Church Of St Giles

The Church of St Giles is a parish church largely dating to the early 12th century, with extensions in the early 15th century and a chancel from the 13th century. It was heavily restored and altered in the 19th century, with the addition of a south porch, north transept, and choir vestry during that period. The church is constructed primarily of flint, with some Roman tiles, 19th-century red brick, limestone, and sandstone dressings, and a stone slate roof.

The west tower is rectangular, four stages in height, with the upper half slightly set back. It features a chamfered plinth, diagonal buttresses, and a south-east stair turret. The tower's west doorway is 4-centred arched, with studded plank double-doors, a cavetto moulding, hollow spandrels, a square-headed cavetto-moulded surround, and a 19th-century hoodmould with figured stops. A 19th-century square-headed 3-light window exists on the second stage, with two 2-light windows on each stage above, the upper ones incorporating wooden louvres. The tower is topped with a 19th-century embattled parapet and a pyramidal roof with weathervane. Other sides of the tower have belfry windows, with a three-light window on the east. The stair turret has small, square-headed lancets on three levels, now glazed. The three-bay nave features a gabled south porch in the centre, with a 2-centred arched 2-light window to the left and a square-headed 3-light window to the right, all dating to the 19th century. The two-bay chancel has matching windows in reverse order, diagonal buttresses at the east end, a 19th-century 4-centred arched 3-light east window, and traces of a former gable line. The north side is largely obscured by the 19th-century transept and vestry.

Inside, the nave and transept have elaborately carved, 19th-century scissor-braced roofs, while the chancel has a wagon roof from the same period. Notable features include a 16th-century octagonal font with quatrefoil panels, and a 16th-century Flemish east window attributed to Lambert Lombard of Liege, which was originally in the abbey of Herckenrode and donated to the church in 1818. Numerous wall monuments are found in the chancel, including brasses to Dorothea Quinnella (died 1640) and John Browne (died 1590), who was described as “Sergeant of Her Majesties Wood Yeard,” along with wall tablets to Henry Newdigate (died 1629), Sarah Bond (died 1712), William, son of George Duncumb (died 1698), Thomas Howard (died 1701), Diana, Lady Dudley and Ward (died 1709), Frances Howard (died 1818), and Fulke Greville Howard (died 1846). In the nave is a large, pedimented monument to Lady Diana Fielding (died 1733), featuring a bust in a circular recess. The church originated as a chapel to the manor of Ashtead and is located near the site of the former manor house.