All Saints

All Saints, Down Ampney is a Grade I listed building.

It was built by the Knights Templar and consecrated in 1265. Nicholas de Valers, a Crusader, assisted in the building of the church and his effigy can be found in the Lady Chapel alongside that of his wife, Margaret. The building is an early example of English Architecture with Norman columns and a 14th century spire.

Like many communities in the Middle Ages, Down Ampney suffered from the Black Death. There are red cinquefoil flowers on the arches said to represent the Ring a Ring o’ Roses a reminder of the symptoms of the disease.

The rood screen and other woodwork is Victorian commissioned by Mr & Mrs Gibbs who lived in the manor house to commemorate the birth of a daughter after five sons. It designed by Charles E. Ponting of Marlborough and carried out by Harry Hems of Exeter.

There is an unusual stained glass window showing a Dakota which commemorates airborne campaigns from the now disused airfield in WWII when Dakotas and gliders flew operations including D-Day, Arnhem and the crossing of the Rhine. It also commemorates Flt Lt David Lord who was killed at Arnhem and won the VC for his valour. Behind the window there is an RAF Garden of Remembrance.

Down Ampney was the birthplace of Ralph Vaughan Williams when his father was vicar. To mark the 150th anniversary of his birth a stained-glass window, designed and installed by Tom Denny, was dedicated by HRH the Duke of Gloucester. RVW composed a hymn tune Down Ampney. There is an exhibition of his life and work in the tower.

The National Association of Decorative & Fine Arts Societies carried out a survey of the church and its contents in 2005/2006. A copy is kept on the table in the church for reference.