Bell Tower - St Withburga's Church, Holkham Hall Estate, Holkham, Norfolk. NR23 1RW - Bell Towers on Waymarking.com

This Grade II* listed estate church seems larger than it is, set on a mound to the south of the main A149 road in the Holkham Hall estate grounds it is very impressive when seen for the first time: the dedication of St Withburga is said to be unique. The mound is entirely sand and is thought to be a dune although the sea is some 1ml to the north, and it is said to have been used by Iron Age people, perhaps for burials or a temple.

The C13th tower on the south side is a tower porch this being the main entrance but is at the western end of the south aisle and replaces an earlier, possibly Saxon or Norman, tower which was at the west end of the nave, the foundations were found during the restoration. There is a core of a medieval building but it was extensively rebuilt in 1767 and again in 1868-71 by James K Colling. This latter rebuilding was paid for by Juliana, Countess of Leicester, but sadly she died in 1870 just as it was completed. Her simple effigy lies in the bare north aisle chapel.

Built in flint with limestone dressings the church has plain tiled roofs to the nave and chancel. There are flushwork panels in the parapets of the tower, the chancel and the aisles. The tower has set-back buttresses up to the first stage and two early C13th lancet windows in the south face, one lancet low down on the east face gives some light to the balustraded staircase to the ringing chamber, the bell openings have 'Y' tracery from the C14th. A C19th south door in the tower with double opening and quatrefoiled spandrel opens into a large porch with the main door into the church opposite and possibly of C13th. The embattled parapet has corner pinnacles.

The fairly modern heavy ring of six bells was overhauled in 2005 by Taylors of Loughborough and is hung in a timber frame capable of holding eight bells. The following is an extract from Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers showing the weights in kg, the sounding notes of the bells, date cast and founder.

          Bell 	  Weight         Note            Dated 	      Founder
            1 	  358.34 	  D 	 	 1869 	   John Warner & Sons 		
            2 	  425.02 	  C 	 	 1908 	   John Warner & Sons 		
            3 	  520.27          Bb 	 	 1908 	   John Warner & Sons 		
            4 	  590.58          A 	 	 1908      John Warner & Sons 		
            5 	  679.48          G 	 	 1869      John Warner & Sons 		
            6 	  990.65 	  F 	 	 1921 	   John Taylor & Co

In the room immediately below the bell chamber is a mechanical contraption the size of which I've not seen before, like a huge pianola. A handle is turned and on its shaft is a worm gear which turns a large drum about 1.2m diameter. This drum has pegs in it which contact levers pulling down on wires attached to hammers beneath each bell. On turning the handle the drum rotates and a plain course of the method Plain Bob Doubles is sounded on the bells. An ingenious use of a machine to play the bells using only one ringer.

Words from British Listed Buildings and Pevsner's Norfolk 2 Buildings with amendments from own on site observations.

Coordinates are for the south porch entrance.

Address of Tower: St Withburga's Church Holkham Hall Estate Holkham, Norfolk UK NR23 1RW Still Operational: yes Number of bells in tower?: 6 Rate tower: Tours or visits allowed in tower?: Yes Relevant website?: Not listed

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