Stanford-on-Avon is in the north-west of Northamptonshire, near the Leicestershire border. Although there must once have been a village here, now there is only a handful of houses less than 100 years old, the nearby Stanford Hall, and this absolutely wonderful church which Simon Jenkins (who wrote the book, "England's Thousand Best Churches") considers to be among the top hundred. Stanford Hall is the ancestral home of the Cave family (going back to 1430), and their descendants the Brayes, and they considered this to be their church. Their splendid monuments are to be seen throughout the church.
The tomb in the centre of the picture is of Sir Thomas Cave and his wife Elizabeth. The date is 1558. The memorial against the north wall is that of Margaret Cave and her husband Henry Knollys, shown with their two children.
Originally there was a Saxon church here, and this was replaced by a large Norman church. Then some two hundred years later in 1307 Alan de Aslaghby, who had been appointed vicar, decided to rebuild the church, retaining just the chancel from the existing Norman church, and enlarging its windows. The nave, aisles and tower were completely rebuilt. The roof timbers in the Chancel are thought to be the original Norman ones.
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