Saint Faith's Church, Hexton is the

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

for the village of

Hexton Hexton is a small village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, about west of Hitchin. This parish is a salient of Hertfordshire jutting northwards into Bedfordshire. The southern half of the parish is part of the chalky downs of the ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

. The church is within the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

Barton-le-Clay Barton-le-Clay is a large village and a civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, bordering Hertfordshire. The village has existed since at least 1066 and is mentioned in the ''Domesday Book''. History On 25 M ...

in the

Diocese of St Albans The Diocese of St Albans forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England and is part of the wider Church of England, in turn part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The diocese is home to more than 1.6 million people and comprises the hi ...

.St Faith's, Hexton on the Church of England website
/ref> The church has been a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

since 1968.

History

The Parish Church of St Faith's, Hexton was originally built in 1108 and dedicated in 1114, it was then rebuilt with the original core in 1254 and dedicated to the French

Virgin Martyr The title Virgin (, ) is an honorific bestowed on female saints and blesseds, primarily used in the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. Chastity is one of the seven virtues in Christian tradition, listed by Pope Gregory I at the end ...

Saint Faith Saint Faith, Saint Faith of Conques or Saint Faith of Agen (; ; ) is a saint who is said to have been a girl or young woman of Agen in Aquitaine. Her legend recounts how she was arrested during persecution of Christians by the Roman Empire and r ...

. The southern aisle was built before the northern aisle which was added in the 1633 renovation of the church. The existing red brick parts of the church were added later in the 1824 renovation which was carried out by Joseph Andrew de Lautour and his wife Caroline Young. De Lautour was the local landowner of Hexton Manor and descended from the senior line of the

Dukes of Bouillon The Duchy of Bouillon () was a duchy comprising Bouillon and adjacent towns and villages in present-day Belgium. The state originated in the 10th century as property of the Lords of Bouillon, owners of Bouillon Castle. Crusader Godfrey of Bou ...

. Throughout the interior of the church there are memorials to the Lautour family. The Tower of St Faith's, Hexton collapsed into a 'decorative ruin' during a particularly hard winter in 1947. In more recent times the church has been transformed into a community centre since 2003 and has been fitted with many conveniences. However there are still Church of England services every first and third Sunday at 6 p.m. for 45 minutes.

Gallery

File:GOC Hexton 200 St Faith's Church, Hexton (24606230052).jpg, St Faith's East Side File:GOC Hexton 181 St Faith's Church, Hexton (24586964272).jpg, St Faith's North Side File:St Faith, Hexton, SG5 3JL 6 (18892815585).jpg, St Faith's Interior File:GOC Hexton 189 St Faith's Church, Hexton (24077908063).jpg, St Faith's Ruined Tower File:GOC Hexton 191 St Faith's Church, Hexton (24678548206).jpg, Interior of ruined tower File:Erecting scaffolding at St Faith's church, Hexton - geograph.org.uk - 3532964.jpg, 2013 restoration programme

References

External links

Images of St Faith's Church, Hexton

Historic England page

A Church Near Your Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hexton, St Faith's Church Grade II* listed churches in Hertfordshire Church of England church buildings in Hertfordshire English Gothic architecture in Hertfordshire Churches preserved by the Churches Conservation Trust Churches in Hertfordshire 12th-century church buildings in England History of Hertfordshire