Church Heritage Record 608574

The key historical event is the bombing of the church in October 1940, probably associated with Duxford airbase about five miles away. The west tower, most of the north arcade and aisle and the west end of the south aisle and south porch were destroyed, leaving the nave unroofed. Rattee & Kett (Cambridge contractors) immediately made the east end waterproof and the chancel was reopened in 1952. The architects Sir Albert Richardson and his assistant, E.A.S. Houfe began reconstruction work in June 1955. The church was consecrated 21 July 1956. A ‘vicar’ is recorded in 1164 but the nave and tower of the pre-1940 church was of the late fifteenth century, the chancel a rebuilding by Joseph Clarke 1865-66 for the Hon. and Rev. Latimer Neville, Master of Magdalene College Cambridge for fifty years and later 6th Lord Braybrooke. Clarke replaced a north chancel chapel housing the Soame family vault with a north transeptal chapel for the organ and vestry, whose floor level remains well above the nave. The south side of the church was restored in 1874-5. 4 The medieval clunch south nave arcade is standard Cambridgeshire Perpendicular work (with 1874 foliate hood stops) as are the south aisle and two-light clerestorey windows. The south doorway (also of clunch) has a square label with shields to the spandrels and the original wooden door, the ribs integral to the feathered boards studded to the stout rear frame, and its furniture survives (see photo). The east respond of the north nave arcade is also medieval, with the rood stair behind. The continuous chamfers of the pointed chancel arch are Clarke’s, but the clunch base courses suggest it once matched the arcades. As was often the case after the War (and possibly required by the War Damage Commission) the church was largely re-instated ‘as was’. Richardson copied the surviving south side to rebuild the north (retaining some of the surviving east parts) but did not re-instate the parapets. All the roofs are his, apparently at the same pitch as previously, but are copper covered and with copper wall top gutters giving the church distinctive green strips to the walls. His flint walling also incorporated tile courses, in Roman fashion. The elegant window glazing is also his, with rectangular quarries eliding into fan shapes within the tracery heads. Less successful is the short, blunt red brick west tower; it has just one small west lancet window and is topped by a timber slatted bell cage beneath a copper pyramidal roof terminating in a curious reversed acorn ball and weathervane. An inscription around the (main) north door explains the ‘church destroyed by Nazis in Battle of Britain’ and gives the consecration date.

The interior is limewashed to disguise the different materials; the tower is higher than the nave with a huge chamfered arch and a dominating staircase to the southwest corner, all in brick. The floors are all concrete paviours. The chancel is also higher than the nave, the level possibly established from the level of the northern Soame vault (which is presumably still there). It is in Early English style, expensively finished with stone lined windows and foliate sculpture, a big stone north arch to the organ chamber and a triple lancet east window with Irish marble shafts. The seven-arch reredos is of alabaster with Irish marble detached shafts; colourful vines of gilded glass and ceramic mosaic fill the outer four arches, the central three behind the brass altar cross are filled with gold sunrays. The sanctuary floor is of small coloured tiles in classical panels, the chancel of concrete paviours, presumably post-War replacement. Both floors have broad red carpets. Apart from the south door, the font is the only medieval fitting, a simple stone octagonal bowl on a thick octagonal stem. Some late fifteenth century yellowstain glass fragments are just visible in the apex lights of the aisle windows. One east of the south door is a male figure in a niche. Post medieval fixtures include -  the nave pews (and pulpit?) collected ‘from other churches’ in 1955  the chancel furniture is Clarke’s of 1865-6  there is some notable brasswork; the communion rail, the altar cross and lectern, the corona (all presumably of 1865-6) and the 1909 lectern donated 5 by Magdalene College to commemorate the 1853-1904 tenure of Lord Braybrooke as Master  the 1852 Walker organ was rebuilt by Bevington in 1945, but the case is original  the chancel stained glass windows are by C.E.Kempe and Co; 1905 east window (wheatsheaf), the two south windows 1919 (wheatsheaf and tower). Other windows have pretty yellowstain quarries of birds, daisies etc. There are a few post-medieval memorials; more indents and ledgers existed.  The oldest ledger is outside the south door, dated 1616. In the vestry are c.1800 ledgers to the Soames family.  There are two marble wall memorials in the vestry, a fine large white marble cartouche on the north wall to Lady James d.1680 attributed to Jaspar Latham (see photo) and a pentagonal tablet of 1830/1881