Saxon Church (undedicated), Corhampton

This Saxon gem sits on the Meon Valley Churches pilgrimage route

If this church decides to name a patron, it would be a close call between St Wilfrid, its founder, and St Swithun, whose images adorn the chancel walls. Either saint would be honoured to have such an enchanting little building in his name.

Highlights

• Saxon chapel
• Wall paintings of St Swithun

St Wilfrid’s original chapel was built of wood in the late 7th century. It was replaced in the early 11th century by the stone building, which survives pretty much intact. It is just possible, according to the church guide, that the frescoes in the chancel also date from this rebuilding. If they really are late Saxon, that would make them the oldest intact wall paintings in Britain. It is more likely that they are 12th century, so either way they are among the most ancient to survive.

The south wall of the chancel shows scenes from the life of St Swithun, who served as bishop 10 miles away in Winchester during the 9th century. Most vivid of all is the scene of the saint helping an old woman who has dropped her eggs from her basket. In the miracle story, the saint scoops them off the ground and gives them back to her whole. The figures of the saint and the old lady are a mirror image of each other, her hand held up in shock, his reaching down to restore the produce.

Even without wall paintings this church would be worth visiting. It is an atmospheric and scarcely altered Saxon building. An ancient sundial is set in the wall outside by the porch, one of the best-preserved Saxon sundials in the country, conceivably dating back to St Wilfrid’s time. A yew tree grows alongside that is at least as old as the church. It stands on a small man-made mound, where a Roman coffin has been excavated.

When St Wilfrid built the original church here in about 685 it must have already been considered a holy site. The saint needed all the help he could get in persuading the local people to accept the validity of his new faith. This part of Hampshire, the Meon valley, was one of the final bastions of paganism in southern England and notoriously difficult to convert. A Meon Valley Pilgrimage Trail has been established linking up some of the sites connected to the saint, with details at www.wilfrid-meon-pilgrimage.co.uk.

St Wilfrid no doubt chose the Meon valley to prove a point. He had just been deposed as bishop of York during one of his many arguments with church and state authorities. Not a man to sulk, he came to the south coast of England and set about establishing a new bishopric.

Bede tells a surprising story about the methods he used to win over his new flock. St Wilfrid arrived in the middle of a drought, when the people were starving to death. The missionary taught them how to fish properly – a detail of history which doesn’t say much for our ancestors’ skills as hunter-gatherers.

While at Corhampton

There is another church founded by St Wilfrid just 4 miles from Corhampton at East Meon.

All Saints Church contains a celebrated 12th-century marble font, rich in carved detail. The impressive church building is thought to be early Norman, even though it employs Saxon technology (the ‘herringbone’ method of construction, with layers of stone set at different angles). This church marks the end of the Meon Valley Churches Walk, which begins at Titchfield.

Directions

Corhampton Church, Warnford Road, Corhampton SO32 3ND‍

www.bridgechurches.org.uk ‍

W3W: notes.lectured.ruled

GPS: 50.9791N 1.1325W

Corhampton church is usually open, and when locked the nearby Post Office holds a key. The church is hard to spot from the road, but easy to locate 50m north of the village’s only roundabout. The church is on the west (left-hand) side of the road as you head up the A32 towards London. You can park near the Post Office and shop, a further 100m along on the opposite side of the road.