St. Mary The Virgin Churchyard, Lytchett Matravers, Dorset, England

Notes:
Lytchett Matravers is a Dorset village situated at the gateway to the Purbeck hills and the Dorset heathland, overlooking the waters of Poole Harbour. St Mary’s church has a thriving church community.

There are no known records giving the date of the foundation of the church at Lytchett Matravers. At Domesday, the manor of Lytchett Matravers was held by Sir Hugh Maltravers. A Sir Walter Maltravers went on a crusade to the Holy Land and it is possible that he ordered the church to be built beside the manor house in his absence about the year 1200. The west tower, the nave and the chancel were built at this time, followed by the north aisle in the 14th century.

It is possible that the Black Death, which ravaged Dorset in the second half of the 14th century left few people. The villagers forsook their cottages near the church and moved to the higher ground leaving the church to fall into decay. Sir John Maltravers heir, his granddaughter Alianor carried the manor and title to her husband’s family, the Fitzalans, Earls of Arundel, who later became the Dukes of Norfolk and are still Barons Maltravers. A great deal of restoration was carried out at the beginning of the 16th century by Dame Margarita Clements. The manor was sold by the Arundel’s in 1587 to the Trenchard family from Wolveton near Dorchester.

The hagioscope, a squint giving a view of the high altar, is unusually large, providing of a view of the chancel but its origin is unknown. It is believed to be one of the best examples in the UK. There is a yew tree outside the north door to the church dating from AD590, thus older than the church. The churchyard wall is thought to be as old as the church. Within the graveyard, there are WW1 graves and other military graves.

St Mary’s church is loved and used for church services and worship, christenings, weddings and funerals. The church holds musical concerts and fundraising activities including historic talks which center around the heritage of the building.