St. Martin's Desford Virtual Tour
Welcome to a pictorial virtual tour of St. Martin's Church, from this you will be able to take a walk around the outside of the church and also see how friendly the inside is for newcomers. The tour will allow you to see our bells and a very old clock which is the oldest in the county of Leicestershire. You can also see our stained glass window and some great views from the battlements.
Please note some photos were taken during lockdown 2020
High Altar/ Stained Glasss Window/ Pulpit/ The Ringing Chamber/ St. Martin's Clock/ The Bells/ The Battlements/ Top
Main Entrance
This new porch was added in 1920, it was built to remember those from the village that died in the first World War.
A lift has been installed giving "Access For All", and we now have removable chairs in place of the old
pews in the Lady Chapel. Our new lift gives easy access to the church for buggies and wheelchairs.
The High Altar in its new location on the North Side (image below)
The High Altar
The old look High Alter.
This is how it used to look
The high altar with a red carpet running through the choir stalls towards it. This carpet was laid in 1961, New Years Day and is a replica of a carpet in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. The altar rails and table were fitted during the 1884 restoration.
The Pulpit & Stained Glass Window
This pulpit is made from Caen stone and has marble pillars. It was given in 1884 at the time of a major restoration by Emma Chamberlain in memory of her parents Henry and Mary.
Another part of the major 1884 restoration is our only stained glass window, it was fitted as a memorial to George and Sophia Webster who died in 1866 and 1835 respectively, and depicts the nativity story with the dove of peace at the top of the window
The infant Christ is holding a cross, a symbol of his impending Crucifixion.
Note the modern brass cross on the window shelf which was presented to St. Martin’s in 1976 by
Desford TI Tubes, it was made by apprentices.
From this viewpoint below you can see the entrance to the choir vestry at the back of the church, with the ringing chamber above it behind the glass screen. The choir vestry was created during restoration work in 1912, it is not very large, about 8ft by 10ft and when the full choir of 30+ recess into it after a service it can get very cosy!
With the font in its new location it is easy to get in and out.
The Ringing Chamber
In the late 17th century St. Martin’s received 3 bells, during the 1912 restoration work these were removed and recast by Taylor’s of Loughborough. At this time 3 further bells were added making the current 6 ranging from a 3cwt treble seen further in the tour, to a 10cwt tenor.
St. Martin’s is very proud of Miss Gladys Goulton, who was still ringing at the age of 96, she had her 103rd birthday in July 2009.
It is with sadness that we learnt of the death on 10th March 2010 of Miss Gladys Goulton. She was 103 and died six years to the day since her sister Muriel died. Together with their brother Jack, the Goultons were great supporters of our church where Miss Gladys for many years played the organ and rang the bells (she was Tower Captain). They all lived together next door to the church in “The Chimes” where the two ladies had a shop.
More can be found on our Bellringing page, we also have a YouTube Channel here
This view shows the Lady Chapel which has now gone and been replaced by the font. The last photo here is very handy for the ringers at weddings as they can see the newly wedded couple emerge from the Rector’s vestry, a signal to start ringing.
In the late 17th century St. Martin’s received 3 bells, during the 1912 restoration work these were removed and recast by Taylor’s of Loughborough. At this time 3 further bells were added making the current 6 ranging from a 3cwt treble seen further in the tour, to a 10cwt tenor.
St. Martin’s is very proud of Miss Gladys Goulton, who was still ringing at the age of 96, she had her 103rd birthday in July 2009.
It is with sadness that we learnt of the death on 10th March 2010 of Miss Gladys Goulton. She was 103 and died six years to the day since her sister Muriel died. Together with their brother Jack, the Goultons were great supporters of our church where Miss Gladys for many years played the organ and rang the bells (she was Tower Captain). They all lived together next door to the church in “The Chimes” where the two ladies had a shop.
The Bells
More can be found on our Bellringing page
We also have a YouTube Channel here
The Treble in memory of Joseph Halford Goodacre
(J.H.G.) dates to 1912.3 Cwts. 1 Qtrs. 17 Lbs
Diameter 2' 1 1/2 "
The 2nd bell, recast in 1912. in memory of J.H.G.
4 Cwts. 1 Qtrs. 6 Lbs
Diameter 2' 3 1/2
The 3rd bell also recast in memory of J.H.G. 4 Cwts. 2 Qtrs. 25 Lbs Diameter 2' 5 1/2.
Our 4th Bell 5 Cwts. 3 Qtrs. 7 Lbs Diameter 2' 7 "
The 5th bell in memory of J.H.G. 7 Cwts. 0 Qtrs. 24 Lbs Diameter 2' 10 1/2
The Tenor has the inscription, "Guard and bless our Fatherland"
This seems uncanny, as it was cast 2 years before WW1.
10 Cwts. 2 Qtrs. 9 Lbs
Diameter 3' 3 "
These Next Two pictures show our Number 4 bell which is the one you can hear each day as the clock chimes.
Some Pictures from inside the tower.
St. Martin's Clock
This clock is one of the oldest in the county, it has a cable and weights mechanism and dates back to around the 1630's-1640's. There is evidence of some new wheels put on which were done after the 1750's as they are brass which wasn't used until after this time.
These are rare photo's of the clock.
The Battlements
Here are some rare views from the battlements of the south side of the church.
A view over the old part of the village.
Looking West towards Newbold Verdon, North and East
This picture shows how narrow the battlements are, on the left is the door into the tower.
The picture below is a rare view from the battlements over the Altar.
Over the Ladychapel
