When a friend told me about a church in the Cambridgeshire town of March with a hammerbeam roof covered in angels it immediately went on my ‘must visit’ list. It’s taken a few years for that to happen, but with an unexpected Saturday off in January I knew I’d be heading for St. Wendreda’s Church.
The moment I walked in and looked up, I wasn’t disappointed - what an astonishing roof! There were literally angels everywhere, all of them lovingly carved over 500 years ago. Between each of the side windows I found an angel holding a musical instrument - a detail I simply couldn’t ignore as a musician myself. You can click on any of the images to see them in greater detail.
Of course, many churches like this were plundered and destroyed during the Reformation, but fortuitously St Wendreda’s survived. It’s believed the town’s guildsmen entertained King Henry VIII’s men in a nearby hostelry, plying them with copious amounts of food and alcohol. At the end of the night they made off with the church silverware, but neglected to set fire to the roof, so the angels survived to smile down at congregations for another five centuries!
A modern detail among the ancient elements of the building…
When I arrived it was fairly overcast, but as the morning wore on the sun came out and I became mildly obsessed with the way the pews were being illuminated by pools of sunlight.
The stonework and stained glass caught the sun too…
I’m always on the lookout for smaller details - in this case some of the beautifully carved characters around the pulpit.
…and other details around the church - decoration on the choir stalls, old certificates, brass plaques and stained glass in memory of people long gone. Click on the images to see them enlarged.
In a church where the roof is the star of the show, it’s easy to overlook a straight image of the nave, but that shaft of sunlight makes it special.
Naturally I found a moment to lie on the floor and really enjoy the hammerbeam roof and those angels, even if the other visitors did think I was a little strange!
By the time I emerged the clouds were long gone, replaced by azure skies and golden sunshine.
Long shadows in the north porch.
Photos taken 17 January 2026