Armoury Facelift Project,
Armoury Booklet &
Mendlesham Heritage Fair
Armoury Facelift Project
Mendlesham Armoury, on the small upper floor of our north porch, is the only one remaining in any English parish church with its original parish collection of arms and armour. They have been stored in the same place since a law of Queen Mary Tudor compelled parishes to provide arms, armour and trained men to defend England against invasion, such as the later Spanish Armada in Elizabeth I’s reign.
Containing a motley collection of arms and armour dating from the mid C16th, the armoury appears to have been maintained until shortly after the English Civil War. Outdated and no longer required, its contents silently rusted away for the next 250 years until rediscovered by the curate and the schoolmaster at the beginning of the C20th. They alerted members of the prestigious Meyrick Society and it was restored and displayed in 1909 due to their expertise and generosity. For the next 111 years the armoury was opened to the public by appointment and on advertised days, but as it is a relatively small, enclosed space, Covid restrictions in 2020 brought visits to an abrupt halt.
The Armoury Facelift Project has been initiated by St Mary’s PCC for better conservation, interpretation & display of this unique heritage so it can be passed onto future generations in the best condition. Some armour is currently hooked to the wall on pieces of bent wire! Plans include a comprehensive catalogue, bespoke mannequins/stands, museum-quality interpretations and audio-visual displays set in the body of the church for the benefit of people unable to climb the narrow winding stairway to the armoury. Although detailed costings have yet to be calculated, it is likely that it will cost well over £100,000.
Three leading armour specialists are advising and guiding the PCC – Dr Tobias (Toby) Capwell, until recently Armourer of the Wallace Collection, David Edge, his predecessor and also Head of Conservation and Simon Metcalf, the King’s Armourer, responsible for the private Royal Arms and Armour collections.
To kickstart the project, the PCC successfully obtained a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, first to seed-fund a Heritage Fair, held at the beginning of May, to help reconnect the community to its Tudor history. You can see plenty of photos and descriptions of this below. Secondly, this will facilitate a research project into some documents found discarded in one of the church’s mid-C15th chests in the 1870s. We hope that some of them may shed further light on the history and context of the armoury and its contents.
A superb booklet has been researched and produced about the armoury by historian Shona Rutherford-Edge, which you can purchase through the form below.
St Mary’s Mendlesham PCC holds all funds raised and donated for the Armoury Facelift Project in a restricted fund to be used solely for that purpose. To date, this stands at approximately £18,750. To donate to the project, please use the bank details given below, with the reference 'Armoury donation'.
Containing a motley collection of arms and armour dating from the mid C16th, the armoury appears to have been maintained until shortly after the English Civil War. Outdated and no longer required, its contents silently rusted away for the next 250 years until rediscovered by the curate and the schoolmaster at the beginning of the C20th. They alerted members of the prestigious Meyrick Society and it was restored and displayed in 1909 due to their expertise and generosity. For the next 111 years the armoury was opened to the public by appointment and on advertised days, but as it is a relatively small, enclosed space, Covid restrictions in 2020 brought visits to an abrupt halt.
The Armoury Facelift Project has been initiated by St Mary’s PCC for better conservation, interpretation & display of this unique heritage so it can be passed onto future generations in the best condition. Some armour is currently hooked to the wall on pieces of bent wire! Plans include a comprehensive catalogue, bespoke mannequins/stands, museum-quality interpretations and audio-visual displays set in the body of the church for the benefit of people unable to climb the narrow winding stairway to the armoury. Although detailed costings have yet to be calculated, it is likely that it will cost well over £100,000.
Three leading armour specialists are advising and guiding the PCC – Dr Tobias (Toby) Capwell, until recently Armourer of the Wallace Collection, David Edge, his predecessor and also Head of Conservation and Simon Metcalf, the King’s Armourer, responsible for the private Royal Arms and Armour collections.
To kickstart the project, the PCC successfully obtained a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, first to seed-fund a Heritage Fair, held at the beginning of May, to help reconnect the community to its Tudor history. You can see plenty of photos and descriptions of this below. Secondly, this will facilitate a research project into some documents found discarded in one of the church’s mid-C15th chests in the 1870s. We hope that some of them may shed further light on the history and context of the armoury and its contents.
A superb booklet has been researched and produced about the armoury by historian Shona Rutherford-Edge, which you can purchase through the form below.
St Mary’s Mendlesham PCC holds all funds raised and donated for the Armoury Facelift Project in a restricted fund to be used solely for that purpose. To date, this stands at approximately £18,750. To donate to the project, please use the bank details given below, with the reference 'Armoury donation'.
