Church of All Saints, Publow

The Church of All Saints stands in the village of Publow, Somerset, on flat land beside the River Chew. Built in the 14th century, it has a 15th-century tower with carved gargoyles watching over the surrounding fields. The church is a Grade I listed building, recognised for its historical importance. Inside, the nave and aisles are separated by plain arcades of pointed arches. Two porches on the north and south sides give shelter to visitors arriving from the lanes. The chancel at the east end holds a fine Perpendicular window restored in the 19th century. The church’s tower was raised around 1467 and rises in four stages, its buttresses ending in tall pinnacles at the bell stage. One of the six bells bears the coat of arms of Sir Francis Popham, a local landowner in the 16th century. The oak pulpit dates from the early 1600s and is decorated with carved arcading above and rosettes below. The church’s register, begun in 1569, records every baptism, marriage and burial in Publow for over four centuries. A major restoration in the 1890s was carried out to designs by Arthur Blomfield. Visitors enter through either porch and walk beneath the tower into the nave. Four two-light windows with trefoil heads light the clerestory above the arcades. The chancel’s east window shows reticulated tracery typical of the Perpendicular style. The pulpit stands on a stone base near the nave’s south arcade. Outside, the tower’s gargoyles and pinnacles frame views across the Somerset Levels. The churchyard contains plain headstones and a few yew trees planted long ago.