Redenhall / Radanalla / Redanahalla

Blomefield (1805-1810) writes: "The church is dedicated in honour of the Assumption of the blessed Virgin Mary, and is a good regular building; having its north porch, nave, and two isles, leaded, and chancel tiled. It was rebuilt of freestone, by Thomas of Brotherton Earl of Norfolk; and the chancel by Will. Neuport, rector: but the noble square tower which is very large and lofty, is of a much later foundation, i[...] It was begun about 1460 [...] the south-east spire [...] was split from top to bottom by a tempest [...] This Spire was demolished in the Year 1680, and rebuilt in the Year 1681". Blomefield (ibid.) notes that the church was originally a rectory and its first recorded rector was "Jeffery de Stoctone", who resigned in 1326; "John de Sloleye" appears as the first recorded vicar, in 1375, and "Thomas de Ingham" the first recorded rector of the restored rectory in 1441, when, "at the complaint of this vicar, the church was disappropriated, and became a rectory again". Pevsner & Wilson (1999) write: "Font. C19. Octagonal, with four lions against the stem and four demi-figures of angels and the signs of the Evangelists against the bowl. Presumably a copy of the font for which money was left in 1505." Described and illustrated in Knott (2005): "The 19th century font is particularly hideous". It is actually a Victorian rendition of the typical East Anglian font with the four Evangelists' symbols alternating with angels holding shields on the basin sides, decorated underbowl with angels and flowers, and seated lions and buttresses on the stem sides; it is perhaps not a very successful rendering, and certainly not a faithful copy of an earlier one. [NB: we have no information on the font of this original church; the 15th-century font, on the other hand, may have been of roughly the same general design as the present one].