Source 6a - Deerhurst.
A village with two Saxon churches!

Deerhurst is a small village 3 miles from Tewkesbury, near the border between Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.  What makes Deerhurst so special is that it has not just one Saxon church, but two.  There are very few Saxon churches left in Britain so
finding a village with two is very rare.
The word 'Deerhurst' means 'wood frequented by deer'. This is the first clue which will
give you information about the Saxons.  Let's see what else the two churches can tell us.  First let's look at the Chapel of Odda.

Odda's Chapel

As you can see Odda's chapel is the small building to the right of this picture.  It is built into the medieval timber framed farmhouse next door. Inside it is plain and simple, the main room is split in two. Look at the photograph to the right and see how the long hall is split by the chancel arch. Beyond the arch would have been the altar.

Above view of chapel from the car park.

Look closely at all the wooden beams which are above where the altar would be. What does it look like to you? The photograph below gives you a view of the other side of the chancel arch.

Inside Odda's Chapel notice the chancel arch

Who was Odda ?

Odda was Earl of Hwicce (    ) captain of the Royal Fleet and a kinsman of King Edward the Confessor. Inside the chapel is a replica stone telling us who built the chapel and who for;

This reads;

'Earl of Odda had this Royal Hall built and dedicated in honour of the Holy Trinity for the soul of his brother, Aelfric, which left the body in this place.  Bishop Ealdred dedicated it the second of the Ides of April in the fourteenth reign of Edward, King of the English'

Above - Entrance to the chapel, notice the type of arch and below one of the windows