West Lynn – St. Peter’s Church

There has been a church in West Lynn since the late Saxon times, but it appears that the previous one was badly damaged by flooding and a decision was made in 1271 to abandon it. This means that this church was built in the 1270s, likely using materials from the previous church, and the tower is from the fourteenth century. There were reconstructions during the fifteenth century and the chancel is a more modern rebuild, from 1934.

The four-stage west tower.

The tower and the north porch.

The south porch.

The churchyard, with the chancel visible at the east of the church which looks quite squat, but which was once a little longer. In the early nineteenth century, a local author noted that the chancel was roofed with reeds, whilst the main church was roofed with lead, which would explain why that section became harder to look after.

The church did appear to be open when I visited, but given the current health situation I think they were trying to provide somewhere from locals to pray quietly rather than have people traipsing around looking at the older monuments, so I’ll go back at a more opportune time in the future.