Little Maplestead

Little Maplestead once had a Knights Hospitaller establishment called Little Maplestead Preceptory.[2]

The round parish church, dedicated to St John the Baptist, is one of only four medieval round churches in England now surviving. The circular nave has an arcade of six bays. The church dates from around 1335 but was practically rebuilt 1849–55. It was built by the Knights Hospitallers. The church is a Grade II* listed building.[3]

Some restoration took place in the 1850s, but the original design and composition of the rotunda that forms the nave remains, as do many of the earlier fittings. In March 2013 the church was granted £5,000 by the National Churches Trust towards the repair of the gutters. A total of £42,000 had been raised for a restoration project at the church, which was started by supporters two years before, with a fund-raising target of £100,000.[4]

In 1836, William Wallen published The History and Antiquities of the Round Church at Little Maplestead, Essex.

On the first Sunday in June, the Order of St John in Essex hold an annual service, where Knights and other officials of The Order from the county process in their formal mantels (ceremonial cloaks).

Little Maplestead is the home of X Factor 2010 winner Matt Cardle,[5] actress Barbara Hicks, and former World and European Bridge Champion David Price.[6]