St Peter's Church, Wolfhampcote

St Peter's Church, Wolfhampcote
St Peter's Church, Wolfhampcote, from the northwest
St Peter's Church, Wolfhampcote Location in Warwickshire
Coordinates: 52°17′00″N 1°13′30″W / 52.2834°N 1.2249°W / 52.2834; -1.2249
OS grid reference	SP 529 653
Location	Wolfhampcote, Warwickshire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	Churches Conservation Trust
History
Dedication	Saint Peter
Architecture
Functional status	Redundant
Heritage designation	Grade II*
Designated	6 October 1960
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic
Groundbreaking	13th century
Completed	1848
Closed	1940s
Specifications
Materials	Limestone and sandstone

St Peter's Church is a redundant Anglican church standing in an isolated position in the civil parish of Wolfhampcote, Warwickshire, England (grid reference SP529653). Since 1960 the church and its attached mausoleum have been recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and are now under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands in a field which contains a number of mounds. These are partly the remains of the medieval village initially served by the church, which has been deserted village for centuries, partly from disused canal workings, and partly from the remains of a redundant railway line.

The presence of a church in Wolfhampcote was recorded in the Domesday Book. The earliest fabric in the present church dates from the 13th century and is in the north aisle and the north chapel. During the following century the church was largely rebuilt, and in the 15th century the roof was altered and the clerestory was added. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the tower was built in the later part of the 16th century. In 1690 the top of the tower was altered and it was re-roofed; this was confirmed by finding the date and the initials of the churchwardens on the outside of the crenellations at the top of the west side of the tower.

The church then remained virtually unchanged until 1848, when a restoration was carried out, and the mausoleum was added to the east end of the church. After that time the population of the parish declined. More repairs and some restorations were carried out in 1903, at a cost of £425 (equivalent to £41,000 as of 2015). The church closed in 1910, but reopened two years later at the request of the local residents. However it was only used occasionally for services, and closed again soon after the end of the Second World War. It was damaged by vandalism and in the late 1950s the diocese decided to demolish it, leaving just the walls standing. However the charity, the Friends of Friendless Churches, was granted permission to carry out repairs. But more vandalism took place, and the entrances and the lower windows were blocked to prevent entry to the building. Following the Pastoral Measure of 1968 the church was declared redundant, and on 3 March 1972 it was vested in the Redundant Churches Fund (now known as the Churches Conservation Trust). More work has since been carried out to make the building weatherproof and secure from vandalism.