Fifty English Steeples

The Finest Medieval Parish Church Towers and Spires in England

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£50.00
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This book – an astonishing achievement following five years of detailed and original research – presents the first systematic survey of the fifty most important medieval parish church towers and spires in England, covering a period of some five hundred years.

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The introduction provides an overview of the technological and aesthetic development of towers and spires, and examines the evolution of their major architectural elements. The process of medieval steeple construction is also explored.

The main part of the book is devoted to a richly illustrated survey of the fifty most important medieval steeples in England, from renowned Saxon churches such as Earls Barton, Northamptonshire, to those of almost cathedral-like proportions such as Salle in Norfolk or Chipping Campden in the heart of the Cotswolds.

With over 250 high-quality photographs and around 175 immaculate explanatory line drawings, this book will appeal to the many thousands who visit England’s parish churches and who find in them some of the greatest pleasures that buildings can offer.


WINNER of the DAM Architectural Book Award 2017
Extent: 496 pp
Format: Quarterbound/PLC (no jacket)
Publication date: 2016-10-13
Size: 29.0 x 22.5 cm
ISBN: 9780500343142

Press Reviews

The church steeple is the glory of the English landscape. Over a thousand years it has evolved a grandeur and a beauty unrivalled in Europe. It is the icon of every parish. At last it has achieved its biographer
Simon Jenkins

Exquisite drawings and authoritative words make this definitive guide to medieval steeples a delight
RIBA Journal

A magisterial survey
Church Times

No one who buys a copy of Fifty English Steeples is going to regret it … so beautiful, so artfully presented … fascinating
Ringing World

About the Author

Julian Flannery, a qualified architect, worked Nicholas Grimshaw & Partners and Future Systems before founding his own practice, Flannery & de la Pole, in 2004. The detailed study of historic buildings, from Hampton Court Palace after the major fire in 1986 to England’s finest medieval parish churches, has been a lifelong passion.

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