St Andrew’s first appears in written records in AD 951 as a church on top of the hill above the river Fleet. However when the crypt was excavated in AD 2002 Roman pottery was discovered, which would point to the site being in use for a much longer period.

The name of the site changes during the Early Middle Ages, from St Andrew Holburnestrate to St Andrew de Holeburn. There is also a medieval spring in the crypt, which emanates from the river Fleet (though it is not generally open to the public).

In 1348 a local armourer called John Thavie “left a considerable Estate towards the support of the fabric forever”. It is his legacy, kept from the reformation, invested carefully through the centuries, that provides for the upkeep of the church today.

A book called “A Medieval Legacy”, about the workings of the Thavie Estate from 1348 through to 1998 is available from our shop.

The wooden church was replaced by a medieval stone one in the 15th Century, of which only the tower now remains.