** If you have ordered a booklet and have not heard from us, please contact via this link. While we have received several orders, we have no record of the order for 1 person who believed their order had gone through and there may possibly be others..**
We now want to discover whether any more of these documents cast further light on the arms and armour. Several keen volunteers have agreed to take part. We are about to embark on a series of visits to the Suffolk Archives at The Hold, Ipswich during specific weekdays to carry out and record this research. There was a preliminary visit to The Hold on Friday 13th September from 2.00pm - 4.00pm with a talk by Senior Archivist Bridget Hanley, and we had a chance to see and handle a lot of original documents. Several mentions of the armoury and its arms and armour were found which had not previously been recorded. All looks most exciting! This project was delayed because the Hold was closed since 1st October to take in the East and West Suffolk archives. It was originally due to re-open in January but did not until the first week of February. Since that time a group of 12 have been working hard on the research. We discovered there are no less than 116 Churchwardens records - some of them up to 10 pages long, nearly all written in Secretary Script. We have photographed all of them and gone through each painstakingly. The results so far are really fascinating, with numerous mentions of our Mendlesham predecessors buying equipment and training. We are recording all the finds and now planning to produce a booklet later in the year containing the conclusions. ARMOURY CONFERENCE: SAVE THE DATE - 11th OCTOBER 2025 --- see more details soon! |
Book:
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The details below remain on our website to show how the initiatives feeding into the Armoury Facelift Project have been progressing
'Fytt for thy degree: Clothing and arming the Typical Tudor man'
A huge Thank-You to Ninya Mikhaila, Dr Toby Capwell and the Medieval Dress and Textile Society (MEDATS)
for this very interesting and enjoyable online presentation on 11th October and for so generously offering all profits to the Mendlesham Armoury Facelift Project.
72 people bought tickets and over an amazing £1,000 profit was made.
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Ninya shared insights into the conventions of everyday dress and ownership of armour by men in 16th century England. Drawing on research carried out for the recent publication The Typical Tudor: Reconstructing 16th century dress, which included a survey of nearly 10,000 documents containing references to clothing, arms and armour, as well as research for a forthcoming publication on textile armour, Ninya illustrated how clothing styles, colours and materials changed through the period as well as the types and quantities of armour utilised by the different ‘sorts’ of men.
Dr Tobias (Toby) Capwell, historian and armour specialist, introduced the talk and answered questions at the end.
Ninya co-owns a business called the Tudor Tailor, which provides bespoke garments, patterns and other historical clothing items for the Tudor period for national museums, films and TV. https://www.tudortailor.com/
Dr Tobias (Toby) Capwell, historian and armour specialist, introduced the talk and answered questions at the end.
Ninya co-owns a business called the Tudor Tailor, which provides bespoke garments, patterns and other historical clothing items for the Tudor period for national museums, films and TV. https://www.tudortailor.com/
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THANK YOU for generous grants from the Arms and Armour Heritage Trust (£11,000) and the Arms and Armour Society (£125) towards the Armoury Facelift Project. |
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The total profit towards the Armoury Facelift Project was an amazing £7,659.49. Thanks to the 75 who took part and the 67 adult volunteers who helped in all kinds of ways - plus the children of Mendlesham school and 1st Mendlesham Scouts - and of course to all who came on the day. It was an absolutely wonderful afternoon... over 600 people came to listen, learn and enjoy themselves and despite rain falling a mile below the southern parish boundary the entire time, Mendlesham stayed dry. Thanks, of course, to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for helping to make this possible. Most important of all, great inroads were achieved towards the main aim, which was reconnecting the community with its unique Tudor heritage.
We intend soon to contact those of you who gave positive feedback and want to be involved with the project in the future. Some photos are below, we have just added some more and we hope to add further ones soon.....
We intend soon to contact those of you who gave positive feedback and want to be involved with the project in the future. Some photos are below, we have just added some more and we hope to add further ones soon.....
Though the Heritage Fair has now taken place, the details below this are retained for the benefit of any who wish to read about the project and what took place.
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Thanks to the National Lottery Heritage Fund!
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Mendlesham PCC welcomes the exciting award by the Heritage Fund of a generous grant of £9,993 to include both the Heritage Fair and a research project (more about that later!). This will enable us to make this event extra special, and means we are able to have an amazing array of demonstrations, talks and activities to help the community re-engage with its unique Tudor heritage in a way not possible without the grant.... and though it will be of top quality, entry will be truly affordable!
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Mendlesham's Unique Tudor Armoury
The Heritage Fair is part of St Mary’s PCC's exciting plans for better conservation and display of this amazing heritage, plus greater community involvement....
