St Peter's Church, Walpole St Peter

St Peter's Church is an active Anglican parish church in Walpole St Peter, Norfolk, England. One of the largest churches in the county, it is known as "the Cathedral of the Fens". It is in the Diocese of Ely. The largely Perpendicular building is Grade 1 listed, and is often regarded as one of England's finest parish churches.[1][2]

St Peter's Church, Walpole
exterior of church
St Peter's Church, Walpole, from the northeast
LocationWalpole, Norfolk
CountryEngland
Websitehttp://walpolestpeterchurch.org/
History
DedicationSaint Peter
Architecture
Architectural typeChurch

History

The oldest section of the church is its tower, which dates from the 13th century. By the 15th century a church, 160 feet long, was added. The windows are in Perpendicular style. Some benches date from the 15th century. A carved poor box is dated 1639. A chandelier dates from 1701. Victorian restoration was restricted largely to the chancel.[3]

St Peter's was used as the parish church of the fictional village of Fenchurch St Paul in the 1973 television dramatisation of Dorothy L Sayers's novel The Nine Tailors, starring Ian Carmichael as Lord Peter Wimsey.[4]

Reception

St Peter’s is known as “The Cathedral of the Fens, due to its size and renown”.[5] It is said to be a favourite of Prince Charles,[6] and John Betjeman described it as "the finest of all".[7]

It was also listed as one of Songs of Praise's favourite churches in Britain.[3]

See also

References
  1. Simon Knott, Walpole St Peter at norfolkchurches.co.uk, Retrieved 12 September 2010
  2. Alec Clifton-Taylor, English Parish Churches as Works of Art, Batsford, 1974
  3. The Nation's Favourite Churches, Andrew Barr
  4. "History". Walpole St Peter's Church. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  5. "Cathedral of the Fens awarded £200,000 grant". National Churches Trust. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  6. "Prince Charles backs Walpole St Peter church appeal". BBC News. 21 September 2011.
  7. Kerr, Nigel (1993). Sir John Betjeman's guide to English parish churches. Harper Collins. p. 408.

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