Tucked into the folds of the Teign Valley, the parish church of St James the Apostle, Christow is a building that wears its history in layers of stone, timber, and glass. At first glance, its tall granite tower, battlemented and pinnacled, proclaims the confidence of late medieval Devon. Yet step closer and you begin to see how centuries of devotion, repair, and remembrance have shaped this Grade I listed church into the richly textured place it is today.
The oldest survivor here is the 12th‑century font, a square scalloped bowl now set on a later stem. It is a reminder that Christian worship has been continuous in Christow for nearly a thousand years. Much of the visible fabric, however, belongs to the 15th century, when the Perpendicular style swept across Devon, filling churches with light and lofty arcades. In 1862, the Exeter architect Edward Ashworth undertook a major restoration. He rebuilt the chancel, added the vestry, reseated the nave, and repainted the medieval screen. His work gave the church its present plan: nave, chancel, north and south aisles, south porch, and the commanding west tower.
The west tower, slim and elegant, rises in three stages of granite ashlar. Its battlements and obelisk pinnacles catch the light, while the west doorway bears the date 1680, a sign of earlier repair. Above it, a three‑light traceried window glows with Perpendicular confidence. The south porch shelters a 17th‑century door and even incorporates a ledger stone to Nicholas and Walter Busell, who died in 1631 and 1632, pressed into service as paving — a poignant reminder of how the past is literally underfoot.
Inside, the wagon roofs immediately draw the eye. The nave roof is studded with carved bosses, while the aisles have simpler ceiled wagons. The granite arcades march down either side, their double‑chamfered arches resting on sturdy piers. The rood screen, though repainted in the 19th century, is a fine five‑bay example of Pevsner’s “A‑type.” Three bays, once across the south aisle, now serve as a tower screen. The 1860s also brought a stone reredos with painted tin panels, encaustic floor tiles, and traceried choir stalls with poppyhead finials, all part of Ashworth’s Victorian vision.
Among the fittings, the late 19th‑century pulpit incorporates fragments of 16th‑century blind tracery, while the bench ends preserve Tudor carving, including a pomegranate motif, a symbol of Catherine of Aragon and the early Tudor dynasty. The Royal Arms of 1682, in plaster high relief, still dominate the nave wall, proudly recording the names of churchwardens Tho Moore and Chr Moore.
The chancel is dominated by memorials to the Pellew family, Viscounts Exmouth of nearby Canonteign. Two striking white marble monuments by the London sculptor E. Gaffin, dated 1833, commemorate Admiral Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, and his son Pownoll Bastard Pellew. Naval trophies, urns, and laurel wreaths frame inscriptions that recall Pellew’s legendary rescue of over 500 souls from the wreck of the Dutton off Plymouth Hoe in 1796. The verse beneath soars into apocalyptic imagery, praying that the Admiral might be rescued at the last day as he once rescued others from the sea. Elsewhere, slate ledger stones commemorate Edmund Davis, who died in 1652, and John Davys, who died in 1682, their finely cut lettering a testament to Devon’s slate‑carving tradition.
The stained glass tells its own story. Fragments of 15th‑century canopy work survive in the south aisle, while some 18th‑century bottle glass lingers in the north. The Victorians added splendour: Clayton and Bell’s 1862 east window in the south aisle is outstanding, while the chancel east window of 1899 is probably by Drake of Exeter. Later commissions include Ward and Hughes in 1913 and William Wailes in 1867, each pane a memorial to parishioners and their families.
St James’ is more than an architectural palimpsest. It is a living chronicle of Christow itself: medieval masons and Tudor carpenters, 17th‑century churchwardens, Victorian restorers, naval heroes, and local families all leave their mark here. The granite tower still watches over the Teign Valley, while inside, the rood screen, the Pellew memorials, and the flicker of coloured light remind us that this is a place where history and devotion meet.
