The Church of St Kenelm, Minster Lovell

Image: © Dave Hitchborne Taken: 16 Jun 2013

The graveyard and beyond is Manor Farm - William, 7th Baron Lovell, settled in Minster Lovell in 1431 and demolished the 12th century house and church. He built a new manor house and this parish church in 1450. The ruins of the manor house may still be seen behind the church. St Kenelm's Church has remained virtually unaltered since construction in 1450. It was built on the foundations of an earlier priory minster, which explains the unusual cruciform shape, with central tower. Monuments include an inscription in the north transept to John Vampage (d. 1466), connected to the Lovells by marriage, and the flat stone tomb of Henry Heylyn, with his family arms and a Latin eulogy. Most notable is an alabaster monument with an effigy of a knight, either William (d. 1455) or John Lovell (d. 1465); the tomb has no inscriptions. St Kenelm was a Saxon prince, and the name "Minster" in the name of the village suggests that the village may have had a Saxon minster. The suffix "Lovell" was added to the name from the 13th century when William Lovell held land here.

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