Church of St John the Baptist

The Church of St John the Baptist is a Grade I listed building located in Danbury, Church Green. This stone rubble church features stone dressings and has a square west tower with a castellated parapet, outer diagonal buttresses, and a shingled spire set back behind the parapet. The church has undergone considerable restoration. The roof is tiled.

The church likely dates back to the 12th century, but the earliest part of the current structure is the base of the north arcade, which dates to around 1233. The nave, south arcade, and west tower are from the 14th century. The steeple was first constructed in the 15th century. Significant restorations were carried out in 1866, possibly by Sir George Gilbert Scott or George Gilbert Scott Junior, and again in 1952 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott following bomb damage in 1941.

The roof of the north aisle is from the 14th century and features a castellated wall plate carved with effigies of Kings and Queens from that period, likely from the reign of the Edwards. There is a squint from the north aisle of the chancel. Four of the back pews on the north side of the nave are original, adorned with poppy heads and carved with various beasts on the shoulders, while the remaining pews are replicas created by Sir George Gilbert Scott.

The north aisle contains four late 13th-century windows with two arched recesses below, housing oak effigies of Knights in armor with crossed legs, indicating either crusaders or church builders. The armor suggests a date between 1272 and 1307. An effigy in the south aisle is of a slightly later date and likely represents members of the St Clere family, who endowed the church and rebuilt the north aisle. Additionally, the gallery to the bell platform features a railing from around 1600, which is part of a Jacobean altar rail that was removed during the Commonwealth.