St Mary Virgin, Buckland Robert Cutts

St Mary the Virgin

A visitor to this 12th century beautiful church can see many different architectural styles with constant reminders of the past in the two transepts and the chancel, richly endowed to celebrate the loves of lost ones.

Buckland, Oxfordshire

Opening times

The church is open every day from 9am to 5pm for visitors.

Address

Church Street
Buckland
Oxfordshire
SN7 8QW

The unusually wide Nave was started in the 12th century, followed by the chancel and transepts in the 13th century, while the vestry was added in Victorian times. The niche in the porch is 600 years old and now contains a statue of the Virgin Mary to whom the church is dedicated. A rare matching pair of Norman arches form the north and south doorways to the nave. The font is late 14th century, is octagonal and well preserved with a wooden lid.

Well worth a mention is the late 12th-century Crusader chest and one of the most unusual items in the church can be found in the chancel. It is a triangular locker containing the heart burial (1575) of William Holcott of Barcote Manor. He was a staunch Protestant who only just avoided being burnt at the stake by Mary Tudor. After the Reformation, he became a zealous lay preacher, often gracing the pulpit in his "velvet bonnet and damask gown...sometimes with a gold chain".

The Barcote Chapel in the south transept, illustrating the ‘Te Deum Laudamus’, is dedicated to Clara Jane, wife of the millionaire William West of Barcote and its highly decorated panels of mosaic were installed during 1890-92. An ancient iron bound chest located in the north transept dates from the 12th century and may have been used to hold donations for the third crusade in 1189.

The ring of eight bells, some dating from 1636, are in the key of E major and are in regular use. The clock was made by EJ Dent, makers of the Big Ben clock and is listed in their 1877 catalogue. The organ is a fine three manual instrument by Holdich/Martin dating back to the end of the 19th century. Two exterior sundials, dated 1707 and 1741, are mounted on the south facing walls.

  • Captivating architecture

  • Glorious furnishings

  • Magnificent memorials

  • National heritage here

  • Social heritage stories

  • Spectacular stained glass

  • Level access to the main areas

  • Non-accessible toilets in church

  • On street parking at church

  • Parking within 250m

  • Space to secure your bike

  • Walkers & cyclists welcome

  • Wifi

  • There is a carpeted play area at the rear of the church for young children.

  • Church of England

  • Repair Grant, £10,000, 2017

  • Our Repair Grants funded urgent repair work to help keep churches open.

  • Partnership Grant, £5,000, 2014

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

Contact information

Other nearby churches

St Mary the Virgin

Bampton, Oxfordshire

The church of St Mary the Virgin lies at the centre of an ancient parish within an Anglo-Saxon royal estate and on the site of a late Anglo-Saxon minster from 950 or earlier.