Historic Churches in Dorset

St Aldhelm's Chapel is a picturesque 12th century chapel atop a remote headland on Dorset's Isle of Purbeck. The chapel stands on a earlier pre-Conquest Christian enclosure, perhaps linked directly to St Aldhelm, the 8th century Bishop of Sherborne. It may have been built with a beacon to serve as an aide to navigation.
St Aldhelm's Head, Worth Matravers, Dorset, England

Attraction Type: Church - Chapel
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St Michael's church dates to the 13th century, with a 14th-century tower. Writer Thomas Hardy was baptised here, and his grave is in the churchyard along with his two wives and other family members. Look for a late Saxon carving of an angel, and the grave of Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis in the churchyard.
Church Lane, Stinsford, Dorset, England, DT2 8PT

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Heritage Highlight: Thomas Hardy's heart is buried here

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St Barnabas stands on the lawn of Stock Gaylard House, an elegant 18th-century mansion. The church dates to at least the 13th century and may have been founded by Sir Ingelramus de Waleys, a crusader knight who died in the Holy Land in 1275. His effigy lies in a tomb niche in the nave wall. In the belfry is an ancient bell, cast around 1280.
Stock Gaylard House, Stock Gaylard, Sturminster Newton, Dorset, England, DT10 2BG

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Heritage Highlight: 13th-century effigy of a knight

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The smallest church in Dorset, and one of the smallest in England, measuring only 30 x 12 feet (roughly 9 x 4 metres). St Edwold's is located in a lovely countryside setting, beside an isolated farm in a wooded valley.
Stockwood, Dorset, England, DT2 0NG

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An early Norman church on the site of a 7th-century Saxon one, St Nicholas has an extremely fine carved corbel table depicting grotesque faces, animals, a sheela-na-gig (a female exhibitionist), and most famously, a copulating couple. Inside are a Norman font and richly decorated chancel and tower arches.
Studland, Dorset, England, BH193AT

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Heritage Highlight: Norman corbel carvings

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The old church of St Mary the Virgin at Tarrant Crawford is all that remains of medieval Tarrant Abbey. The church dates to the Norman period, but much of the current structure dates to the late 13th century.
Tarrant Crawford, Dorset, England, DT11 9HU

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There has been a church at Tarrant Keynston since at least the 13th century, but the current building is almost entirely the product of a Victorian rebuilding, save for the tower, which is 15th century. The interior is Victorian, and while not devoid of interest, does not feature much of historic interest unless you are a student of Victorian Revival architecture.
Village Street, Tarrant Keynston, Dorset, England, DT119JB

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Heritage Highlight: Tomb of the Bastard brothers, famed Dorset architects

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The church of St Mary at Tarrant Rushton is tucked away up a shaded lane, peacefully slumbering and seemingly lost in a time warp. The simple Norman tower is notable, but even more historically interesting is a carved marble lintel over the interior of the south door. This lintel is carved with three figures. On the left is a man holding a book aloft in his left hand.
Tarrant Rushton, Dorset, England, DT118SD

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The tiny church of St Basil stands on the site of a medieval chapel owned by the Knights Hospitaller. Inside the church is a superb late Saxon font, carved with figures of saints and strange beasts. Look for the 11th-century carving of Mary Magdalene washing the feet of Christ.
Toller Fratrum, Dorset, England, DT2 0EW

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Heritage Highlight: Superb Saxon font

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At the heart of Toller Porcorum stands the 13th-century church of St Andrew & St Peter. The church boasts an unusual font that may incorporate a Roman altar. The west tower door is thought to be the inspiration for William Holman Hunt's famous painting 'The Light of the World'.
School Lane, Toller Porcorum, Dorset, England, DT2 0DT

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Heritage Highlight: Unusual font possibly made from a Roman altar

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