St Michael on Greenhill, Lichfield

St Michael on Greenhill stands on the highest ground east of Lichfield, Staffordshire. A church has occupied the site since at least 1190, though the present building dates from a major restoration in the 1840s. The churchyard covers nine acres, one of the largest in England and among only five ancient burial grounds nationwide. Archaeologists have found Mesolithic flint tools here, suggesting people used the ridge long before the church was built. Local tradition claims Saint Augustine consecrated the spot, which later drew Saint Chad to establish Lichfield’s diocese. The churchyard also contains crouched burials, a pre-Norman burial practice. The Grade II* listed church contains monuments of note. A floor slab in the nave honours Samuel Johnson’s parents and brother, placed in 1884 to mark the centenary of his death. The chancel arch displays Queen Anne’s royal arms, installed after the Restoration as proof of loyalty. A 1669 octagonal font bears fleur-de-lis and Tudor roses, while a recess in the north chancel wall holds the tomb of William de Walton, the church’s earliest recorded benefactor. The churchyard includes the grave of Trumpeter John Brown, who sounded the charge at Balaclava, and a restored gravestone marking three men hanged in 1810. Inside, the nave and aisles show 19th-century remodelling by Thomas Johnson, with later work by Sydney Smirke and John Oldrid Scott. The tower holds a peal of six bells cast in the 18th century, two recast in 1919. Outside, the churchyard is now managed as a wildlife area, and the former rectory to the south-west dates from the 1970s. The church remains an active parish, hosting regular services and rites, while the ancient burial ground preserves both history and habitat.