Church Of St Mary

The Church of St Mary in Cavendish has origins dating back to the Saxon period, as recorded in the Doomsday Book. It was replaced by a Norman church, which was eventually succeeded by the current structure made of flint and stone, dating from the 14th to the 17th century. The tower, built around 1300, features a castellated parapet, diagonal buttresses, and an octagonal castellated staircase turret. The ground floor is vaulted stone, with a priest's chamber above that includes an original fireplace and window surround.

The nave clerestory, dating from around 1485, also has a castellated parapet and notable stone and flint traceried ornamentation. An inscription below the parapet, now mostly illegible, credits its construction to a member of the Smythe family. The nave contains two Tudor lead rainwater heads decorated with roses and leopard heads. Its roof features an arch-braced tie-beam design with carved spandrels, supported by niched wall posts with figures. The north and south aisles were built in the 15th century, with 17th-century pendants and ornamentation in the north aisle's roof.

The chancel, constructed around 1381, underwent extensive repairs in the 17th century and includes buttresses and a deep plinth with knapped flint chequer work. The roof is tiled. In the south aisle, there is a 14th-century octagonal font with a traceried shaft and Evangelist emblems on the bowl, which were defaced during the Cromwellian period.