Early C14 with later additions
Also at this time, roofs with internal carving were removed; in 1825 some of the carved figures and heads from the roof were to be seen ornamenting gardens and buildings in the town
Tall tower with very fine Northamptonshire-style broach spire, late C14. The tower of three diminishing stages with diagonal buttresses, surmounted by stone broached spire with four sets of lucarnes, their hoods emphasising the spire's entasis
Octagonal pinnacles at the base of the spire, probably C17. West doorway in tower, with pointed head, moulded
INTERIOR: Spacious interior, 'scraped' in C19, but with good C14 features
GLASS: The south-west and north-west windows of chancel 1973 by Wippell Mowbray Church Furnishings commemorating John Newton and William Cowper
The east window is by Holland of Warwick, 1870. Other glass in chancel, C19. At east end of north aisle, a Chapel of Remembrance, with north-east window in north aisle by George Cooper Abbs, 1946, given in thanks for the safe return of many men of Olney from the First World War, and honouring illustrious men connected with Olney - Newton, Cowper, and the organist Henry John Gauntlett
MonumentS: In chancel, a grey marble wall tablet, with mourning cherubs and gadrooned sill commemorating Catherine Johnson (d.1680); on south wall, a curious curvilinear shield to Moses Browne (d. 1787), vicar of Olney 1753-1787, and his son (d.1807). On north wall of north aisle, monument to William Games (d.1657), with broken pediment and naive skull
FURNISHINGS: Notable furnishings include reredos of c1896 by Jones & Hollis, and late-C16 octagonal font, no longer in service
A plain C18 pulpit, reputed to be the one used by John Newton, stands in the south-west corner of the church
HISTORY: A church existed in the parish from a very early period; local tradition suggests that it was once on a different site, and since no vestige remains of a building earlier than the mid-C14 in the present structure, this may be correct
After the dissolution of the monasteries the rectory was let until the early C17, when rectory and advowson were granted to Sir John Ramsey, a Scottish favourite of James I. Thereafter, the patronage passed through many hands
The people stare at me since reading them, and well they may.' The 'Narrative' established him as one of the leading figures of the evangelical revival
Newton's singular position as a figure of unimpeachable moral authority with first-hand experience of the slave trade made his contribution to the success of the abolition movement extremely valuable (see entry for St Mary Woolnoth)
In the south-east corner of the churchyard, a monument to John Newton and his wife (qv), erected in 1893 when the building of Bank Underground station led to their bodies being disinterred from St Mary Woolnoth
Beside the tomb, a small monument commemorating Newton's father-in-law, George Catlett (d.1777). To north of church, the vicarage with attached coach-house (qv), once Newton's home
SOURCES: RCHM II p. 227 MON 1 N Pevsner, The Buildings of England, Buckinghamshire (1960) N Pevsner, E Williamson and G Brandwood, The Buildings of England, Buckinghamshire (1994) Victoria County History, Buckingham: 4 (1927) J Betjeman and J Piper, Murray's Buckinghamshire Guide (1948) Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online edn) J Walvin, The Trader, The Owner, The Slave (2007) R Collins, The Parish Church of SS Peter & Paul, Olney (1964) REASONS FOR DESIGNATION: The church of Saints Peter and Paul, Olney is designated at Grade I for the following principal reasons: * C14 church with exceptional broach spire in the Northamptonshire style * Interior retains fine C14 structure, and some noteworthy C14 features * Strong connection with John Newton, slave trader and clergyman, and William Cowper, poet and abolitionist, adds to historical interest of building. * The unusual setting of the church, at the end of the town, remains remarkably unchanged since the C18 Legacy The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system