44 CHURCHES IN THE RURAL DEANERY OF DORCHESTER. 



transept was standing in the present century. The depth of 

 the transept was the width of the 19th century aisle, which 

 is a lateral extension of it. The south transept in early times 

 corresponded with it ; the greater depth of this transept may be 

 due to an addition made for a purpose which will be considered 

 presently. 



The original structure was Saxon. It is true St. Osmund gave 

 the church to his cathedral of Sarum A.D. 1091, 25 years after the 

 Conquest, but it was not necessarily built at that time, for the 

 occasion of his presenting it was not the building of the church 

 here, but the foundation and endowment of the cathedral there. 



Fordington was a Royal manor in Saxon times, and it is not 

 likely that the King would allow his own manorial lands, upon 

 which so considerable a population dwelt, to be unprovided with a 

 church. This cruciform church probably possessed a central 

 tower. It was a plan which was common to both Saxon and 

 Norman churches. There is no absolute proof of this, but the 

 evidence of the stones is distinctly in its favour ; it will be noticed 

 that, although the Norman arcade is in such excellent preservation, 

 the whole of the centre of the church where the tower would have 

 been, including the chancel and transept arches, was renewed in the 

 15th century, at which time the new tower was built at the west 

 end. This of course may be a coincidence, and there may be no 

 connection between the two, but it looks very much as if the old 

 Saxon tower was standing at that date ; if there were no tower 

 there it is inexplicable why it should have been necessary to renew 

 the stonework in the centre of the church where it would have the 

 best protection, and yet that the Norman work in the nave should 

 be in such excellent preservation three or four centuries later. In 

 confirmation of this view it will be remarked that the Norman 

 arcade to the east ends in a wall which, though much patched and 

 giving evidence generally of 15th century reparation, has a base 

 which was evidently at one time much larger, and might have 

 formed part of the original pier of the tower at the south-west 

 angle. The population of the parish having increased after the 



