Church Of St Michael

The Church of St Michael is a small medieval church begun possibly in the 12th or 13th century, with significant early 13th-century features, located in the hamlet of Chettisham. The church’s origins are uncertain, with some irregularities in the stonework suggesting possible earlier fabric incorporated into the later 13th-century structure. A 15th-century font and a rebuilding of the chancel roof in a possibly late medieval period are also documented. The church was raised to parish status in 1879 and subsequently restored in 1889, resulting in the construction of a north vestry, a south porch, a bellcote, and a rebuilding of the nave roof.

The church is built of stone rubble with cut stone dressings, and has tiled roofs with a shingled bellcote and spire. The plan consists of a single undivided nave and chancel, a south porch, a north vestry resembling an aisle, and a small bell turret over the west end of the nave.

The exterior exhibits prominent buttresses along the side walls and was heavily repointed in the 19th century. A small shingled belfry with 14th-century style bell openings and a broach spire rises over the west end of the nave. The 19th-century north vestry has west and east lancet windows, mirroring the nave roofline. The north wall features two early 13th-century lancets to the east of the vestry, while the east window of the chancel is a 19th-century design with three stepped lancets within a single opening surmounted by a trefoil. Four early 13th-century lancets are found on the south wall, three to the east of the porch and one to the west. A plain timber-framed 19th-century porch sits on dwarf stone walls, leading to an early 13th-century south door with continuous chamfers. A single lancet within the west wall is accompanied by a restored sexfoil window above.

The interior is simple, plastered, and painted, with a change in roof structure delineating the nave and chancel. The nave roof is a 19th-century design with trussed rafters and stencil decoration, while the chancel roof features collars and tie beams of uncertain date. A 13th-century north door, now opening into the vestry, has continuous chamfers. The chancel wall contains two aumbries with 19th-century doors.

The church contains a good 15th-century polygonal font with quatrefoils bearing shields on the bowl and tracery on the stem, the base of which may have been cut down. Simple 19th-century nave benches retain their original paint, featuring inscriptions and depictions of saints. Geometric tiles are laid in the chancel, and there are a few 19th-century wall tablets and some 19th-century stained glass. Fragments of possible 12th-century sculpture, of unknown provenance, are said to be stored in the vestry.

The hamlet of Chettisham is first mentioned in historical records in 1170.