The Church of St. Mary the Virgin in Great Milton, Oxfordshire, is a 14th-century rebuild of a 12th-century Norman church.

History of the Church of St Mary

Great Milton's church was first built in the 12th century, without aisles. The side aisles were added in the 13th century.

The church was largely rebuilt after a fire in the early 14th century; the aisle, south porch and east half of the chancel date from this period.

The west tower was built in the 15th century and in 1592 the nave roof was renewed (as attested by an inscription on the east tie-beam).

The church was thoroughly restored in 1850 by G.G. Scott.

What to See at the Church of St Mary

The blocked windows on the north side of the nave indicate the church was originally aisleless. The westernmost bay of the south arcade is Transitional in style and dates from c.1200; it has an unchamfered pointed arch and a hood of square section.

The arch between the nave and chancel is Early English. The elaborate double piscina in the south aisle is by Scott and remodeled from early fragments. The pulpit is Jacobean and the reredos is from 1875 by A.W. Blomfield.

The quatrefoil clerestory windows are 14th century; the window over the chancel arch is Perpendicular. The south wall has an Early English lancet window. The main lights in the east window of the north aisle are from 1915, but the two lower tracery lights contain two early 14th-century scenes, believed to be of Lazarus begging (left) and the death of Lazarus (right).

The chancel was remodeled in the 13th century. The tiles are 14th century and there are two 15th-century carved bench-ends in the chancel; one has a chalice and two cruets.

A round-headed lancet window in the north wall and a blocked lancet in the south wall opposite date from the 12th century. The three lancet windows in the chancel are 12th and 13th century; the remaining windows are Decorated.

The sedilia were constructed by Scott in 1851 in the Perpendicular style using original fragments. The chancel's square-headed piscina dates from the 15th century and cuts into an earlier, possibly 13th-century, one.

Great Milton Parish Church contains several historic and artistically notable monuments. Two slabs with finely carved foliated crosses date from the late 13th century and there are fragments of a 14th-century stone effigy. Brass memorials to Robert Eggersley and his wife (c.1500) have 6-inch figures.

Under the tower is the impressive and finely carved alabaster Dormer monument. Dedicated to Sir Michael Dormer (d.1616), his wife, and his father Sir Ambrose Dormer, the monument is by an unknown sculptor and was moved here from the south aisle in 1860. Three effigies lie under a canopy with allegorical figures of Youth, Death, Age and Time. Reliefs in the spandrels include King David and Death with his dart.

Quick Facts on the Church of St Mary

Site Information
Names:	Church of St Mary · Great Milton Church
Categories:	churches; parish churches; Grade I listed buildings
Faiths:	Anglicanism
Styles:	Early English style; Normans
Dates:	13th-14th C
Visitor and Contact Information
Coordinates:	51.717002° N, 1.092405° W
Address:	Church Rd Great Milton, England
Phone:	01844 279667
Lodging:	View hotels near the Church of St Mary

Note: This information was accurate when first published and we do our best to keep it updated, but details such as opening hours and prices can change without notice. To avoid disappointment, please check with the site directly before making a special trip.

References

1. Personal visits (May-July 2007)
2. Nikolaus Pevsner and Jennifer Sherwood, The Buildings of England: Oxfordshire (Yale University Press, 2002), 562-63.

More Information

• Photos of the Church of St Mary - here on Sacred Destinations