Church of St Christopher, Lympsham

The Church of St Christopher stands in the village of Lympsham, Somerset, on land once owned by Glastonbury Abbey. Built in the 15th century, it replaced an earlier church tied to the abbey since the 7th century. The building has survived as a Grade I listed structure, recognised for its historical importance. Its tower and nave show the craftsmanship of the period. The church has been altered and restored many times, yet retains its medieval character. Archaeologists found a 17th-century Bath coin beneath the floor during work in 2001. The church’s long history begins with Ine of Wessex granting the parish to Glastonbury Abbey in 690. By 1274, Bartholomew de England served as rector here, one of the earliest recorded incumbents. In the 19th century, Rev A. J. Stephenson and his son J. H. Stephenson led a major restoration. Further repairs were made in 1909 to preserve the fabric. Today it belongs to a benefice shared with Brent Knoll and East Brent. Inside, visitors see a simple nave with a chancel and a sturdy tower at the west end. The walls still bear the marks of centuries of use and repair. The 19th-century restoration added new windows and fittings while keeping older features. The 17th-century coin found under the floor hints at earlier lives lived around the church. Its quiet setting among Somerset lanes makes it a place to pause and sense the past.