Parts of St. Peter’s church are early 12th century, with the tower being added in the later part of the century, the church was valued at £10 in 1291.

By the late 15th century the medieval village was deserted. The Public Records Office has a document from 1498 where a jury states that 60 occupants of the village were driven out:

weeping to wander in idleness…[and] perished of hunger.
A Social History of England, 1200-1500 (p127)

The modern village dates from the mid Victorian period.

The village and estate is owned by the Spencer family. Wormleighton was the former manor house for the Spencer’s. They were owners in 1469 and bought the lordship of Wormleighton from the Copes in 1507. Their money came from sheep farming, and by the 1600s the estate had some 20,000 head.

From the early 13th century churches installed a rood (choir, or chancel) screen to separate the congregation from the clergy. This followed the following the exposition of the doctrine of transubstantiation at the fourth Lateran Council of 1215, after which the clergy were obliged to protect the sacrament from irreverant access or abuse. Prior to this period the chancel had curtains which were drawn across the altar at specific points in the Mass. However, the nave of the church was often used for secular activities and some permanent division was felt necessary.

This particular screen is from the 15th century ornately carved and hidden high up on the left hand corner is a carving of a man wearing spectacles.

The plaque above the door is a memorial to Diana Spencer.

The Victorian glass below is set into a 13th century lancet window at the western wall is dedicated to Richard William Rann. The stained glass window above is set into the 14th century south wall. However, the glass itself is Victorian and was dedicated to Rev. Robert Maynard (1814-1869), who was parish priest at Wormleighton for 27 years.

The floor of the nave contains medieval tiles, one of which has the impression of cat paws.

Church website.

Tags: peter, stained glass, tower

Dating back to the early 13th century the parish church of St Peter and St Paul is built from the local ironstone which was quarried nearby, and limestone. Much of the church was restored in 1853. Remains of the base of what is thought to be an earlier Anglo-Saxon preaching cross is to be found in the south east of the church yard. The head of the cross is thought to be that seen in the external south wall. In the late 11th century a small priory of Clunic Monks (never more than four), a dependency of the Abbey of Cluny in France, was established in Preston Capes. It was later abandoned due to noise from the nearby castle of Hugh de Leicester, sheriff of Northamptonshire. Being unsuitable for a monastery the monks moved to Daventry.

When the church was restored in 1853 a Victorian stained glass window was installed, the remains of which survive in the top tracery. This was later replaced by plain opaque glass. However this was replaced by an engraved window by Annabel Rathbone and is a memorial to George St John Ravenshear who died in 1972 at the age of ten and whose face appears as that of St George, in the middle bottom pane. The window was provided by Norman St John-Stevas, who used to live in the vicarage next door to the church.

The pews in the nave are Victorian copies of the those in the chancel which are medieval and have traceried panels and poppyhead bench ends.

Tags: paul, peter, stained glass, tower