Algarkirk | |
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Ss Peter and Paul Church, Algarkirk |
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Algarkirk shown within Lincolnshire | |
Population | 386 (2011) |
OS grid reference | TF291352 |
• London | 95 mi (153 km) S |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Boston |
Postcode district | PE20 |
Dialling code | 01205 |
Police | Lincolnshire |
Fire | Lincolnshire |
Ambulance | East Midlands |
EU Parliament | East Midlands |
UK Parliament | |
Algarkirk is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Boston in Lincolnshire, England. It is situated 6 miles (9.7 km) south-south-west from Boston and near the A16 road. It has a population of 406, falling to 386 at the 2011 census. An alternative village spelling is 'Algakirk'.
Before the Roman conquest the area was home to the Coritani; after Roman departure it became part of the Anglo Saxon kingdom of Mercia. Algarkirk is called after Algar Earl of Mercia, who fell at Stow Green near Threekingham in 870 while resisting the Danes, and is reputedly buried in the graveyard of the parish church of St Peter and St Paul. The "kirk" element of the name comes from the Old English "circe" meaning church, which was later replaced by the Old Norse "kirk".
The 9th-century church itself is Early English and Norman with a double-aisle transept and a font of Purbeck marble. Under the tower are kneeling brass effigies of Nicholas Robertson (d. 1498), Merchant of the Staple of Calais, and his two wives Alice and Isabella. In 1492, he and Isabella glazed the church clerestorey. The church was heavily restored in 1851.