Church Of St Nicholas

The Church of St Nicholas is a parish church largely dating to the 13th and 14th centuries, with substantial restoration undertaken by J. P. Seddon in 1876, which involved the renewal of much of the exterior stonework and the rebuilding of the chancel aisles. The church is constructed of flint with ashlar dressings, featuring lead roofs to the nave and nave aisles, and tiled roofs to the chancel and chancel aisles.

The west tower is of three stages, with diagonal buttresses, a carved head corbel table, and a chequered battlemented parapet, containing two-light traceried openings to the bell chamber. The west side of the tower has a moulded doorway, a two-light traceried window, and a cusped single light above. The nave has a matching parapet, 19th-century carved head gargoyles, and a three-bay clerestory with cusped windows (single light to the north, two-light to the south). The aisles have chequered moulded parapets, with the south aisle featuring flat-headed two-light traceried windows, while the north aisle has paired cusped lights. A chamfered north door and a double-chamfered south door, with a cusped ogee light above a similar arch, are located within a 19th-century porch. The chancel aisles have two bays of grouped lancets, a door to the south, and east lancets with carved hoodmould stops. The east window is a three-light traceried window with carved head hoodmould stops.

Inside, a triple-chamfered arch leads to the tower, and a 14th-century four-bay nave arcade displays double-chamfered arches with moulded broach stops on octagonal piers featuring moulded capitals. The original stone roof corbels remain, though the nave roof was restored in 1929. The chancel arch has two moulded orders on piers with attached shafts and moulded capitals. The chancel displays a two-bay arcade to the aisles, featuring 19th-century double-chamfered arches, the central piers incorporating clustered shafts. The east window has a draft to each jamb. Significant features include a fine 12th-century "Aylesbury" font with a fluted bowl, carved foliage frieze, and scalloped base, along with a medieval chest, medieval tiles reset within the wall of the north chancel aisle (now the vestry and organ chamber), a 17th-century altar table now in the south aisle, and two 17th-century chairs with incised decoration. The east window contains stained glass dated 1844, designed by Sir R. F. Russell. The church is notable in local history as the location of a meeting where John Hampden led the refusal to pay ship money. The font is a key element of the church’s group value.