St Mary le More

It is believed that the first Christian building was Norman, occupying the site of a pre-Christian temple. This church was rebuilt at the end of the 13th century and then largely reconstructed in 1854 by David Brandon, a Scottish architect. There was major repair and restoration work in 1976 and again in 2009.

Excavations by Oxford Archaeological Unit in 1995 exposed the remains of the mediaeval south wall of the church within the present south aisle and a brick burial vault in the nave. Further archaeological work was carried out in 2009, revealing a further seven internal brick lined vaults and a late 19th century heating system. An eighth vault and part of a boundary wall were revealed in works to the north of the church.

The tower is the oldest part of the present church; its foundations are from the 14th century or earlier, but the tower was destroyed by lightning in 1638 and subsequently re-built in about 1653. Much of the flint and stone for the tower was allegedly brought from Wallingford Castle, once one of the strongest and most important castles in England and built on the direct instructions of William the Conqueror, but the demolition of which had begun, by order of Cromwell’s council of state, in 1652. The tower contains a ring of ten bells, seven of which were installed in 1738.

The church is central to the town, both in its location but it is also pivotal to the community, providing a venue for worship and community activities. For example it is used by a number of local associations for monthly meetings (U3A and the Wallingford Historical & Archaeological Society), weekly rehearsals for various choirs and a choral society, concerts, local markets, carers' group, schools, toddlers group etc. It is a civic church and therefore key for several events during the year such as Mayor's Sunday and Remembrance Sunday. St Mary’s is open every day for both parishioners and visitors.