| Location:
Inside the main gate to the
Churchyard and to the left.
O/S Grid Ref: SX/70939/73197
Longitude/Latitude (Degrees+/-): -3.82285/50.54425
Map location:
Click here
to view map.
Purpose: Memorial
to the builder of the Church.
Size: 7
feet 3 inches (2.21 metres) tall. 1 foot 8 inches (0.51 metres) across the
arms. The base of the shaft is 10 inches (0.25 metres) wide and 12 inches
(0.30 metres) deep.
Information:
This impressive Cornish
cross is set up on a pedestal of 3 steps. The head and arms, which have
been chamfered and taper inwards,  are enclosed in a circle in the Cornish
style. The shaft is also chamfered and is tapered from the base upwards.
The socket stone is 2 feet 7 inches (0.79 metres) square and 18 inches
(0.46 metres) high. It has a fancy finish to its top edges and corners.
All three steps of the pedestal are square, with each reducing in size
from the one below. The heights of each also reduce from 16inches (0.41
metres) for the bottom step, to 14 inches (0.36 metres) for the middle and
12 inches (0.31 metres) for the top step. This makes the total height of
the cross a full 12 feet 3 inches (3.73 metres) above ground level.
The top edges of
the two upper steps have been chamfered to match the cross. The top step
has also been engraved, as follows:
|
 |
| Front edge: |
To the Glory of
God |
| Right hand edge: |
In loving
memory of Charlotte Rosamond Larpent |
| Rear edge: |
Who built and
endowed this Church in 1863 |
| Left hand edge: |
"The
Memory of the Just is Blessed" Prov x.7. |
 The cross, being relatively modern, is
in a very good condition as is the church itself. The church is dedicated
to St. John the Baptist.
On the nearby village green there
are a few interesting items to command our attention. The first
is the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Stone, which stands in the top
left-hand corner of the green. The top of one face has been engraved with
the royal crown, followed by the words ‘EIIR, Silver Jubilee,
1952-1977’.
The stone originally came from Sweaton Farm, in the neighbouring village
of Ponsworthy, and was provided by Veronica Cave-Penny. Veronica is a
descendant of the family of Lieutenant Evelyn Cave-Penny, who was killed
by a sniper in Palestine in the First World War, and in whose memory the memorial
cross on the lower slopes of Corndon Down was erected. On the
opposite side of the road stands the newer Queen Elizabeth II
Diamond Jubilee Stone. This stone has a diamond shape engraved into
the main face, inside of which the words: 'EIIR, Diamond Jubilee, 1952-2012' have been engraved below a royal crown.
  The other feature on the village
green is the Millennium Seat, which is to be found to the centre of the
top of the green. This was commissioned by the Leusdon Memorial Hall Committee in order to commemorate the
new millennium. In selecting a
material for the seat, the appropriate choice was a vandal-proof,
theft-proof, low maintenance and long-lasting five-ton slab of local
granite. The boulder was supplied by local farmer, Mr Booty of Sherwell
Farm, and required the largest digger in the area to lift and transport it
to the site. A small brass plaque has been attached to the front of the
stone to mark the arrival of the new millennium.
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