE OLD CASTLE
19 miles from Tarrant Crawford Parish
Built on a grand scale in the 12th century by the Bishop of Salisbury, Sherborne was coveted by churchmen and noblemen alike giving it a long, chequered history. Picnic, shop, light refreshments.
Churches in Tarrant Crawford Parish
Saint Mary's Church Tarrant Crawford in The 2 Rivers Benefice
Tarrant Crawford, Blandford Forum
In a gentle valley above the River Tarrant this simple and evocative church, which dates back to the twelfth century, is all that remains of a wealthy Cistercian nunnery - thirteenth-century Tarrant Abbey - to which it may have been a lay chapel. Today, the long, elegant interior has oak furnishings and a beautiful sixteenth-century wagon roof. There are also several thirteenth and fourteenth-century coffin lids set in the floor, probably of abbesses and nuns. Best of all, however, are the ghostly fourteenth-century paintings, made to instruct and inspire the parishioners. These cover most of the walls of the nave, catching your eye as soon as you walk into the church. Though somewhat degraded, they still give a vivid impression of warmth and colour. It is unusual for such an early set of paintings to survive, albeit damaged. The earliest, in the chancel, is from the thirteenth century and consists of a simple masonry pattern with a flower stencil. There are also fourteenth-century depictions of St Margaret of Antioch, said to have been swallowed by a dragon, and three animated skeletons, who warn three princes of the emptiness of earthly rank and wealth. The paintings on the north wall are more fragmentary, but you can identify St Michael weighing souls, and St Christopher carrying the Christ Child.
No churches found in Tarrant Crawford Parish