Unfortunately, due to the large number of people likely to attend the Heritage Fair on 6 May the armoury itself cannot be open as it is too small to accommodate many at once. However, a short film will be shown throughout the afternoon- and there will be both replica armour and The Tudor Group wearing authentic armour re-creating the 'traynings' of the parish militia. Featuring... |
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Art Exhibition: pupils of Mendlesham Primary School - is displayed in the church as part of the school’s study of local history and involvement in this community project. Some wonderful pictures have resulted from the recent site visit by one class, seen here busy at work in a photo taken by their teacher. The other photos show just a sample of their work.
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Film: England's Forgotten Tudor Armoury by Dr Allan Barton -Though the armoury can’t be open at the Heritage Fair on Monday, as it wouldn’t be safe in the small space with so many people coming, one marquee in the south churchyard is set out as a mini-cinema, where, on a large screen, you will be able to sit and watch this superb, recently-made film which explains the history pf the armoury - why it is there and exactly how it looks inside. 
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Food & Drink:
12.- no event is complete without food and drink and the Heritage Fair will be no exception, with a great variety to help sustain you throughout the afternoon: in church - Teas, Coffees, Squash, Cakes, Sausage Rolls: (Friends of St Mary’s) and in the first south churchyard Beer, wine, soft drinks together with Hog Roast: (Harris’s Hog Roast); Home-made Cakes, Scones: (Mendlesham WI) & Hot Dogs & Burgers: (1st Mendlesham Scouts). ...and as you can see, the bunting and lots of the marquees and canopies are now up and waiting...12.00 NOON to 17.00 on Monday. St Mary's Mendlesham Church and Churchyards IP14 5SF. Please bring cash; card machines can be unpredictable outside. All profits to the Armoury Facelift Project.
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Blacksmith: Paul Stoddartof Kingdom Forge, Brundish, who entered the profession aged just 18, training for two years at the National School of Blacksmithing in Herefordshire and then adding the qualifications of welding, fabrication and light machining.
10 years later, he not only who runs courses for people wanting to try this craft but is also Armourer for the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden making swords and other blades for stage productions both there and elsewhere and also for films. Come and watch Paul working at his gas-powered forge, discuss with him the challenges of his craft and see some of his superbly hand-crafted metal artefacts.
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Beekeepers: SDBKA - Stowmarket and District Beekeeper’s Association, an association passionate about bees and beekeeping in the local area and affiliated to the British Beekeepers’ Association (BBKA). Come and discuss with its members, this fascinating centuries-old craft and learn from some who have decades of experience about, beekeeping equipment, types of hives and best locations, lifecycle of the honeybee, the beekeeper’s calendar and other mystiques of beekeeping.. You will also have the opportunity to buy some of their bee-related products.
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Wattle & Daub: Orchard Barn
Wattle and daub is the ‘wall-filling’ between the timbers in the numerous Tudor and medieval timber-framed buildings found in Suffolk - and Orchard Barn is a community-run centre in mid-Suffolk and CPD Provider recognised by the Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC). Its mainstay is providing practical courses in heritage building, natural greenwood and rural skills.
Come and watch some of its specialists show how to make daub from clay subsoil and straw, demonstrate how to apply daub to a wattle panel and talk about the use of coppiced woodland materials and earth as building materials in older buildings. This zero-carbon process continues to benefit the environment as it has done for centuries.
Come and watch some of its specialists show how to make daub from clay subsoil and straw, demonstrate how to apply daub to a wattle panel and talk about the use of coppiced woodland materials and earth as building materials in older buildings. This zero-carbon process continues to benefit the environment as it has done for centuries.
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Longbows: Clive Bartlett– a renowned specialist in Longbows and leading author on the subject, who helped catalogue the many Tudor bows lifted from the Mary Rose, Henry VIII’s ill-fated flagship. Our Armoury contains part of a rare late Tudor longbow and Clive can talk about that, as well as let you handle some of his own extensive collection of longbows whilst gleaning some of his extensive knowledge.
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Live Tudor Music on Recorders & Crumhorns- hear the gentle sounds of Tudor madrigals, dances, songs and the delights of other Tudor music at the Heritage Fair, played on recorders and crumhorns by 3 consorts taking turns throughout the afternoon. Their music played inside the church will be broadcast to the churchyards – The Arcadian Consort - 4 players established for 15 years, who play a wide range of music at open gardens and similar events around Bury St Edmunds; Alice and Fran - a pair of musicians based in Suffolk, who regularly perform in venues across the county and Windbags – featuring 7 players from another Suffolk-based group. During their breaks you can also talk to the musicians about their varied instruments.
