| Summary : The church is built of flint, limestone, brick and ironbound conglomerate. The church consists of nave, north and south aisles, south porch, crossing tower, north and south transepts, demi-crossing, north and south chapels, chancel and north vestry. The detached bell tower is to the south of the church (see child record). Traditionally the church is the site of the nunnery founded by Withburga in 650. The present church has no trace of Saxon work, except prehaps the ironbound conglomerate which is often reused from Saxon or Norman buildings. The visible Norman work includes the remains of the chancel arch, the south doorway, and the re-used stonework visible in the chancel. The chancel, despite its over restoration and the replacement of some 15th century windows by imitation Early English examples, is basically early 13th century in date. Some of the Early English details, for example the south east window, are original. The arches from the chapels to the demi-crossing are 13th century, the nave arcades are also of this date though they appear to have been rebuilt gradually over the century. Several alterations were carried out in the Decorated period and an additional bay was added to the west end of the nave in the early 14th century. The 15th-early 16th century saw the insertion of Perpendicular windows in the transepts and chapels, the south aisle, the chancel and the arches from the transepts to the aisles. The eastern window in the south aisle was probably replaced in the late 16th-early 17th century. The church was restored between 1857 and 1886, and a vestry was added in 1922. William Cowper an anti slavery poet who collaborated with John Newton. He wrote The Negros Complaint and Sweet Meat has Sour Sauce, is buried in the chapel of St Thomas of Canterbury at this church. |