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The tiny village of Tunstall has had a church since at least the 11th century, though its current one dates from the 13th and was largely rebuilt around 1415 by Sir Thomas Tunstall, with further restorations in the 16th and 20th centuries. A mutilated effigy in the church is thought to be of Sir Thomas.
The Bronte sisters attended Tunstall church in the 1820’s whilst at the nearby Clergy Daughters’ School in Cowan Bridge.
In 2015, a painting which had hung in the church for 200 years was found to be a masterpiece by 16th century Venetian artist Francesco Montemezzano, worth more than £100,000.
In the inner jamb of a window in the north aisle is a Roman votive stone, believed to be an altar to the god Asclepius, Greek god of medicine, reused from the nearby fort of Calacum.
Tunstall
The church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Leodegarius in the charming little village of Ashby St Ledger is a gem. There's a 15th century rood screen, box pews, a minstrels gallery and numerous wall paintings.
The church (and village) is also known for its association with the Catesby family, who owned the manor for centuries. Robert Catesby was the brains behind the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. The gatehouse where the plotters met is near the church - but is not open to the public.
Ashby St Ledgers
St Leonard's, Chapel-le-Dale is a tiny church, once a chapel of ease for St John's in Low Bentham, now much visited by worshippers and walkers alike. The chapel probably dates from the 16th century, though it is probably an ancient site. It was even painted by Turner (not sure what colour he used). There are some 200 unmarked burials in the churchyard, the graves of those who died, by accident or illness, during the building of the nearby Ribblehead viaduct and Blea Moor tunnel, and a memorial to them inside.
Chapel-le-Dale
Ingleton
The church of St Magnus the Martyr (a Viking Jarl born c1075), is a bit of a surprise. It is located on a part of the Thames foreshore reclaimed by the Romans and for 700 years stood at the northern end of London Bridge - so everyone arriving or leaving that way would have passed by its door. It was one of the first casualties of the Great Fire of 1666, was rebuilt by Christopher Wren and suffered again during the Blitz of 1940. The interior is quite high church, almost Roman Catholic, and includes a life-size model of a Viking (intended to represent St Magnus). Among its fascinating treasures is its great clock, dating from 1700, a fascinating model of Old London Bridge and a section of Roman timber.
St Martin's, Bladon, is most famous as the burial place of Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (1874-1965), Britain's wartime Prime Minister, who was born at nearby Blenheim Palace. Churchill is buried with his wife, Clementine Ogilvy Spencer Churchill and close by are the graves of Churchill's parents, brother and three of his children. Bladon's original parish church probably dated from 11th or 12th centuries; current building is 19th century and has some attractive glass.
Bladon is on the A4095 between the A44 (Woodstock) and Witney. Parking is limited – if you do travel by car, please consider local residents. You can walk to Bladon if you are visiting Blenheim Palace, about a mile to the north.
Bladon
Nr Woodstock
St Martin's is the oldest ecclesiastical building in Britain still used as a church. It was the private chapel of Queen Bertha of Kent, the Christian Queen of the pagan King Ethelbert of Kent in the 6th century. This was before the arrival of St Augustine to convert the southern English to Christianity; St Augustine is said to have used St Martin's as a base before founding the nearby abbey and cathedral. The church, by tradition, is thought to be a renovated Roman building. It was enlarged in the 7th century, extended in the 11th century and the tower was added in the 14th century. The creator of Rupert Bear, Mary Tourtel, is buried in the graveyard.
St Martin's is part of the World Heritage Site that includes Canterbury Cathedral and the ruins of St Augustine's Abbey. The church has limited opening and depends on volunteers; check the website before making a special journey.
Canterbury
There has been a church here since Saxon times, though the current one is about the 4th version, rebuilt having been bombed during WW2, modelled on Wren's design. It has a rich history. One part of the crypt is medieval. It is very grand inside, but most famous for its Bow bells - anyone born within earshot of them being deemed a cockney.
Oxford’s historic church of St Mary Magdalen stands on a traffic island near the Martyr’s Memorial, surrounded by an unruly churchyard. It looks like a rural oasis amidst the chaos of a city centre. The church is built on the site of a Saxon timber church that stood outside the city walls and which was destroyed by Vikings in the early 11th century. A new stone chapel was built in 1074 but the current building dates from the 12th century and was considerably rebuilt in the Victorian period. There is an ornate 14th century font and the tower is 16th century. Parliamentary troops were held prisoner in the church during the English Civil War, when Oxford was Charles I’s capital.
Oxford
St Mary Magdalene, Newark, is one of the most imposing parish churches you will ever see. It dates from the 12th century and its 14th century spire is one of the tallest in the UK. Though extensively restored in the 19th century, this is very much a medieval church with notable features that include choir stalls, rood screen and the Markham Chantry Chapel. The latter has an early 16th century painted stone 'Dance of Death'. Intimately involved in the Civil War siege, there is still a hole in the church spire where it was hit by a Parliamentary cannon ball. The oldest part of the current building is the crypt, which dates from 1180.
Newark
Exceptionally interesting and beautiful 15th century church built on an ancient site in an unusual, and historic, village. The church is best known for the elaborate tomb of Alice de la Pole, Duchess of Suffolk and granddaughter of the poet, Geoffrey Chaucer. Her father, Thomas, is also buried in the church. The author Jerome K Jerome is buried in the churchyard.
Ewelme
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