Neen Sollars Church
Neen Sollars belonged to the lords of Richards Castle and therefore passed to the Mortimers of Essex when they inherited that barony in 1211.
The current church was probably built before the Mortimers of Richards Castle died out in 1304. The plan is quite elaborate for such a bland church, being of cruciform shape, with chancel, transepts and nave all radiating from a central crossing surmounted by a tower with a broach spire.
The nave is possibly the oldest part of the structure and soon had the transepts added to it. The chancel was almost certainly built last. A blocked doorway can still be traced in the west wall of the nave. Amport church in Hampshire has a similar design.
Copyright©2013 Paul Martin Remfry