St. Andrew’s Church - the Church that Stopped Vikings

Originally built by the Anglo-Saxons in the 7th Century, the first written record we have is from the Domesday Book in 1086, speaking of a ‘richly endowed’ Norman church on the site. Building work on the Norman version seems to have only been completed in 1399, before the Tudors renovated it in the 15th Century.

While the men were away fighting under King Ethelred, these women used the church tower as a defensive position, successfully resisting the horde of Viking invaders.

The church we see today is the restored and refurbished version, completed by the Victorians in the 19th century.