Church of St. John the Baptist, Colerne

The church we see today is mainly of the 15th century in the Perpendicular style, although the interior has earlier features. There is known to have been Saxon settlements in Colerne but there is no mention of any church. It is possible that there was a small wooden church or preaching cross but the first evidence comes from 1190. In that year Walter de Dunstanville, Ist Baron of Castle Combe, started to build a stone Norman church. It is likely that the work took about 5 years and the remains of this church can be seen in the foundations of the east and south walls of the present church. The chancel was built in 1240 by the 3rd Baron, another Walter de Dunstanville, and around 1280 a chapel (of the same size as the chancel), a north aisle and a clerestory were added. Around 1450 this north aisle and clerestory in the nave were rebuilt and the present tower was built in three stages. It is a slender tower that shows the nearness of the village to the Somerset border in the Somerset tracery in the windows and other work. Sited as it is, on the top of a hill, the church is a very impressive structure when seen from the valley of the By Brook, to the south, or from Box. Over the centuries galleries and other internal features were added to the church, which were removed in the restoration of 1877 by Wilson, Willcox and Wilson of Bath. Much rebuilding, such as the clerestory and the roof of the south aisle, and new building, such as windows and the vestry, took place. The interior of the church was somewhat over restored, a fact alluded to by the author of 'The Church Rambler', which was published while the restoration was taking place. The cost was £4,000, which was met by Richard Walmesly of Lucknam Park. In the nave are two fragments of, what has been described as, 'one of the best 9th century cross shafts in the West Country'. If this originated in Colerne it could provide evidence of a site set aside for worship in the Saxon period. The church clock is a very old one, having only the hour hand, and the eight bells were said to be the sweetest in Wiltshire. An unusual memorial in the churchyard wall records, 'A black buried here 1720'. The parish registers from 1568 for marriages, from 1628 for baptisms, and from 1661 for burials, other than those in current use, are held in the Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office.