OxfordshireCLIFTONHAMPDENStMichaelAllAngels(davepriceCC-BY-SA2.0)1 DavePrice

St Michael & All Angels

Clifton Hampden church is an architectural gem, standing as it does with its fine spire on a hill beside the River Thames at the heart of a beautiful village.

Clifton Hampden, Oxfordshire

Opening times

Daily from 9.30am to 5pm.
If for any reason it is locked a key may be obtained from the village shop at the bottom of the church steps.

Address

St Michael & All Angels
Clifton Hampden
Oxfordshire
OX14 3EE

The church of St Michael & All Angels is a holy place with a long history stretching back to Saxon times; and it is an architectural gem.

It has a 'theatrical quality' (Pevsner) standing on its cliff overlooking the River Thames. The oldest remaining elements are the monumental south aisle pillars of the 12th century.

The church was rebuilt by the great Victorian architect George Gilbert Scott in the 19th century and is one of his early masterpieces; he went on to design the Albert Memorial and St Pancras Hotel. 'We have had little to restore, it is rather a refoundation', he wrote when working at Clifton Hampden; it is in effect a fine early Tractarian building. The screen with St Michael at the top surrounded by his angels is particularly important, a miniature version of those of Hereford (now in the V & A) and Lichfield Cathedrals.

The churchyard dates from 1819 and among those buried in it are Sergeant William Dyke, who is said to have fired the first shot at the Battle of Waterloo, and Major John Howard, who led the daring Pegasus Bridge glider raid in the Second World War. The church was a major element of the physical development of the village during the 19th century; at that time also were built the village school, the bridge across the Thames replacing the old ferry and the village hall.

It is at the centre of what Jerome K Jerome called 'a wonderfully pretty village'.

  • Spectacular stained glass

  • Magnificent memorials

  • Fascinating churchyard

  • Enchanting atmosphere

  • Captivating architecture

  • Walkers & cyclists welcome

  • Steps to enter the church or churchyard

  • Space to secure your bike

  • Ramp or level access available on request

  • Parking within 250m

  • On street parking at church

  • Dog friendly

  • Church of England

  • Partnership Grant, £2,500, 2013

  • Our Partnership Grants funded a range of repair projects, recommended by County Church Trusts, to help keep churches open.

Contact information

Other nearby churches

Dorchester Abbey

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Peachcroft Christian Centre

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Peachcroft Christian Centre is a modern church built to serve the community of northeast Abingdon.

St Helen

Abingdon, Oxfordshire

St Helen's overshadows St Nicolas at Abingdon in the same way that the town's old abbey church must have overshadowed St Helen's in its day.