Welcome to Great Paxton

The village sign of Great Paxton in Huntingdonshire

The village and parish of Great Paxton in Huntingdonshire.

Great Paxton has one of the oldest shrines in the country, a church with remarkable Saxon work in its walls, which is celebrated on the village sign pictured above.

The church quaintly charming outdoors, indoors is full of surprise, for the great nave walls the Saxons raised have arches resting on beautiful piers of clustered columns, all simple but impressive with their strength and age. On the pier nearest the porch the mouldings end in a lion's head and a flower. The east end of the arcades ret on imposts with square Saxon mouldings, while the large stones below descend to the floor in the long-and-short style.

The windows of the lofty clerestory have been letting in the light since the days of Edward the Confessor; their high position indicates that the original Saxon aisles were of a considerable size. The Saxon nave was longer than the present church, and must have resembled a cathedral in size. Its most striking feature remaining is in the three arches of the crossing. The break in the string-courses sows were the western arch stood. The south arch opening into the transept has been transformed into a pointed arch, the Saxon supports being lowered, thought the capitals have been reset. The Saxon responds remain at their full height in the arch of the north transept which has the original round arch above them. Each has four attached shafts separated by small rolls. Similar responds support the chancel arch which was transformed into the pointed style in the 13th century. The transepts must have been 23 yards (21m) from north to south and it is believed that a central tower stood over the crossing in Norman times. Great Paxton Church was one of the most ambitious buildings of the 11th century.

Great Paxton Church was much rebuilt in all our rebuilding centuries, and the chancel is 13th, the tower and porch 14th, and the aisles 15the century. The south door still has its ancient ironwork. The font is 400 years old, and of the 16th century there is an oak screen in the tower, some pews in the nave, and glass in the windows. In the churchyard is a fragment of a 15th century cross, and in the tower a bell which rang when Henry (King Henry V of England) came home from Agincourt (1415).

Arthur Mee - The Counties of Bedfordshire and Huntingdonshire - Published in 1939

Great Paxton is one of the parishes of the District of Huntingdonshire, whose administrative centre is Huntingdon, the other principle towns being St Ives home of the Chapel on the Bridge, St Neots the largest town in the County of Cambridgeshire, the Roman town of Godmanchester and Ramsey site of the former Abbey.