Church of St. Michael the Archangel, Shalfleet

The Church of St Michael the Archangel stands in the small village of Shalfleet on the Isle of Wight. It is an old parish church built in the medieval period, with a tower dating back to 1070. The tower originally had no ground-level entrance, so worshippers climbed a ladder through a door on the roof. The thick stone walls, five feet deep, once protected locals from French raids along Newtown Creek. A small parish gun marked ‘Schawflet’ was kept in the tower until 1779. The church has seen many changes over the centuries. A steeple was added around 1800 but later removed in 1912 when it was found to be unsafe. Money for the steeple came from selling the parish gun and church bells, which inspired a local rhyme about the village’s simple people. In 1889, work uncovered the original 13th-century structure by removing plaster, unblocking the tower arch and cutting a new north door. The church remains a fine example of late 13th-century design, despite some later repairs. Inside, the floor slopes gently towards the east end without a break at the chancel arch. Two bells in the tower carry inscriptions from 1807 and 1815, naming the churchwardens and founders. The churchyard holds a Commonwealth war grave for a Second World War officer of the Queen’s Royal West Surrey Regiment. The north door bears the date 1754, set within a much older 12th-century opening with a carved tympanum.