St Mary's Church, Great Bedwyn

[1] On the wall above is fixed a tablet inscribed as follows:[6] Here lyeth intombed the worthie Sr John Seymour of Wolfhall, Knight, who by Margerie his wyfe, daughter of Sr Henry Wentworthe, Knight, from whome the nowe Lorde Wentworthe is discended, had sixe sonnes and fower daughters, to wete, John who dyed unmaryed; Edwarde, Duke of Somerset, Earl of Hertforde, Vicount Beauchampe and Baron Seymour, uncle to Kinge Edwarde the Sixt, Governor of his Royall Person, Protector of all his Dominions and Subjects, Lorde Treasorer and Earle Marshall of Englande; w(i)ch Duke maryed Anne, daughter of Sr Edwarde Stanhope, Knight, by Elizabeth his wyfe, daughter of Sr Foulke Burgchier, Lorde Filzwaryn, [sic] from whome the moderne Earles of Bathe are discended; Sr Henry Seymour, Knight, who maried Barbara daughter of Thomas Morgan, Esquier; Thomas Lorde Seymour of Sudeley, Highe Admirall of Englande, who maryed Katherine, Queene of Englande, and wydow to Kinge Henry the Eight.

Jane Qveene of Englande, wyfe to Kynge Henry the Eight, and mother to Kynge Edwarde the Sixt; Elizabeth, firste maryed to Sr Henry Ughtred,(sic) Knight, after to Gregorie, Lorde Cromwell, and last to Jhon Lorde Sainct John of Basinge,[sic] after Marquesse of Winchester; Margery, who dyed in her infancy, and Dorothe, maryed to Sr Clement Smythe, Knight.

This Knight departed this lyfe at LX yeares of age, the XXI day of December, Anno 1536, and was firste buryed at Eston Priorie Churche amongst divers of his auncestors, bothe Seymours and Sturmyes.

Howbeit that Churche beinge ruyned, and thereby all theire monumentes either whollie spoyled, or verie much defased duringe the mynoritie of Edwarde, Earle of Hertforde, sonne to the said Duke, the said Earle after, as well for the dutyfull love he beareth to his said grandefather, as for the better contynuans of his memory, did cause his bodie to be removed, and here to be intombed at his own coste and chardge, the laste daye of September, Anno 1590, in the XXXII yeare of the moste happye raigne of our gratious Soveraigne Ladie Queene Elizabeth.A transcript was made of the inscriptions of the Seymour monuments by the topographer John Aubrey on his visit to the church in 1672, who also recorded the heraldry on the monument at that date, much of which has been lost.

[8] Still present in the church today is the elegant tomb of Frances Seymour, Duchess of Somerset (1599–1674), the daughter of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I, who was executed for treason in 1601.

Pevsner writes that the crossing tower is "of just the right height in relation to nave, chancel and transepts", but notes the lack of early details to the exterior.

In one of them lies a stone effigy of a knight with shield and drawn sword, said to be Sir Adam de Stokke (died 1313),[5] the builder of the transepts.

[5] Wyatt provided a stone font and pulpit, in a style called "muscular Gothic" by Julian Orbach in his update of Pevsner's book.

[10] North-west of the church stands the Grade II* listed base and shaft of a 14th-century limestone churchyard cross,[11] capped with a 17th-century polyhedral sundial.

Tomb of John Seymour, grandfather of King Edward VI of England
Sir John Seymour memorial