Hornblotton: St Peter, Hornblotton House and village history

Hornblotton has a clear cultural and historical focus: St Peter and Hornblotton House represent different building purposes and periods. The history of the church, its interior furnishings and the interpretation of a former medieval settlement give the village several points of interest for your stay.

St Peter: Building history and interior furnishings

St Peter in Hornblotton was built between 1872 and 1874 by Sir T G Jackson for Rector Geoffrey Thring. The church replaced an earlier building on the same site. Preserved almost unchanged, St Peter is a rare example of Jackson’s church designs.

The furnishings combine individual works with a design that extends throughout the interior: the tiled reredos above the altar is by William de Morgan, and the stained glass by James Powell and Sons. Sgraffito covers all the interior surfaces and features floral and botanical motifs as well as pictorial representations from the Bible. The sgraffito is considered the earliest example of this technique being used on such an ambitious scale. The church’s design thus reveals both named individual works and the effect of an all-over surface treatment.

Hornblotton House and its building phases

Hornblotton House is listed Grade II. It was built in 1848 as a rectory with ancillary rooms on church land, for Revd John Gale Dalton Thring and to designs by Francis Cranmer Penrose. In 1881, T G Jackson repaired and remodelled the house.

The building is considered a notable English country rectory dating from before 1850, with a high-quality remodelling in the late 19th century. The dates help distinguish the building phases: the rectory was built in 1848, the church followed between 1872 and 1874, and work on the house took place in 1881. Its original use as a rectory also sets its building history apart from that of the church, which replaced an earlier church building.

Earthworks and the former settlement

The history of the village extends beyond these buildings. Earthworks immediately south and south-east of the present church probably indicate the site of the abandoned medieval village of Hornblotton. This interpretation adds another historical layer to the area around the church: alongside the present building, the suspected site of the former settlement is also part of the village’s history.

Routes in Hornblotton

A public footpath runs alongside a private green lane, follows the route of an early path towards the church and crosses the area of the former settlement. If you plan to use this route, please check local information about public rights of way before setting out for a walk.

The Monarch’s Way is a bridleway that runs from the north-west corner of the Hornblotton House estate. The two route descriptions therefore differ both in route type and in their point of reference: the footpath is associated with the former settlement and the direction of the church; the bridleway with a corner of the estate. This distinction helps place each route description in its stated context.

Discover more destinations: Nunney, Horsington, Ditcheat, Ilchester, Frome, West Huntspill, Exford, Lyng.

For the broader travel overview: Somerset.