The parish church is a grade I listed building dedicated to Saint Leodegar and dating from the late 12th century. It was rebuilt around 1420. The chancel was rebuilt in 1760 and the church was further restored by George Gilbert Scott Junior about 1880. The original church had a crossing tower which collapsed in 1419. The font is 15th century and there is a charity board in the north aisle dated 1794. In the north aisle there is a 14th century black marble slab to Adam of Frampton and his wife.
Records in the Chancery Court refer to proceedings between 1426 and 1432 where Roger Denys, a London mason, was sueing for payment following the rebuilding of the Church tower and nave. The chancel rebuilding was carried out at the same time as the refronting of the Rectory, now Wyberton Park, by the Rector Dr. John Shaw.
Wyberton was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. when it consisted of 36 households and had a church.
From Pevsner’s ‘Buildings of Lincolnshire’
Externally all Perpendicular, except for the short polygonal brick chancel, which is of course Georgian (1760), but internally all is Early English and veryimpressive. What we see is a rebuilding of a grand cruciform Early English church. The circumstances are known from the legal proceedings in the Chancery Court between 1426 and 1432 over non payment to a London mason, Roger Denys.
The central tower collapsed in 1419, damaging the nave and transepts, and Denys was engaged to rebuild using the existing masonry. Within ten months he had reconstructed the nave, with a new west tower. This explains many of the anomalies of the building. The arcades are of five bays. The south arcade has plain octagonal piers and double chamfered arches, but the north arcade has piers of four major and four minor shafts, one capital with nailhead, and double chamfered arches; only the last pier is thinner, quatrefoil, not octofoil, and the last 2 arches are different too, one chamfer and one keeled roll.
The bases of the west crossing piers can be seen. The piers consisted of triple shafts to each side and a detached shaft in each hollowed out diagonal. The chancel arch is the East arch of the crossing, and the east responds of the arches into the transepts survive. South of the South East crossing pier is a respond for an arch , so we know that the chancel was aisled. Perpendicular aisle and clerestory windows, much renewed in G.G. Scott Jun’s restoration of 1879 –1881. Nave roof with tie beams on arched braces alternating with angels against principals. Fonts – The first consists of the bowl only, octagonal and very
weathered. The second is from St. Margaret, Norwich. Perpendicular, octagonal, on a high traceried step. Bowl with shields in quatrefoils. Chancel furnishings and windows 1974 by George Pace. The two windows have a striking irregular grid of leadwork, intersecting at the top. The stained glass figures are by A. K. Nicholson, reset from the east window of the demolished church of St. James, Boston. Retable with the Commandments etc. painted on canvas. Georgian, restored in 1974. Royal Arms. Hatchment. In a square frame and painted on wood. Probably 17th Century. Monument – incised slab of Tournai Marble to Adam de Frampton + 1325 and his wife.
From – ‘From the Romans to B & Q A History of Wyberton’.
Wyberton has had a church for almost a thousand years. The Domesday Survey of 1086 tells us so. The church building we see today is, however, more recent than that. Mainly of the 13th and 15th centuries. It is one of only four churches in this country dedicated to St. Leodegar, a French bishop. The original church consisted of a nave and a large chancel, transepts and at least two chapels. In the 15th century rebuilding the floor was raised by a couple of feet, possibly to try and strengthen the foundations as part of the church is built on wet clay soil.
In the 19th century there were severe problems with subsidence and several parts of the building had to be propped up to prevent their collapse. In order to properly strengthen the foundations it was necessary to undo some of the work that had been done four hundred years earlier and get underneath the raised floor to do the underpinning. This is why there are two steps down into the main part of the church. At this time the layout of the earlier building was revealed. With the floor being lowered it leaves visible the piers of the original pillars that would have supported the central tower. This work was completed in 1881 and two porches and doors were removed from the sides of the church as they were considered unsightly. Further underpinning was required in 1916 when there was evidence of more subsidence.Inside the church there is a list of Rectors of Wyberton going back to the year 1218.
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