The
Peterborough Chronicle records
Brixworth as having a monastery,
Brixworth Abbey, founded when
Seaxwulf became
bishop of Mercia, before the death of King
Wulfhere of Mercia in AD 675. The present church was begun in the late eighth or early ninth century, either by King Offa of Mercia or his successor, Coenwulf. Many elements from this building remain visible, along with later additions from further phases of building in the 10th, 14th and 19th centuries. The older building contains features typically found in architecture of a later period, including an
ambulatory. Now it is a parish church and a
Grade I listed building.
Roman architecture can be considered the precedent for early Christian church building; hence the term '
Romanesque'. The church was built in the form of an
Early Christian basilica, but with
piers instead of
columns. What remains of the original building is a
clerestoried nave, north and south
arcades blocked and infilled with windows, a
presbytery separated from the nave by a great arch, and the foundations of a semicircular
apse. The west tower was begun as a two-storey porch, heightened in the 10th century to form a tower. In the 13th century a south aisle was added to the nave, a south chapel was added beside the presbytery and the apsidal chancel was replaced with a rectangular one. In the 14th century the west tower was heightened again and the present
broach spire was added. Archaeological excavations have shown that the original church had side chambers, called
porticus, that would have extended either side of the present nave. At the position of the present tower was a
narthex (vestibule), and original pillars now covered by flooring show that there was a three-arched opening between the nave and the presbytery. The original entrance was at the west end. In the
Norman era the present south door was inserted in the westernmost arch of the south arcade. Reclaimed
Roman stone and brick tiles were used in the construction of the building. Petrological analysis suggests the sources were the Roman towns of
Lactodurum (
Towcester) and
Ratae Corieltauvorum (Leicester). Roman-sized brick tiles are used in the arcading and other arches. An
ambulatory ran around the outside of the original
apse below ground level. Originally steps led down to the ambulatory, which was covered by a
barrel vault. The purpose of this ambulatory was probably to house or provide access to preserved
relics. It has been suggested that Brixworth may have been the site of synods that took place at
Clofesho in the 8th and 9th centuries. This might account for the unusually large size of the building by the standards of the time. However, there are other possible candidates for their location and Clofesho's true identity has not been proved. In the 10th century the tower and stair turret replaced the narthex. This is one of four remaining Anglo-Saxon stair turrets in England, and is similar to the one at St Andrew's parish church,
Brigstock, about northeast of Brixworth. The other two are at
Broughton, Lincolnshire and
Hough-on-the-Hill. At Brixworth, a triple arch was inserted into the existing masonry of the west nave wall at high level, replacing an existing arch. The arches are supported by
baluster shafts, which are typical of Anglo-Saxon architecture, and can also be seen at the tower of
All Saints' Church, Earls Barton, about southeast of Brixworth. In the 14th century the upper stages of the tower and the spire were added. The churchyard contains the war graves of three British Army soldiers of
World War I and a
Royal Pioneer Corps officer of
World War II. ==Victorian restoration==