Church of St Peter and St Paul, Kilmersdon

The Church of St Peter and St Paul stands in the Somerset village of Kilmersdon. Built first in Norman times, most of what visitors see today dates from the 15th and 16th centuries with later Victorian repairs. The church has Grade I listed status, the highest recognition for historic buildings in England. Its tower, finished around 1443, rises in four stages and shows fine Perpendicular details. Six bells hang inside, the heaviest weighing 21 cwt, and the belfry windows carry delicate quatrefoil tracery. The tower’s missing statues and the blank lower windows add to its quiet mystery. A lychgate designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens shelters the entrance to the triangular churchyard. Several chest tombs and headstones there also have listed status, each telling the names and dates of former villagers. In 2013 the church was placed on the Heritage at Risk Register after a bell crashed through two floors but fortunately lodged safely above the ringers. Inside, the nave and chancel open under a restored roof. The listed tombs outside frame views of the Somerset countryside. The benefice of Kilmersdon with Babington keeps the church alive for regular worship and occasional concerts.