[1] The church has Norman origins, although much of the building dates from the 13th–15th centuries.

[2] St Mary's is Axminster's parish church and the oldest building in the town.

[2] The earliest surviving section of the church is a reset doorway from the Norman period, while the tower, rebuilt in the 13th century, was restored in 1896.

[4] The church suffered an arson attack in 2014, and underwent restoration and repair work before reopening in 2015.

[8] An early 19th-century tomb chest, located by the churchyard's north east gate, is also Grade II Listed.