All Saints, Stanton St. Bernard

All Saints Church is situated near the source of the western boundary stream of Stanton St. Bernard. It has a long history and can be traced back to 1267 when it was attached to the Abbey and Church at Wilton as it contains a partly restored Norman font. In 1291 when it is recorded to have paid 13 pounds 6 shillings and 8d tax. The next record notes that it had new windows added to the north wall of the nave and chancel in the 14th century. The bell tower on the church has been dated to the 15th century. The 16th century saw a new roof built over the nave and a timber framed porch added on the north side of the church. In the 17th and 18th centuries memorials in the church and graveyard display prosperity, probably because of the high prices of wool and corn, Stanton St. Bernard’s main products. In 1822, the vicar moved away from the vicarage to a house which he extended, on the south side of the manor house. The vicarage was replaced with what is now church farm. In 1831 the new vicar, George Majendie, recorded that the church was in a bad state of repair. He had it pulled down and in 1832 a new nave chancel and vestry were built by a builder called Mr Plank from Devizes. The old bell tower was the only part not pulled down and this was included in the new church. However the archway from the chancel into the nave subsided and had to be made higher and supported. Four buttresses had to be added to the new north and south walls in 1835 as they started to lean outwards. However it was to no avail and the chancel had to be completely rebuilt again in 1859 only 27 years after it was first rebuilt. There have been no significant structural alterations since 1859.

The parish registers from 1568, other than those in current use are held in the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre at Chippenham.