BRIXWORTH : CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS
Church Post Code NN6 9BZ
Open to visitors
Visited May 2025
It was May 2025, and a rare Sunday morning without any church commitments myself, and the chance to head out in to Northamptonshire. We had started off with a revisit to Rockingham; the church there being open when the castle grounds are open. From then sadly, the day hadn’t gone too well with a succession of closed churches which according to prior internet research were due to be open.
I wasn’t in the best frame of mind when we arrived at the church of All Saints at Brixworth; which I was sure would have been open to visitors, and it was. This was a revisit; having previously visited here with David on Wimbledon Men’s Final Sunday back in 2013. Andy Murray was serving for the championship as we pulled in to the car park. David strayed in the car for a while to hear the end of the match; for me though the lure of this magnificent Saxon church was more powerful so, working along the lines of the outcome of the match would be the same if I was listening or not, I made for the church.; David joining me a few minutes later after Murray had won!
Brixworth is a fairly large village, which recorded a population of 5766 at the time of the census of 2021. It is mid way between Northampton and Market Harborough, with the former off to the south. The village is most notable for its historic Saxon church, which dates back to the seventh century; the Peterborough Chronicle noting that an abbey at Brixworth had been founded in 675AD. Another notable Saxon church can be found at Earls Barton, which can be found some ten miles away to the south east. The church of All Saints stands fairly secluded to the north of the village and consists of west tower with spire, nave with north and south clerestories, south chapel and chancel with apse at east end.
The structure here started off life as an abbey and not a parish church with, at one point back in time, the structure being far larger. The church would have porticos, rooms extending out from both north and south of the nave with some of these having side altars to worship whichever saint they were dedicated to.
Nothing remains of these now, with the arches that led to the rooms being bricked up with windows punched through. Perhaps they just fell in to disrepair or more likely damage by Vikings in a raid in 876AD was the cause.
The church was rebuilt during the 10th century, with Roman stone and tile being used in places and it is thought that it was at this point that the church of All Saints became a parish church. The west tower here started off life as a narthex, a western entrance to a church. This started off as a two storey porch before being heightened during the 10th century rebuilding to form a tower, then being heightened again during the 14th century at which point the broach spire was added. An external staircase was added during Saxon times, with only four of these remaining in England; with the others being at Brigstock in Northamptonshire and Hough on the Hill and Broughton in Lincolnshire.
This ironstone church is typically Saxon in its proportions with the walls being of great height. Also typically Saxon is the herringbone stonework as well as the elegant rounded arches seen throughout.
There used to be a south aisle here but that was pulled down leaving the south chapel isolated a little. The outline of where the south aisle used to be can still be seen.
The original chancel started off with a semi circular eastern end, known as an apse. This was taken down and replaced with a traditional rectangular chancel before this was altered again, in restorations of 1865; reverting back to a polygonal apse. The restorations of 1865 also saw the south porch taken and the removal of the south aisle. In those early days there was an ambulatory running around the apse, below ground level and covered by a vault; a processional way or possibly allowing access to pilgrims visiting relics.
There are six bells in the ring here. When Thomas North had his study of the church bells in Northamptonshire published in 1878 he noted that there were five in the ring, with the first four all cast by Hugh II Watts from his foundry in Leicester in 1622.
North notes that the first of the ring was inscribed ‘God Save the King 1622’. The second has the Latin inscription ‘CVM SONO SI NON VIS VENIRE NVMQVAM AD PRECES CVPIES IRE’ which translates as ‘If you be unwilling to come when I call to prayers you’ll not wish to go at all’.
The third is inscribed ‘CELORUM CHRSTE PLATIAT TIBI REX SONUS ISTE 1622’. This one translates as ‘O Christ the King of Heaven may this sound be pleasing to you’. The fourth, and final bell from Watts reads ‘HIS NAZARENVS REX IVDEORVM FILI DEI MISERERE MEI’ ‘Jesus Christ King of the Jews Son of God have mercy on me’.
The fifth of the ring in North’s day was cast by Henry II Bagley in 1683, from his foundry at Chalcombe in Northampton. This bell is inscribed ‘PRO REGE ET ECLESIA HENRICVS BAGLEY ME FECIT 1683’. This reads back ‘For King and Church. Henry Bagley made me’.
One extra bell has been added since North’s study, with being the new first of the ring, which was cast by the Whitechapel Bell foundry in 1993.
The church was open, with a few people still inside; the Sunday morning service having finished a few minutes before. Inside, it was bright and welcoming. The hand of the Victorian restorers can be seen throughout, but there is a great sense of real history here and I spent a few moments trying to imagine what things must have been like here in the past; the noise the smells, the hustle and bustle of this church at its full size and glory. It was time to explore the interior.
