The church owes its grandeur to the fact that the town was, and still is part of the Duchy of Lancaster. The fascinating ancillary buildings – Bede House, the college and the school are all connected with Archbishop Chichele (c.1364 – 1433) who was born here. The church was built in the thirteenth century and then enlarged in the fourteenth. It is large with a magnificent town spire (the latter rebuilt after a fire in 1631).
At it’s base sculpture close in style to that at Westminster Abbey c.1220-80. Internally a sort of double nave, one leading to the chancel, the other to a Lady Chapel.
The church has an unusually large number of medieval brasses including that which is often considered the finest in England. It is to the priest Laurence St. Maur (d.1377) whose soul can be seen wrapped in a napkin being held by an angel in the upper register.
Saints are depicted in the side shafts to either side of his effigy. Elsewhere you will find similar memorials to members of Archbishop Chichele's family, though he himself is buried in a fine tomb in Canterbury Cathedral.
Please refer to the Glossary for any terms in the text that you are unfamiliar with.
