St. Candida and the Holy Cross, Whitechurch Canonicorum, Dorset

Description

The church of St. Candida and Holy Cross, mentioned in the will of Alfred the Great as "Witancercian," is a fine cruciform building of stone in mixed styles, and consists of chancel, nave of four bays with clerestory, aisles, transepts, south porch and an embattled western tower, with pinnacles, containing a clock, and 8 bells, which were retuned and rehung in 1926: the tower, south porch and aisles are Perpendicular; the south arcade, a fine specimen of Norman work, and the north arcade, transepts and chancel are Early English: in the north transept is an ancient tomb, the shrine of St. Candida, which, excepting that of Edward the Confessor in Westminster Abbey, is the only shrine in England containing relics: the chancel contains a very curious and elaborately carved monument to Sir John Jeffery kt. of Catherstone, dated 1611: there are 312 sittings. Guntard, the first known rector of this parish, attended William the Conqueror on his deathbed.

Church Records

The parish register dates from the year 1558. The original register books are now deposited with the Dorset Archives Service, but have been digitised by Ancestry.co.uk and made available on their site (subscription required).