Visit the Breathtaking Memorials at this 14th Century Church.

Added: 2026-05-14

[00:00:01]Welcome to the village of Quainton in Buckinghamshire.

[00:00:06]This little village is about 2 mi away from the one I grew up in and was actually the first place I worked after leaving school.

[00:00:17]Interestingly, the church cross is in the village green and not in a church yard.

[00:00:22]And as you can see in the background, this is Quainton Windmill.

[00:00:27]This is what Quainton's really quite well known for.

[00:00:31]At the end of the video, we'll have a closer look at that.

[00:00:34]And here's what it looked like in the 70s before it was restored.

[00:00:43]The village of Quainton has been here since Roman times. However, it did not receive its present name until after the Anglo-Saxon invaders occupied this part of the country in about 620 AD.

[00:00:56]Being incapable of recognizing British or Roman names, they gave most places names in their own language. Quainton is formed from two elements.

[00:01:06]Quain, meaning queen, and tun, meaning farmstead or estate, later to become town.

[00:01:14]At the end of the village, you'll find this beautiful church.

[00:01:17]This has an unusual double dedication to the Holy Cross, which was an early symbol of the Knights Hospitaler or St. John of Jerusalem, and to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

[00:01:30]This is a 14th century building heavily restored in Victorian times.

[00:01:35]Let's go inside and have a look around.

[00:01:40]It is the Hospitalers who are credited with rebuilding Quainton Church in around 1340 and also erecting the stone preaching cross we saw earlier in the village green.

[00:01:52]In the 15th century, the arcades were heightened, the bell tower, south porch, and north chapel were built.

[00:02:05]By the 19th century, the church was in a sorry state. The architect William White of London was commissioned to undertake a major restoration.

[00:02:14]He reported that the chancel had become a complete ruin, incapable of repair.

[00:02:20]The columns in the nave were leaning dangerously to the south, and the walls and roof were seriously inadequate.

[00:02:27]The general clutter and gloom in the chancel from large monuments and restricted natural light was also out of keeping with Victorian tastes, as were the box pews, triple-decker pulpit, and Jacobean woodwork of the nave.

[00:02:46]White decided to rebuild the chancel completely to the pattern of the original 14th century construction based on stone fragments he found within the walls. The ceiling was replaced with a massive open hammerbeam roof, and a large east window was installed.

[00:03:03]All the large monuments were removed to the nave aisle and tower.

[00:03:09]The work was completed, and the church reopened for worship in October 1877.

[00:03:35]Beneath the chancel floor, and also the body of the church, lies numerous family vaults.

[00:03:41]They are now sealed, and their entrances blocked.

[00:03:45]It would be very interesting to know exactly who is buried underneath here.

[00:03:53]Heading into the south aisle, you'll find this lovely stained glass window.

[00:03:58]It was made by Warrington and Son of London. The subjects being the Annunciation, the Crucifixion, and the appearance to Mary after the resurrection.

[00:04:09]This was fitted in 1873 before the Victorian restoration.

[00:04:16]This part of the church is known as the remembrance chapel, and inside the wall is a 14th century stone piscina.

[00:04:32]This mural monument with a recess contains the figures of a man and woman facing each other across a reading desk.

[00:04:39]It represents Richard Brett, the learned rector of Quainton, who lived between 1595 and 1637.

[00:04:47]Also his wife Alice, who died the same year in 1637, and their 10 children.

[00:04:54]There are inscriptions in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew to denote Dr. Brett's eminence in Middle Eastern languages, which allowed him to serve as one of the team of King James' translators of the authorized version of the Bible.

[00:05:16]The font comes from the 15th century and is made of limestone. It is lead lined and octagonal in shape.

[00:05:23]The dome-shaped wooden cover dates from 1662.

[00:05:36]Tucked away in the corner, you'll find this amazing tomb, which is of a Richard Winwood and his wife Anne.

[00:05:44]Richard died in 1688 and Anne in 1691.

[00:05:48]He was deputy lieutenant of the county and son of a Sir Ralph Winwood, the principal secretary of state to Charles I.

[00:06:02]The tower in the church is locked by these glass doors to protect these fine-looking monuments that were originally in the chancel.

[00:06:11]This side commemorates a Robert Dormer, who was a judge, and his wife Mary and son Fleetwood.

[00:06:18]Robert and his son died in 1726, and Mary his wife in 1728.

[00:06:26]On this side, a large marble monument to a Sir Fleetwood Dormer, who died 1638, and his two sons, who died in 1679 and 1696.

[00:06:44]Over on the north aisle, this large and elaborate monument by the Venetian architect Giacomo Leoni, to commemorate Sir Richard Pigott and his wife Anne, who died in 1686.

[00:06:59]Also, a Thomas Pigott and his wife, by whom it was erected in 1735.

[00:07:13]Here are some lovely painted wooden panels from the 15th century >> [music] >> that came from the original rood screen.

[00:07:21]And also, some steps that would have led up to the rood loft.

[00:07:29]The stone pulpit, which replaced the original triple-deck wooden one, was made in 1885 in memory of another one of the Pigott family.

[00:07:53]>> I really hope you enjoyed looking around this amazing church. It's a Grade 1 listed building and features in Sir Simon Jenkins' acclaimed book, England's 1,000 Best Churches.

[00:08:08]The village of Quainton holds really good memories for me. As I said earlier, my first official job was here in this village.

[00:08:16]But even before that, I would ride here on my bike as a young boy with a bucket and sponge and wash people's cars for £1.

[00:08:25]I would have been around 10 or 11 years old and back then it was safe to do so.

[00:08:31]I don't think I really appreciated just how beautiful this place was growing up, but I definitely do now.

[00:08:42]As you can see, it was a beautiful spring day when I visited, but it was very windy, so I couldn't use the drone.

[00:08:49]Instead, I'll leave you with footage of the unique windmill you saw earlier.

[00:08:55]If you enjoyed this video, please like and subscribe to help this channel grow.

[00:09:29]>> [music] >> Mhm.