Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire

The village is bordered on three sides by the rivers Windrush and Thames making an ideal defensive position. There is a reconstructed Bronze Age stone circle about a mile to the south.
The church of St. Michael stands to the east of the manor buildings; a typical Anglo-Saxon setting of church and manor. The nave of the church dates from 1120 - 1150 with the chancel dated at 1260.
A walk round the outside of the church reveals its Norman origins. Do not miss the plaque on the south side with its inscription recording the deaths of two young people.

St. Michael's, Stanton Harcourt 1

The interior of the church has a number of interesting features. One of the most interesting is the remains of the mediaeval shrine of St. Edburg (Eadburga) which was apparently 'rescued' from Bicester Priory at the dissolution by Sir Simon Harcourt, the base is dated as 1320.
Please read the comment below on the true dedication of the Saint depicted in the painting on the screen! My thanks to Chrisi for the information.
The screen itself has a number of roughly carved peep-holes through which a kneeling person could watch the Mass being celebrated.

St Michael's, Stanton Harcourt 2

In the Harcourt Chapel (among others) is the tomb and effigy of Sir Robert Harcourt Jr. who died c.1509. The Harcourts played a number of parts in the civil war between Lancaster and York. Sir Robert Harcourt Sr. was Sheriff of Oxfordshire in 1455 and was killed by the Lancastrians in 1470. His son John Harcourt was outlawed in 1483 for his part in Buckingham's rebellion. John's son, Robert was made a Knight of the Bath in 1494 and succeeded his father before 1495. Sir Robert Jr. served as sheriff of both Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. His tomb has above it a standard reputedly carried by him at the battle of Bosworth.
One of the brasses is to Henry Dodschone, the first Vicar of the parish who died in 1519. Before his incumbency the living was a Rectory in the gift of Reading Abbey.