St Kyneburgha, Castor
The Church of St Kyneburgha is an ancient grade I listed building. It is regarded amongst the top 100 churches in England. It has been a place of worship since the 4th Century. The building includes Roman, Saxon and Norman stonework. The famous NormanTower is probably the finest Romanesque parish church tower in England. The beautiful nave roof (c1450) consists of 60 angels and other figures. Others items of interest include Saxon carvings, the fascinating sculptures on the capitals of the Norman Tower shafts, the medieval Lady Chapel stone altar and the wall painting (c1350) depicting the martyrdom of St Katharine.
Castor is known internationally among archaeologists as the centre of an important Roman settlement along the Nene valley west of Peterborough. The Roman palace (c. 250 AD) or praetorium (underneath the churchyard and surrounding area) was the second largest Roman building in Britain replacing an earlier first century villa. The church is built on the site of the Roman courtyard. Whatever survived from the Roman period, St Kyneburgha, daughter of King Penda of Mercia founded a double convent (men and women) on the site in the Celtic tradition bringing monks from Lindisfarne and was the first Abbess. After being sacked by the Vikings the church functioned as a Saxon minster church and was rebuilt by the Normans c1100 and further extended in c1220 (S Aisle and 1310 (N Aisle). The broach spire was added to the tower c1350.
The St Kyneburgha Building Preservation Trust now have a dedicated website – why not take a look for information regarding the activities of The Trust, membership details and planned events to support their work www.castorchurchtrust.co.uk
Below the church sits Castor Church of England Primary School serving the villages of Castor, Ailsworth, Marholm, Sutton and Upton.
For Baptism, Wedding and Funerals please contact the Parish Administrator: tel: 01733 380900 or email: admin.castor@btconnect.com
