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Some interesting facts and history:
Ranked in the 'Top 100' by Simon Jenkins in his book "England's Thousand Best Churches". Described by Pevsner as "the most remarkable Norman parish church in the county"
Gifted to Bishop Elfstan in 995 AD, this was the ancient manor of the bishops of London during the rule of the later Saxon kings of England. The bishops held the manor until 1559 when the catholic Bishop Bonner was dispossessed of his holdings for refusing to take the oath of allegiance and supremacy to the new protestant Queen Elizabeth I.
The style and quality of the church, and above all its decoration, strongly suggest that the early Norman bishops regularly resided in the manor and that the church was built as their chapel.
The least altered part of the church is the semi-circular apse, which dates back to ca 1130. Apart from a small fragment of the early 12th century chapel of the bishops of London, most of the visible parts of the south wall date from the 14th century. However, the most intriguing features are in the gable area. This has an elongated round-headed 'window' completely encased in Roman brick with an occulus (small circular window) on either side. Although now glazed, it seems the window was originally a door opening onto an external wooden balcony, perhaps serving on feast days as an outside pulpit or for the display of relics.
Until the late 19th century, the church was originally dedicated to St. Mary, the Virgin.
All information has been taken from the church website. Please visit http://copfordchurch.org.uk/index.php for further details.
