The earliest record of the existence of a church in Fovant is a grant of land that was made to a local priest in 901 A.D. It is likely that a Saxon wooden church existed on or near the site of the present church, but no evidence remains. By the time of Domesday, Fovant was owned by the Convent at Wilton. The church at this time was a Norman building; the only remaining part of this is the framework of the priest's door in the exterior of the south wall.
By the 15th century the church was in need of rebuilding. It was built in the Perpendicular style, and it was at this time that the tower and south aisle were built. On the north wall of the chancel is a small monumental brass which records that George Rede, Rector of Fovant, was responsible for the building of the tower in 1492. The decorative open work frieze at the top of the tower is a fine example of late Perpendicular stonework and has retained its original design despite repairs.
When Henry VIII began to close the monasteries in 1539, the last Abbess at Wilton, Cicely Bodenham, was allowed to live in the manor house next to the church, along with 31 of her nuns. Most of the convent's estates, including those at Fovant, passed into the ownership of the Earls of Pembroke, who built Wilton House on the site of the convent. The south aisle in the church was rebuilt in the 16th century by the Abbess.