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Heraldic Calligraphy: David Truzzi-Franconi
- a Suffolk-based freelance Heraldic Artist and Calligrapher, specialising in the production of Funerary Hatchments and panels depicting the Royal Arms, Letters Patent and illuminated documents such as Freedom Certificates. He is a Former Deputy to the Clerk of the Records at Her Majesty's College of Arms, Fellow of the Society of Heraldic Art and Member of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators. At the Heritage Fair he will be inside the church, where you can watch him working on a funerary hatchment – not far from an original one which is on the south wall - and see some more examples of his work.
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Suffolk Village Spinners and WeaversThe ethos of the group is to keep traditional wool-related skills alive, including spinning, weaving and dyeing and they regularly demonstrate at the Suffolk Show. At the Heritage Fair you can watch members at their spinning wheels and loom and talk with them about the intricacies of these ancient crafts.
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Tudor Food: Mistress Kathleen's Tudor Kitchen - researched and devised by former librarian Kathleen Halllaways. Come and savour the delights of Tudor food, from saffron chicken to Pease Pottage, a variety of breads to fruit pastries, gingerbread and frangipane Knead dough; churn butter; test your knowledge of the Spice Woman’s basket; choose your device for a tournament fancy.
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Armour Expert - David Edge- who is a former Head of Conservation and Armourer at the Wallace Collection in London, a contributing author of ‘Masterpieces of European Arms and Armour in the Wallace Collection’ ("Book of the Year" – Apollo Awards, 2012) and author of “Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight" (1988). He is also a member of the prestigious Meyrick Society.
After the curate The Revd W Partridge and schoolmaster Arthur Mayfield found the Mendlesham armour in a rusting heap on the upper floor of the north porch in 1908, the Meyrick Society restored it - and its members kindly paid for the restoration as the village couldn’t afford the cost.. At the Heritage Fair you can hear David talk about 16th & 17th Century arms and armour, ask him questions, see some of his collection of real armour - and also have a go trying-on some replica pieces which he’s bringing! 
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Stained Glass Artist – Benjamin Finn
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Potters - Leon & Jenny Petterson -who have lived and worked for over 40 years in Stowupland, next to Mendlesham, making hand-decorated earthenware and stoneware pottery by slip-casting & wheel throwing. Their basic working methods would have been familiar to our Tudor forebears but they have adapted this age-old skill to suit the needs of people in this century and their high quality work is stocked in places such as local National Trust shops, Southwold Gallery and Alder Carr Farm, where their daughter Jenny has recently become resident potter.
Come and watch them working at their potter’s wheel at the Heritage Fair, where you will have the opportunity to talk to them about their craft and buy some of their beautiful hand-finished items. Click here to read more about Leon and Jenny's work.
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HRW - History Re-enactment Workshop– a small, nationally-based interpretation group, covering the Tudor and Stuart periods, who take an historic building and recreate historic families in the first person, to allow you to experience history in the place it was made.
In this living history experience, as you approach their marquee, you'll find yourself transported to the year 1588, hearing local characters discussing the worry that their husbands, sons, brothers etc. will be taken into the local militia and marched away into the army to fight invading Spaniards. Your children will be invited to put on a blue shirt and red cap supplied by the group and join in exercising the Cannon ‘Gun Team’. . They'll go through the drill (non-firing, of course) overseen by a servant of the Deputy Lord Lieutenant, sent to explain the ins and outs of gunnery either at sea or the castle wall. lick here to read more about HRW.
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The Tudor GroupIn a nation with no standing army, its defence relied on the local Trained Bands – a part-time militia made up from labourers and craftsmen of the parish - – the ‘Dad’s Army’ of its time. Come, see and talk to The Tudor Group in armour and red caps – looking and practising like the 1588 Mendlesham parish ‘trained band’ – with muskets, caliver, swords, bows and bills plus halberd & half pike – and the ‘Parish Clerk’ at his desk with quills, ink and parchment to record it.
Click here to read more about the Tudor Group
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Traditional Oak CarpentryCome and watch Rick Lewis making traditional cleft oak framing pegs just as they would have been made 450 years ago to fasten mortice and tenon joints – and his collection of ancient carpentry tools used to build timber framed buildings of the past.
Rick has been repairing Medieval, Tudor and later traditional framed buildings in Suffolk for 35 years, gaining an excellent reputation with his team at Traditional Oak Carpentry Ltd. They have built Anglo-Saxon framed structures at West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village, siege machines for Historic Royal Palaces at the Tower of London as well as the Medieval carpentry section in the BBC series “How We Built Britain” with David Dimbleby. Click here to read more about Traditional Oak Carpentry Ltd.
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