History | St Andrews Church

The Foundation Charter for St Andrew’s dates from 1362. Sir John de Wingfield, a close associate of the Black Prince, had died the previous year and left money in his will for the replacement of the existing church with a larger building. Descendants of Sir John extended the building still further.

St Andrew’s contains three notable tombs:

Sir John de Wingfield
Michael de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk and his wife Katherine Stafford
John de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk and his wife Elizabeth Plantagenet, sister to Edward IV and Richard III. Their son, John, Earl of Lincoln was named by Richard III as his heir.

St Andrew's Church History

Conservation work on the tombs

We are undertaking a programme of work to conserve the tombs in the chancel.

The effigies in the monument to Michael and Katherine de la Pole, constructed around 1410, are carved in oak, which is plastered to look like stone. Wooden effigies of this type are comparatively rare. Wood may have been chosen to save money as an alternative to more expensive stone effigies.

However the oak was attacked by death watch beetle. In April 2023, a specialist team of conservators from Skillingtons disassembled the tomb to treat the infestation and preserve the tomb. The larvae of death watch beetle can live for ten years, therefore the team will be making yearly visits to check on the effectiveness of the treatment. When they conducted the annual check in 2024, the team also undertook conservation work on the tomb of John, Duke of Suffolk and his wife Elizabeth Plantagenet.

The group of tombs from the same family, documenting the history of their times and changing fashions in armour and dress is a particularly rich part of our heritage. In recognition of the national importance of the monuments, we were the grateful recipients of grants from the Church Buildings Council and the Benefact Trust for the conservation work to ensure that the tombs continue to be appreciated by future generations.

The conservation work on the monument to Michael and Katherine will continue for another 8 years, and we hope also to undertake conservation work on the tomb of Sir John.

If you are able to make a donation to help with carrying out this important work, it would be much appreciated.

Shortly before the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the College built a Great Barn, which is now run by Wingfield Barns as an arts and events venue.

The interior of St Andrew’s also contains a medieval church chest in poplar, the soundboard of a Tudor organ, and an 18th century shelter for a priest taking a funeral in the churchyard while it was raining.

The soundboard of the Tudor organ was used by the organ-building firm of Goetze and Gwynn to reconstruct what an English organ of the Tudor period might have sounded like. Further details of this project can be found here: https://www.rco.org.uk/library_tudor_organs.php and https://www.goetzegwynn.co.uk/organ/the-wingfield-organ/ ]

The mother of John, Duke of Suffolk was Alice Chaucer, grand-daughter of the poet Geoffrey Chaucer. She is buried in St Mary the Virgin, Ewelme, whose building has striking similarities to St Andrew’s.

In the medieval period, the Bishops of Norwich had a palace at Hoxne, only two miles from Wingfield, which would have made communication very easy between the Wingfields, de la Poles and Bishops.

The Foundation Charter for St Andrew’s also established a college of priests on the south side of the church, as accommodation for 12 priests to take services in Wingfield and the neighbouring villages. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the College became a private residence. Of the 14th century quadrangle, a singe range survives behind an 18th century façade.