combs

St Mary, Combs

St Mary from the west, and the fields.

For some years now, the isolated setting of this mighty building has been encroached upon by the relentless spread of Stowmarket. But the road layout has remained sensitive to its integrity, and it is still a church to walk to rather than drive.

And, of course, the new housing has given St Mary an injection of new life, saving it from becoming just a pretty building in the middle of a popular cemetery garden.

For this is one of Suffolk's truly great churches, of a size and stature to compete with all but the grandest, and home to medieval craftsmanship unmatched by all but half a dozen. Only Long Melford can compete with its stained glass.

The church is kept locked, but this should not dissuade you from obtaining the key from the rectory, a square modern building at the top of the hill on the main road. In the 1930s, Cautley found the south porch to be the main entrance, but this is no longer the case. However, you should certainly go round to the south side and see it, for it is a maginificent redbrick affair of the late 15th century, somewhat similar to that at Bures. You may curse quietly under your breath that the doorway has been bricked up in such a clumsy fashion.

You will also note that the base of the tower has two archways cut in it, to allow the Corpus Christi procession to encircle the church without leaving consecrated ground; the west face of the tower is hard up against the churchyard perimeter. The same can be seen at Ipswich St Lawrence, and also at Stanton St John, where it is actually possible to walk through it. Here, the openings are blocked off to contain the heating system, which is a pity, because Cautley found that the western door of the church, which leads into the processional archway under the tower, had once been the main entrance. It has two holy water stoups outside it, not now visible to the public, but you can still see the stopholes on the inside jambs of the doorway.

The processional archway. The tombchest is later, uglier, more arrogant...

Graye (left) and Darbye.

What a grand tower this is! The 15th century in all its glory built it, and it can be seen from a great distance, most surreally peeping above the crest of the hills at nearby Little London. We enter the church by the north porch, then, which is rather dim inside, and then step into the body of the nave.

Some churches are dark, and ones eyes must become accustomed to them. But Combs is like Rendlesham; it was as if the early spring sunshine had followed me in, and filled the place with light.

The first striking sight is the three great bells on the floor at the west end. The largest dates from the mid-15th century, and was cast in Norwich. The other two come from either side of the 17th century Commonwealth; that by Miles Graye would have been a sonorous accompaniement to Laudian piety, while John Darbie's would have rung in the Restoration. It is fascinating to be able to see them at such close quarters.

Benchmen at Combs - possibly the carvers from the 1480s?

A Suffolk hare...

And then, there are the wonderful carved bench ends.

Some are animals, and some are people. My favourite animal is the hare. It seems alert and wary, as though it might bolt at any moment.

I'm also fond of the lion, although it is obvious that the carvers had actually seen a real hare, but lions were creatures of their imagination.

I can't decide between the people - I like all of them.

The great glory of this church, however, is the awesome range of 15th century glass towards the east end of the south aisle.

...and a Suffolk lion.

One window contains a Tree of Jesse, basically a family tree of Christ. There isn't much left of it, but the are substantial remains of the other two series. One window contains scenes from the Seven Works of Mercy, with 'food for the hungry' and 'drink for the thirsty' particularly prominent. But the best series is of the scenes from the life and martyrdom of St Margaret.

St Margaret baptised...

...and tempted...

...and imprisoned.

St Margaret tortured.

The baptism scene in the bottom right is breathtaking, and all the scenes have a power that reaches across more than half a millennium. They were blown out by the factory explosion that wrecked most of Stowmarket and killed 28 people in August 1871, and an opportunity was taken at the time to restore them sensitively, grouping them together in the south aisle.

You can read more about the explosion at the Stowmarket site.

This is obviously a fairly lively church, thanks to a population much larger than most Suffolk parishes. With its secluded location, it has the best of both worlds.

Mercy: bread for the hungry.

Above: The gorgeous east window, with flanking niches, and the most delicate interlocking tracery.

Combs Rector John Ross

St Mary, Combs, is in the fields at the edge of the Combs estate to the south of Stowmarket. Follow the Combs road out of Stowmarket, and Church Lane is on the left, just before the rectory. Alternatively, a footpath to the church is signposted through the estate - but you will need to get the key from the rectory first.