Church Of St Michael

The Church of St Michael is a Grade II* listed building located in Stretton-en-le-Field, dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, with alterations made in the 17th century. It is constructed from rubble stone and ashlar and features a tower, nave, north aisle, and chancel. The church has buttresses or diagonal buttresses with multiple set-offs. The two-stage tower, built in the 14th or 15th century, includes a Perpendicular west window, a west arch leading to the nave, single-light bell openings, and battlements. The recessed spire was rebuilt in 1889, as noted by a plaque in the churchyard.

The nave, dating from the 15th century, has a parapet, and all its windows were altered in the 17th century by replacing the original tracery with a central mullion. There is a south porch, possibly from the 17th century, and a clerestory featuring five square-headed two-light mullions, which may date from the 16th century. The roof is made from re-used timbers from the 15th or 16th century, finely moulded and adorned with carved central grotesques.

Inside, the north arcade consists of three bays supported by diamond piers, with arches that die into the piers. The north aisle, dating from the 14th or 15th century, has had its windows lowered or blocked, and its roof has been changed from gabled to lean-to. The north doorway, which has a Tudor arch, is now blocked. There are fragments of a tomb recess and pinnacles beneath a three-light window. The chancel, from the 15th century, features battlements and east pinnacles, possibly added in the 19th century. The south wall has an altered window, while the east window is a five-light Perpendicular window with panel tracery; other windows and a doorway in the chancel are blocked. The chancel roof includes tie beams and clasped principal rafters, with a flat beam between the nave and chancel and a 19th-century strengthening arch.

Fittings include an 18th-century chancel rail with turned balusters, a complete set of 18th-century box pews, and a font dating from around 1662, although it has been partly reconstructed. There is an incised slab commemorating a cleric from 1500 and a double incised slab positioned against the blocked north door. The floor is made of square brick tiles, and the glazing includes leaded lights, with diamond patterns in the clerestory, possibly from the 16th century, and square panes, possibly from the 17th century. This church is an interesting example of a building that has undergone alterations in the 17th century and features fittings from the 18th century.