St Peter’s Church, Grandborough
St Peter’s is situated approximately 5 miles from Dunchurch and 8 miles from Rugby in the village of Grandborough. Two Wellingtonia trees, which were planted either side of the tower and spire over 100 years ago, make an impressive view of the church from a distance.
The first church in Grandborough may have been a late Saxon chapel, held by Leofric, Earl of Mercia and his legendary wife, “Lady Godiva”. They gave Grandborough and the surrounding land to St Mary’s Benedictine Priory, Coventry.
Robert de Limesey, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield gave considerable Priory lands in Grandborough to his daughter Celestria and to her husband Noel, possibly as a dowry before 1100. The church almost certainly went with this and the gift was later ratified by Prior Lawrence to Noel and Celestria’s son Robert, who is said to be the founder of Grandborough Church. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the tomb, which originally stood where the organ is currently positioned, was “the founder’s tomb”, and is now located outside, under the east window of the chancel.
The church was erected mainly in the 14th century and is chiefly in the Decorated style with a little transitional Early English decorated work. The Feast of St Peter and St Paul was originally held on the same day, 19th June. Before the Reformation the church was dedicated to St Paul but after the Reformation became St Peter’s church.
The font dates from 1836, the tower from 1868. The bells are now in a very poor state of repair and are only chimed by means of Ellacombe apparatus in a cupboard in the tower.