Church of St Michael and All Angels, Melksham

St Michael’s stands a short walk northwest of Melksham’s market square. Built in the 12th century, it was enlarged in the 14th and 15th centuries and restored in the 19th. The church is listed at Grade II* and has a five-bay nave with north and south aisles and chapels. Its west tower was moved to its present position in 1845 by T. H. Wyatt. The chancel shows Norman features, while the Lady Chapel was added late in the 15th century. The building contains fittings from several periods. A carved limestone reredos of 1894 is by C. E. Ponting, and the oak chancel screen dates from the same year. Stained glass in the nave and chancel is by Ward and Hughes, 1884, and the Lady Chapel has glass by Kempe from 1897. The tower carries ten bells, eight recast in 1924 and two added later. The churchyard holds tombs and memorials, including a Grade II* chest tomb from the early 19th century. Nearby chapels at Seend and Erlestoke once formed part of the parish before gaining their own churches in the 19th century. The present Melkham Team Ministry serves St Michael’s together with St Andrew’s and St Barnabas’s.