The Church of St Nectan

Lanepark Lane, Stoke, nr Hartland, Devon EX39 6HF

Tel: 01479 810000

St. Nectan, the patron saint of this church and parish, was one of many Celtic hermits and missionaries associated with early Christian sites in South-West Britain, South Wales and Ireland in the fifth and sixth centuries.

The church as we have it is in the Perpendicular style of the fourteenth century, subject to restoration, particularly the windows, in 1848. Although situated some 3 kilometres from the village of Hartland, the centre of the manor, the church is one of the largest in this part of Devon, Hartland parish being in the top ten percent of Devon parishes by population till the 17th century.

The only major addition in the 1848 restoration was an increase in the length of the chancel. The size is best appreciated from beneath the tower arch, being enhanced by the areas of clear glass, the exceptional height of the tower arch itself, and the width of the arches over the aisles. The piers of the arcades (four in the nave and one in the chancel) are of limestone and appear to be earlier than some other North Devon examples. The tower arch is over 8 metres high; from an early date and up to 1848 it contained a musicians' gallery.