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Page 2 of 8

• 1. Community life
• 2. Origins of parochial worship
• 3. Structure
• 4. Church maintenance
• 5. Fittings and church interiors
• 6. Screens and roods
• 7. Chantries
• 8. Guilds and the local community
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Origins of parochial worship

In the earliest days of Christianity in Britain, the spiritual needs of the laity were served by a few monasteries scattered throughout the land. They were populated by monks and canons who had elected to pursue higher spiritual goals away from the secular world.

They also, however, allowed priests to venture into the local communities to preach, baptise and say mass. The success in converting people to Christianity led to a demand for more monasteries (or minsters), and there was soon an entire network of religious houses stretching across England.

'In the late Anglo-Saxon period, local chapels became more independent ...'

In addition, small chapels, staffed by clergy from the minsters, were built in local communities to help cater for this demand. People attended their local chapel for mass, but they still went to the minster for special occasions such as feast days, and for baptisms and burials.

In the late Anglo-Saxon period, local chapels became more independent, and they were converted into separate parish churches with their own priest, supported by the communities they served by the payment of tithes. The new parish churches were provided with fonts so they could conduct baptisms, and cemeteries were consecrated within their grounds so that parishioners could be buried in holy ground. .

Churches such as Heath, in Shropshire, built around this time, were very simple buildings, usually with no more than a nave and chancel, which reflects the limited liturgy that took place within.

'... a strong manorial system was largely absent in East Anglia, and many peasants owned land.'

The development of the parochial network throughout England, and the role played by the local community in this process, is unclear, but there is often a close correlation between the boundary of a parish and the boundary of the local manor. Similarly the local lord often controlled the 'advowson' (the right to influence local ecclesiastical appointments) of a parish church.

This suggests that secular pressure was an important factor, and that in areas of strong lordship the local lord played the leading role. In comparison, a strong manorial system was largely absent in East Anglia, and many peasants owned land. Given that East Anglia has one of the largest concentrations in England of early parish churches - like Hales or Haddiscoe in Norfolk - it is possible to speculate that the peasantry were responsible for the construction or foundation of these churches.

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Published: 2005-02-02