St Botolph, Hadstock

Hadstock can claim to be one of the oldest parish churches in continuous use in England. This late Anglo-Saxon church is regarded by many as the Minster built by King Cnut (Canute) in 1020, to commemorate his victory over Edmund Ironside at the battle of Assandun in 1016.

Its history may date even further back, as it was built on the site of an even earlier Anglo-Saxon church. It is possible that this was the site of the monastery founded in 654 by St Botolph at Icanho (the other contender is Iken, also in Essex) but destroyed by the Danes in 870. The claim rests both on archeology (a dig unearthed a limited quantity of early Anglo-Saxon pottery) and a reference in the Book of Ely, which links Hadstock (then called Cadenho) to Botolph. 

Whether or not all this is the case, the impressively tall and long nave and the north transept of the present building are certainly late Anglo-Saxon. The nave retains four double-splayed windows from this period, as well as the famous door, dated through dendrochronology to 1034-42. The doorway is an impressive piece of Romanesque architecture in its own right, with imposts and outer mouldings decorated with a "honeysuckle" or palmette decoration. This form also survives in the opening to the south transept.

The original church may have had a wooden central crossing tower, but the present west tower dates from the 15th Century, the south transept having already been rebuilt in the 14th Century. All this would be wonderfully harmonious, were it not for the less fortunate history of the chancel: the Anglo-Saxon apse was replaced by a large, square-ended chancel in mediaeval times, itself replaced in 1790 by a small apse, and replaced again by the present chancel in 1884, by William Butterfield. I confess that, in my view, it is not his best work: it all feels ill at ease with the rest if the church (the dark red tiles on the east nave wall are particularly unfortunate). 

Happier are the fittings: a 14th Century font on a Saxon base, with a late 17th or early 18th century cover; a 15th century screen with carvings of a fox preaching to geese; and some lovely late-mediaeval oak benches.

Now part of the Saffron Walden and Villages Team Ministry, the church has services on the first and third Sundays a month and Morning Prayer on Tuesdays.

St Botolph's, Church Path, Hadstock, CB21 4PH