The Parish Church of Hawkesbury St Mary the Virgin the first church was built about AD680 it is said that about that year a College of Secular Cannons was founded in “Suthstoce”  South Stoke later Stoke the site of the church by Oswald nephew of Ethelred King of Mercia later in 984 the same Secular Cannons were dismissed by King Edgar  at the request of the Bishop of Worcester and replaced by regular Monks from the order of St Benedict, We also know from an existing charter that in the year 972 King Edgar confirms to the Abbot and Convent of Pershore Abbey the same privileges that were granted in the time of King Coenulph during recent work at ground level within St Mary’s what appears to be the foundations of an earlier structure was found to find evidence of Saxon building we neen only to look at the foundations of the doorway as you enter the church the masonary at the base of the later Norman doorway is Saxon The Saxon church which was not only intended to cater for the villagers spiritual needs but also their physical needs the original church would have had an area where the sick and needy were cared for and where a weary traveller could rest or stay the night during his journey. St Mary’s was not only a Parish church that encompassed Hillesley Didmarton, Badminton, Kilcott and Tresham but also a Deaconry which had influence over a much greater area.

The St Mary’s we see today is the product of much building and remodelling over the years it consists of a Chancel with a south chapel a nave with south aisle, a western tower and north and south porches with a chamber over each of the porches it’s length from east to west is almost 120 feet and its width almost 70 feet including both porches the Norman doorway is built on Saxon stone bases dating from around 950 probably built by the Bendictine Monks.Major building took place in the early English period 1145-1272 in this period the greater part of the chancel was built with its arch (this was later widened and required a buttress to be built to support to north nave due to the extra loading) the greater part of the south aisle, the lower part of the tower arch, part of the north porch and some other minor modifications.Alterations continued more or less continually but for dating purposes we are now in the Decorated period 1272-1377 during this period the nave arcade was built although it was probably totally reconstructed when the chancel arch was widened, the tower was also raised to the level of the original roof.

During the Gothic period the Perpendicular 1377-1509 new roofs to the nave and aisle, the nave clerestory, the south porch, the greater part of the north porch, several windows in the nave and aisle were added or modified, the chapel, the chancel east window, the doorways to the rood loft and the pulpit.

To the exterior the tower is a strongly built 6 stage structure it has unusual wedge shaped buttresses to the first stage the upper portions are rectangular, access to the tower is via a turret on the north east corner up to roof level it then changes to the south east corner, it has a room with a fire place and chimney this vents about 15 feet up the north wall through a small stone opening, the tower was built over the periods from the Early English to the Perpendicular1145-1509 the tower probably had 6 bells originally as the frames can still be seen although no one knows what happened to them it is thought that 5 were dispersed to other churches at least before 1699 as in this year the church wardens accounts show they spent 9d “ffor a pinte of oyl for ye bell” so it would seem only one existed