I noted that a screen was up at chancel arch. I have no problem with this; having spent years at a church with a screen. Here though, with the historic nature of this church the screen being on display didn’t sit so well with me. Service had not long finished and there is a possibility that it would have been rolled up and taken away so that might not be an issue; and if it isn’t and it is permanently on display then the church is here as a house of God and for the congregation, not the one time visitor looking at things with an architectural eye.
The bricked up arches that would have one point led to other parts of the abbey catch the eye, along with their large semi circular arches; work of great quality which speaks of the prestige of this church back in the day. The chancel arch is 14th century but much of the chancel was rebuilt in the restoration of 1865, with the original apse design reinstated.
Looking to the west, the doorway at ground level would have been the original entrance in to the church before the two storey west porch became the tower. The three small windows above are Norman.
Moving in to the chancel, the high altar is plain and simple; the reredos dates back to the 14th century and features the risen Christ, central who is crowned with hand raised in blessing. He is surrounded by the four symbols of the Gospel writers and flanked by six depictions of saints.
There is some interesting stained glass here, which includes three scenes from Holy Week. We see the scene immediately after the deposition; Jesus’ body has been taken down from the cross and here we see Jesus being anointed for burial by Joseph or Arimathea and Nicodemus.
Following on from this we see the scene of Easter morning; Mary Magdalene, with her traditional long flowing hair, looks in to the empty tomb, alone rather than being one of the three Mary’s. Two angels of the Lord are with her ‘He is not here He is risen’. The third shows the Risen Christ appearing to Mary Magdalene later that day.
A three light window has an eclectic mix, with Luke being the connecting thread. Central above we see the nativity, with Mary and Joseph at prayer alongside the manger, in which is the Baby Jesus. In the background we see the shepherds at prayer after the angel of the Lord had spoken.
Below this is St Luke, who is writing his gospel, accompanied by the winged Ox, his associated symbol. The nativity is covered by the gospels of Luke and Matthew but it is the Gospel of Luke which covers this in the most detail.
To either side we see Jesus raising from the dead the Son of the Widow of Nain with text below reading ‘Young man I say to you arise’ which is from Luke Chapter 7 verse 14. There is also a depiction from Acts Chapter 3 verse 6, also attributed to Luke, where Peter and John heal a crippled beggar.
One other three light window proved to be more of a challenge; with AI Overview helping out when I was unable to decipher some almost unreadable italic script. Central we see the disciples sat together; as they are filled with the Holy Spirit, with below Peter being reinstated by the Risen Christ after he had denied knowing him three times on the night of Jesus’s arrest.
These are flanked by two scenes showing important dates in the church’s history. We see the church being built in the seventh century; with the hard to read script not being helped by Brixworth being named Briclesworde which was the name given to the village at the time of the Domesday Survey. The other refers to 1381 when Richard II confirmed the charters which granted the church to Salisbury Cathedral.
Moving outside, the church grounds are large and well maintained. There is nothing of any great rarity here to be fair, and nothing has its own Grade II Listing but mentioned should be made of one finely carved slate gravestone which would date from the 18th century. This contains several memento mori symbols, designed to remind the onlooker that Man is mortal and will die.
Central is Old Father Time, who carries his scythe along with a banner which reads ‘Time flies our glory fades and death’s at hand’. This is part of a Latin verse, which is often used with memento mori artwork or symbolism. The full verse reads “What's humane life, where nothing long can stand? Time flies, our glory fades, and death's at hand" Father Time looks over at death in the form of a skeleton that carries a shovel, one of the gravedigger’s tools, and an arrow which was sometimes used to symbolise sudden death. A carving in slate at Teigh in Rutland shows a person going about their daily life ready to go to bed. Death in the form of a skeleton emerges from behind a curtain, arrow in hand, ready to strike.
This is the largest surviving Anglo Saxon church in England and it was good to see it again after a few years. I once had a chat with a church warden at a church close to Peterborough who was rightly proud of his church. He said to me that the ‘walls resounded with the prayers of 700 years’ well this is the same but over around 1350 years. Amazing to think that a church had been here for more than 400 years when the Domesday Survey was undertaken in 1086. What things these stones have witnessed; the history of our nation evolving around it while it stands solid throughout the generations, albeit with a few alterations over the centuries.
Open to visitors; an essential visit and worthwhile doubling up with Earls Barton not too many miles away.
I will close this page with a few photographs from two of the other three surviving Saxon external stair turrets. The third is the church of St Mary at Broughton in Lincolnshire which I haven’t visited.
TWE OF THE OTHER THREE SURVIVING EXTERNAL SAXON STAIR TURRETS
The Church of St Andrew at Brigstock Northants.
Click on the photograph above centre to be taken to my page for Brigstock church on one of my other sites.
