Church Of St John The Evangelist

Parish church of the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries, restored in 1859 by Sir George Gilbert Scott and 1861-2 by Scott and Goddard. The church comprises a western tower, a nave with north and south aisles, a south porch, a north vestry, and a chancel. It is constructed of coursed limestone rubble with ashlar dressings, and has lead roofs with coped gables and kneelers. A chamfered plinth and angle buttresses set off the exterior.

The three-stage tower has diagonal buttresses and a south stair. Its west face has a double-chamfered, pointed arched doorway with double doors, above which is a three-light pointed arched window. The second stage features a clock face on the east side. The third stage has a single two-light pointed arched bell opening with quatrefoil tracery on each face, topped by moulded battlements with four corner and four smaller crocketted pinnacles. The unbuttressed north aisle has a two-light flat-headed window with lancets on its west wall, and two large three-light pointed arched windows with reticulated tracery on its north wall. The clerestory has four windows on each face, each within a diamond-shaped chamfered opening with cusped quatrefoils. The north vestry’s north wall has a shouldered arched doorway flanked by single lancets, with an external stack to the left, and a segment-headed window with three lancets on its east wall. The chancel’s east wall features a five-light pointed arched window with complex reticulated tracery, while the south wall contains three tall two-light lancets with flowing tracery and a small priests doorway, to the left of which is a small flat-headed window with two lights and tracery. The south aisle’s east wall displays two central two-light pointed arched windows with quatrefoil tracery, and a three-light pointed arched window with reticulated tracery to the right. To the left is a gabled porch with a double-chamfered pointed arch with double shaft responds and an inner chamfered doorway with double doors.

Inside, the four-bay nave arcades have double-chamfered arches, round piers and responds, with varying capitals. A double-chamfered chancel arch features triple shaft responds and shaft rings, and a tall double-chamfered tower arch. There is a sedilia and piscina in the chancel. A re-tooled drum-shaped stone font dates from the 12th century. The church holds sumptuous High Victorian choir stalls from St. Martin's, Lincoln, a wooden baluster altar rail, a fine 18th-century brass chandelier, and a royal coat of arms. There are also two fine, female demi-figure monuments, one in a cusped frame and the other trefoil recessed. An open pedimental wall monument depicts carved decoration and a death scene.