Holy Trinity Church

The church of Holy Trinity stands on top of the hill between Buckfast and Buckfastleigh where it is a landmark for miles around, especially at night when the spire is floodlit.  It is a mystery why it was built on top of the hill instead of in the town, but a recent excavation organised by Devon Archaeological Society may have shed some light on this. 

On the night of 21^st July 1992 Holy Trinity Church was almost destroyed by fire, but fortunately the tower was saved, together with the walls and some of the pillars.  The bells were rescued and later rehung, while the Norman font is now to be found in the new church of St Luke’s in the town.

During the excavations, the semi-circular apse and foundations of an earlier church were discovered within the walls of the 13^th century building.  In addition, they found three important Anglo-Saxon burials which would suggest that this might actually be the site for the earliest monastic community of Buckfast. 

Holy Trinity continues to be used for occasional services and sometimes by the local drama group.  The churchyard around it is kept tidy and the atmosphere is one of quiet and tranquillity with attractive views across the local countryside.  Recently a group of volunteers have started to clear some of the vegetation which has grown up around the oldest tombs – we are looking for a balance with natural wild flowers growing but not concealing the memorials.

This is a place where residents and visitors find peace in tranquil surroundings.  We hope that you will visit it and use the opportunity to pray in the place where prayers have been said and answered for at least 800 years.

Services at Holy Trinity Church in 2008

Sunday 18 May  – Trinity Sunday Holy Communion Service at 10.30 am

                           Please bring a chair, and a picnic if you wish

Monday 7 July – Monday 4 August inclusive

                           Morning Prayer will be said at 8.30 am

                           You will be most welcome to join us. A great way to start the

                           week

Report of the Holy Trinity Excavation

At Easter 2002 a small team of archaeologists from several British universities undertook a trial excavation at Holy Trinity Church in Buckfastleigh.  The team opened three small trenches on the north side of the church to investigate the results of a ground penetrating radar survey completed in 1995.  This seemed to indicate that an earlier building may have stood on the site before the present church was built, the earliest parts of which date to the thirteenth century.  All three trenches that were opened proved to be very rich in buried archaeology.  In the first, in the north chancel chapel, part of the wall of an apse was found (a semicircular eastern end, probably dating to the Saxon period), standing on a rubble platform which was built to act as its footings.  In the middle of the north aisle, the probable north-west corner of the early church was located in the form of massive buried limestone walls. 

However, it was in the middle trench, extending north from the nave into the north transept, that some of the most important finds were made.  Here there were parts of what the archaeologists believe is a late Saxon and medieval cemetery.  The Saxon date was suggested by a distinctive kind of grave, known as a charcoal burial, where a body was buried in a charcoal-lined grave.  The Buckfastleigh example was particularly intricate: in addition to charcoal there was also a coffin and a grave with plastered sides.  Project director Dr Andrew Reynolds commented, "this kind of thing is very unusual and puts Buckfastleigh on a par with important churches from places like Winchester, York and Gloucester.  We were thrilled to find such well-preserved and unusual archaeology".  The charcoal burial had been dug through the mortar floor of the early church, which is also an unusual survival.  Other finds included medieval floor tiles and ridge tiles from the roof.

Precise dates will be available after radiocarbon dating has been completed on a number of samples, but the archaeologists believe that the building they discovered may be the oldest church ever excavated in Devon.  They hope that they will be able to come back to do more work in future years on this very important site.

                                                            Dr Sam Turner