Our town stands where the route between Oxford and Southampton crosses that from London to Salisbury,.at a ford over the river Test. It was an important meeting place even before the Gough Map of 1360 showed it. To the north runs the Harrow (or Hoar, meaning ancient) Way, and beyond it is the old Roman Road, the Portway, that linked Silchester and Sarum (Salisbury). We believe that there was a Christian Church in 4th-century Silchester, and some have identified Whitchurch with the Roman town of Vindomis, so there may have been a Christian community worshipping here in Roman times. Eventually a little white church was built " perhaps of limestone or even chalk.

The church you see today is the result of Victorian restoration and enlargement. Between 1866 and 1868 the architect Benjamin Ferry (1810-1880) considerably altered the building; amongst other things, enlarging the north aisle, adding the chancel, heightening the tower and adding the spire. However, many traces of the earlier church remain.

THE FONT
The font is Tudor, as can be seen from the Tudor rose, which you will find on one of the panels on the side. If you lift the lid and look inside, you will see that it is lead-lined, and that the lead is pierced by two holes. These holes once housed two bolts which kept the cover firmly in position, to prevent people from taking baptismal water for superstitious purposes.

NORMAN PILLARS AND ARCHES
The pillars and arches to your left (south) were probably built in the 13th century and are typically massive, measuring two and a half feet across. The proportions are splendid with simple, bold arches describing equilateral triangles.

Looking west, up the steps towards the tower, you will see the arch above them, which is also Norman, and is contemporary with the pillars. The tower is also Norman, but more about that in a minute. Now look to your right (north), and notice the difference in the pillars on this side. These pillars are perpendicular, which ill suit the Norman bases on which they stand, nor do the arches meet the capitals comfortably. Now look up into the roof. The wooden beams which span the nave are of the 15th century and, like the bells, which will be described later, indicate a new-found prosperity, as England recovered from the ravages of the Black Death.

THE TOWER

The lower part of this tower was also built in the 13th century by the Norman lords of Whitchurch, who came from Fecamp, on the Normandy coast. Originally it was not so high and showed the Norman fondness for strength in building -- the Victorians added the upper part and the spire. Behind the door leading to the bell chamber is an unusual wooden spiral staircase built round a central newel of single length of oak. These stairs are at least 500 years old. If you are lucky, there might be someone in the church who can unlock this door and let you see them.

In the tower are two memorial plaques, one on the south side to the Rev John Blair, vicar of Whitchurch for 37 years until 1783, and one on the other side of the tower, to Fanny Blair, daughter of the said John Blair, who died of consumption at the age of 17. On this stone you will be able to read her epitaph, which she wrote herself just before she died.

Also in the tower, but behind the locked door, are the remains of a clock movement dating from before 1660. It never had a face, but simply boomed out the hours, and the marks of the striker can still be seen on the tenor bell.

THE BELLS
Up the spiral staircase mentioned above there is a peal of eight bells. The sixth was cast in 1448 at the Wokingham Medieval Foundry by John Mitchell. It bears the inscription "SANCTA MARGARETA ORA PRO NOBIS", which is translated as "Saint Margaret pray for us". The fourth was also cast at Wokingham and dates from about 1450. It has an inscription "VIRGO PARENS NATUM FAC NOBIS PROPITATUM", which is difficult to translate but amounts to "Virgin Mother make your Son be merciful to us". This was probably the Angeius bell.

The seventh and fifth bells are by the Reading founder Henry Knight and were cast in 1611 and 1612 respectively. The third was cast in about 1700, but subsequently cracked, and was re-cast in 1748 by Robert Catlin, since when it has remained sound. The tenor (eighth) weighs 14 cwt and was cast in 1724 by William Tosier of Salisbury. The first and second bells were added in 1919 as part of the town's commemoration of those of Whitchurch who fell in the First World War.

THE COMMANDMENTS BOARD
which was found behind a panel in the White Hart Hotel in the middle of Whitchurch.  It is dated 1602 and vividly depicts the fate of those in the Bible who disobeyed the Ten Commandments. These are written in the centre, but as it is older than the King James Bible, the translations and spellings are sometimes quaint. The captions of the pictures read, translated into modern English:

On the north wall of the north aisle are a number of interesting things.

THE PORTAL MEMORIALS

At the west end of the north wall is an elaborate memorial to John Portal of Freefolk Priors. He was the third generation of Portals to be commemorated in this church. The first was Henri (later Henry) Portal, whose memorial stone is on the south wall of the chancel above the choir stalls. Henri was a Huguenot (French Protestant), who fled his country for sanctuary in England after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685. He set up the paper mills at Laverstoke that still bear his name, although the main factory has now moved to larger premises in Overton. These mills produce bank note paper for the Bank of England, and now also for many other countries around the world.

At the east end of the north wall is the third memorial to a Portal, this time Joseph Portal, son of Henry, who died on 14 December 1792. This memorial is worth reading, for the paean of his achievements. Joseph was the father of John Portal, whose memorial we started with.

