Northamptonshire

One of the most important examples of Anglo Saxon architecture in Britain, certainly the largest, the church dates from the late 8th and early 9th century.

Its sophistication in design and ornament is a reflection of the national importance of Northampton in the Middle Ages, it was a Royal seat and it was here that the Thomas a Becket trial took place in 1164.

Built of local ironstone, St Mary's dates almost entirely from the 14th century, with the nave and chancel from the beginning of the century and the tower and spire from about 50 years later.

A royal church. It developed into the religious headquarters of the Yorkist faction. It was at Fotheringhay that Richard III was born and Mary Queen of Scots was executed.

A romantic church that stands alone, looking out across a Capability Brown landscape of the 1760s and containing one of the most spectacular and well preserved alabaster tomb chests in the county.

The Spencer family of nearby Althorp transformed the medieval building, creating a funerary chapel with splendid tombs of the family dating from the 16th century. There is a memorial plaque to Lawrence Washington, George Washington’s ancestor.

The mausoleum of the Dukes of Montagu, the monuments to the 2nd Duke and to his Duchess, their daughter Mary and her daughter Elizabeth are the finest group of monuments in the Midlands.

A thrilling experience built between 1908 and 1930 in the gothic style fearlessly mixed with classical appropriations and filled with light with fantastical decoration.

This outstanding late Victorian gothic church was made possible by a local brewer. It contains two 20th century masterpieces, a Madonna by Henry Moore and Graham Sutherland's Crucifixion.