St Mary the Virgin, Cheshunt is a Church of England parish church in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, England, situated at Churchgate near the ruins of Cheshunt Great House.[1] Built between 1418 and 1448 in the Gothic style, it replaced an earlier medieval church possibly dedicated to St John the Baptist. The church was designated a Grade I listed building in 1950 and is noted for its stonework, medieval tower, and collection of historic monuments and vaults.[2]
The interior and surrounding churchyard contain a number of memorials to prominent local families, including the Cromwell family of Cheshunt Park, descendants of the Lord Protector, as well as the Dewhurst, Russell, Dacre, Meux, and Dodson families.[3]
The is also a monument to Sir Nicholas Dixon, Baron of the Exchequer (1390-1448), and several memorials commemorating parishioners who served in the World Wars. The church includes an interior First World War memorial listing 104 parishioners killed in service.[3][4][5]
History
The site of St Mary the Virgin Church has been a place of Christian worship since at least the 12th century, with evidence of a church dedicated to St John the Baptist on the site of the present-day church.[3][6]
The original settlement of Cheshunt likely developed around the church, near the Roman Ermine Street, before a trading community emerged along the high road by 1086, as noted in the Domesday Book.[7][8]
Porch of St Mary the Virgin Cheshunt
The current church was rebuilt between 1418 and 1448 under the rectorship of Nicholas Dixon, possibly due to neglect following the Black Death which disrupted many ecclesiastical institutions.[3]The dedication changed from St John the Baptist to St Mary the Virgin during this period.[3]
Advowson
The church was historically appendant to the manor of Cheshunt, with its advowson, the legal right to appoint the parish priest, attached to the earldom of Richmond. Between 1146 and 1171, Conan, Duke of Brittany granted the church to the canons of Fougères, a religious house in Brittany. This transfer triggered a protracted dispute over ecclesiastical control, including with the Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral, which claimed competing rights.[9]
St Mary the Virgin, Cheshunt is an example of Gothic architecture, constructed from cemented flint with ashlar dressings.[3][11]
It consists of a chancel with north and south chapels, a nave with north and south aisles, a south porch, and a west tower with an octagonal turret rising above its embattled parapet.[11]
The present structure was rebuilt between 1418 and 1448 under Rector Nicholas Dixon, whose brass commemorates the work. No earlier structural fabric remains, although the south chapel, vestry, and porch are later additions, and the whole church underwent substantial 19th-century restoration.[11][12][13]
Grade II listed obelisk in the churchyard
The west tower, built of ashlar in three stages, has a vaulted lower stage and buttresses at the base. It contains a pointed west doorway beneath a square head with traceried spandrels and a three-light west window above. Two-light cinquefoiled windows light the upper stages, though much of the stonework is now decayed.[9]
The church’s six medieval bells were recast, and two new bells added, by Gillett & Johnston of Croydon in 1911. The communion plate includes a cup and flagon dated 1638 and a paten of 1672.[11]
Churchyard
The churchyard closed to new burials in 1855.[10][14] Encompassing a maintained green space adjacent to the church, it contains a number of headstones from the medieval period to the 19th century.[14] Several of which are Grade II listed.[14]
Among them is obelisk to the Ashfordby family, dating from around 1717, which stands on the north side of the church. Nearby is the tomb chest of the Bolland family, a slate monument of about 1840, commemorating the Rev. William Bolland (1785–1840) and members of his family. Two further chest tombs, the Daking and Maudsley monuments, both date from the 18th century and are of light-coloured stone with panelled sides and gadrooned angles.[14]
To the south of the church stands the Prescott family monument, a late-18th-century pyramidal memorial associated with the Prescotts, who held the lordship of Cheshunt and Theobalds in the 18th and 19th centuries.[14]
St Mary the Virgin Church and churchyard
Richard Cromwell
An unverified claim suggests that Richard Cromwell, son of Oliver Cromwell and Lord Protector of England (1658–1659), may be buried in an unmarked tomb in the churchyard.[15] This speculation, referenced in Ian H. James’ book 20A Lordship Road, posits that Cromwell, who lived in exile under an assumed name after the Restoration, may have returned to Cheshunt and been buried discreetly.[15][16]
St Mary the Virgin Church and churchyard
Parish and ministry
Inside the church
St Mary the Virgin Church is part of the Cheshunt Team Ministry in the Diocese of St Albans, alongside Christ Church, Waltham Cross; St Clement’s, Turnford; and St James’, Goffs Oak.[6][10] The church serves a congregation that includes regular worshippers, occasional visitors and newcomers.[6][10]
According to the 2022 Statistics for Mission report, St Mary the Virgin, Cheshunt, had an average weekly attendance of 68, with 98 people on the electoral roll. The congregation included 17 individuals under 17, 71 adults aged 18–69, and 17 over 70. Attendance subsequently grown, with Easter Day congregations increasing from 85 in 2022 to 100 in 2023 and 108 in 2024.[10]
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