About the Church

There was a Norman church on this site before 1180, though it was much smaller than the present one. It consisted of a squat tower, a nave about the same length as today, but without aisles, and a lower, shorter chancel with a pitched roof. About 1260 the Norman church began a slow transformation that was to last nearly 250 years

The chancel was rebuilt, the North aisle constructed with arches to balance the the 13th century south aisle and the south porch was added together with the windows and battlements of both aisles. About 1490 the nave was reconstructed with its magnificent arcading built on the foundations of the old Norman nave. The great window over the chancel arch was added, a rare feature of church architecture, which provides wonderful light for the nave. About 1500, the noble West tower was built, adding grace and proportion to the whole. At 120 ft. in height it ensures that the Church is a landmark from whatever direction Campden is approached.

There is a peal of eight bells, whose dates vary from 1618 to 1737, they were recast and rehung in 1987. The clock mechanism, dated 1695, is now stored under the arch of the tower, having been replaced in 1962.

It is thought that there were stained glass windows dating from the 15th century, but these have disappeared and only fragments remain. The fine East Window by Henry Payne was completed in 1925 in memory of those who fell in the Great War. The window over the chancel arch represents the last judgment.

Preserved behind glass are wonderful survivals from the days before the Reformation: the unique pair of Altar Frontals (c.1500) and the Cope (c.1400). The Altar Frontals were copied by command of Queen Mary for the High Altar of Westminster Abbey for the coronation ceremony in 1912.There are fine 15th century brasses, now secured to the Chancel Floor, the largest of which commemorates William Grevel "...flower of the wool merchants of all England..." The finely carved canopied tomb of Sir Thomas Smythe is on the North wall in the sanctuary and is the most remarkable in the church. He was Lord of the Manor of Campden until his death in 1593. He lived at the court of Henry VIII and was the first Governor of the East India Company.

The Jacobean pulpit and Flemish lectern are gifts from Sir Baptist Hicks, whose ornate tomb is in the Gainsborough Chapel.