THE MARY MAZE
This mosaic, conceived by a local designer, executed by a local mosaicist and installed by a local builder, was put into the church and blessed by the vicar in 1993. It shows the Mother Mary with the Christ child on her lap. Joseph looks on from behind. There is a long history of mazes in churches. This one shows that the journey through life to salvation may not be the direct and obvious one. This maze has two paths, the direct and the indirect, and it is set tow in the wall so that children can come and trace the paths and find their own way to Jesus.

Close to this maze and a bit higher up is the memorial to those of Whitchurch who fell in the South African War of 1899-1902. It is not common to find Boer War memorials in churches.

Looking to the east, you will see, stretching from a pillar to the north wall, a wooden screen, which was originally across the entrance to the chancel and was erected in honour of Queen Victoria in 1901. It was later moved to its present position, losing a small amount at one end, so that it would fit the new aperture. Through this screen, you can see some of the pipes of the organ, and more pipes can be seen in the chancel. This is a three-manual instrument with 41 speaking stops, built by Rushworth and Dreaper, given to the church in 1935.

THE SAXON STONE
This stone was discovered embedded in the north wall when the Victorians were rebuilding the church in 1866-68. It is unique but reminiscent of the style of the stones found on Hadrian's Wall. It shows a carved figurin relief. The halo with the cross behind the head indicates that it is of Jesus. who holds the gospels in his left hand while his right is raised in blessing. In spite of the damage of centuries, the fingers are easily discernible. Like other very early representations of Christ, the chin, albeit damaged, seems to be clean-shaven. Across the top, and possibly at some later date, an inscription has been carved .commemorating a Saxon lady whose name means "Pledge of Peace". It reads:

HIC CORPUS FRITHBURGAE REQUIESCIT IN PACEM SEPULTUM

which is translated as: "Here the body of Frithburga lies buried in peace". Whoever she was, she represents the Saxon community of centuries ago.

On now to the chancel itself. If you go up towards the altar, on your right you will see high up a lovely little stained glass window to the memory of 10-year-old Rustat Hemsted. In the chancel are two framed lists of all the vicars of Whitchurch from 1283 until the present day (listed on page 8).

THE BROOKE MEMORIALS
On the east wall you will see the brass memorial to two of the Brooke family. This family lived in the large house opposite the church, now called Kings Lodge, but in the 16th century it was Parsonage Farm. The two Brookes remembered in the brass are Richard Brooke and his wife Elizabeth, an heiress of the Twyne family from nearby Longparish. Both Richard and-Elizabeth are shown on the brass richly attired, as befits a rich merchant family of the 16th century.

These two had three sons and three daughters, all represented in two small groups beneath the main brass. The memorial was originally on their tomb elsewhere in the church. The brass was erected by their youngest son Robert. In fact it says as much about him as it does about his parents; his indenture as apprentice goldsmith is still to be seen in the City of London. The words on the brass read as follows:

The nearby tomb shows the effigies of Thomas Brooke, the grandson of Richard above, and his wife Susan. These chalk effigies have not stood the passage of time all that well, and are worn from abrasion, although small traces of paint work still show on them. The richness of the clothes of Richard and Elizabeth Brooke on the brass contrast sharply with the sombre lawyer's attire of Thomas and his wife Susan depicted on the tomb. At some time in the past, these effigies were removed from their original position and were re-found in the tower in the early 1900s. They were then placed in their present position, on a carved stone base provided by subscription of the Brooke families in America.

Of the 11 children of Thomas and Susan, three sons are notable: Thomas (1599-1665) for the manner of his death -- he was killed by lightning while riding home from Winchester; Richard, for entertaining King Charles I in the Parsonage Farm from 19-21 October 1644 on his way to the second battle of Newbury; and Robert (1602-1655), an Anglican minister, for emigrating with his family and 28 servants, sheep and greyhounds, on 30 June 1650 to Maryland in America, where he became governor of Calvert County and settled "a considerable plantation". Many of his descendants from America continue to visit the church.

Also in the south aisle are the two memorials to the fallen of the First and Second World Wars. The First World War memorial is just behind the Brooke tomb, while that for the Second World War is at the western end of
the south aisle. Beneath each of these two memorials there are glass cases containing photographs of those mentioned in the memorials; both presented by the Whitchurch branch of the Royal British Legion.

Thus, we come back to the entrance door. But before you leave our church, you should know that we feel a wonderful sense of heritage and of being privileged to stand within the line of faithful men and women, boys
and girls, who have lived in our town and made this a centre of worship. As a visitor, will you not share with them in saying a prayer here too?

OUTSIDE ALL HALLOWS
Just as All Hallows grew and changed over the centuries to reflect the tastes and needs of a changing church, so it has continued to do so in the 20th century. Attached to the west end of the bell tower is a fine church
room, generously donated and built in 1974. This provides facilities for meetings, social and other activities in which the church is involved today.

As you go outside the church, look at the recently cleaned tombstone at the northeast corner "In memory of John Haime, soldier, preacher and fellow labourer with John Wesley. Died August 18th 1784". This stone was
placed where it now stands by the local preachers of the district in the 1930s. The original stone is now on the wall of the Methodist Chapel in Winchester Street, Whitchurch.

No new plots have been allocated in the churchyard in this century, although burials continued to be made up until the 1920s. The gravestones leaning against the north wall were moved there during the course of con-
struction of the church room in 1974.