Brill - Church and Priory

Church and Priory

The Church of England parish church of All Saints was built early in the 12th century, and its nave and chancel remain essentially Norman structures. The chancel's north wall has a blocked lancet window from that period. The pointed chancel arch is 13th century. The Perpendicular Gothic west tower was built early in the 15th century. The present chancel roof dates from the 17th century.

The north aisle was built in 1839 but its east window dates from about 1275. In 1888 All Saints' was largely rebuilt under the direction of John Oldrid Scott. Scott extended the chancel eastwards by about 6 feet (1.8 m) and added a new Gothic Revival east window. He added the south aisle and porch at the same time but its east and west windows are re-used Perpendicular Gothic ones, probably dating from early in the 16th century.

All Saints was a chapel of ease to the nearby parish of Oakley from the 12th until the 16th century. It belonged to the Priory of St Frideswide, Oxford until the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

Brill had a hermitage or priory dedicated to St. Werburgh that was annexed to Chetwode Priory from 1251. Chetwode Priory surrendered the advowson of the hermitage to the Bishop of Lincoln in 1460.