St Helen's

The church is named after, Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great. The first known patron of the church was Edward the Confessor.

In the Doomsday Book it was stated that in the manor of Wakefield there were
"three priests and two churches," of which one of the two may with certainty be Sandal Magna. There is nothing visible of this Saxon Church.

About the year 1150 a new church was built of which the tower columns remain.
Since then many extensions and alterations have taken place.

In the fourteenth century the church was almost wholly rebuilt, the tower was raised and four bells added

The church was restored in 1872 but this damaged the church from a historical and architectural point of view. The number of bells was increased from 4 to 6.

Items of interest

A handsomely carved oak seventeenth century chair was removed from the original Sandal Three Houses Inn. Captain William Hardcastle arrested the nortorious highway man, Nevison, in the chair and it was declared that from then on only the holiest person would sit in that chair.

The font dates back to 1662.

During the civil war the Royalist vicar was arrested in the churchyard and the grooves in the base of the tower pillars are said to have been made by the sharpening of swords.

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Updated 24th October 2004