Friends Meeting House
Broad Campden, Gloucestershire
The Meeting House dates to 1663, making it the earliest in the country still in use.
Its church is perfectly placed on a small hill away from the hurly burly of the High Street, but still feeling very much part of the town.
The tower is the first thing you see: solid and square, it was built in about 1500 and has a symmetry that makes it graceful for all its great size. It houses eight bells that date from 1618 to 1737, and a clock mechanism that was made in 1695, though this was retired in 1962 when a new mechanism was installed.
The nave was rebuilt at about the same time, resulting in a feeling of great harmony throughout the building. Inside, the first impression is of grace and light, highlighted by the window over the nave arch, a Cotswolds speciality.
Treasures include a unique pair of altar hangings from about 1400. There are also excellent monuments, many to the rich wool merchants who poured their wealth into the creation of the building.
