Milton Lilbourne St. Peter’s church
The North Wall
During the 1875 work the North aisle wall and roof were lowered to their original height. Extensive repairs were carried out to the window surrounds and the North window nearest to the East end was set in a reversed stone lintel which now rests below, instead of above, a church window. This is but one of dozens of re-used stones which give clues to several periods of repair involving the North wall.
Trapped inside this wall was the Founder's tomb. It was reset in the North aisle together with a piece of Purbeck marble found under the original medieval floor. The stone crusader, found at the same time, could not be saved as it was sawn in too many pieces. I have searched for fragments in the North wall but cannot find them.
The Re-opening of Milton Lilbourne Church on October 2nd 1875
When parishioners arrived to celebrate the re-opening of their village church they saw much to absorb their interest. As well as seeing everything already described, they must have been surprised by the newly created spaciousness.
All the floor surfaces had been changed with high quality terra- cotta square tiles. Instead of managing with pew floors of earth and broken brick they now had wooden blocks set in cement. Everyone commented on the lack of noise and they also noticed the new pews too. Almost every aspect of the church had changed in less than one year's work.
Most apparent, by nature of its prominent position above the altar, was the completely new East window. Everything in and on the East wall had been swept away; carvings which had been salvaged and repaired were set high above the chancel. Years later the altar window had to be totally rebuilt so the work you see today is fairly recent.
The re-opening service was held in the presence of everyone in Milton as well as visitors. These included:- Rev. Awdry of Ludgershall and the vicars of Pewsey and Burbage. Parson Gale opened the service but the special sermon was presented by Rev. Kingsbury of Burbage; his words have been much quoted as they seem to capture the excitement of the visual and spiritual experience. He said - "May this restored and beautiful sanctuary be a symbol of the real restoration of our hearts and faith. See around you the ancient and new carefully preserved together. May the added new materials inspire us to thank God for skills and care. May we never cease to love and care for our faith in the same way."
Re-opening
The old Thatched Vicarage as it was shown in a primitive drawing made before Rev. Braithwaite’s arrival in 1800.