The village of Turvey, on the east bank of the river Great Ouse forming Bedfordshire’s boundary with Buckinghamshire, has one of the finest and oldest churches in the Diocese of St. Albans.
The oldest parts of the present structure are Saxon. All Saints has been constantly developed across the centuries to become the largest parish church in the Deanery of Sharnbrook (established in 1970). All Saints was in the Diocese of Lincoln until it was transferred, together with the rest of the Archdeaconry of Bedford, to the Diocese of Ely in 1837. In 1877 the Diocese of St. Albans was created around St. Albans Abbey in the Roman city now of the same name, and in 1914 Turvey again changed to a new Diocese during the radical redistribution of country parishes. Some believe that Turvey and its church may, like St. Albans, have Roman origins, the Romans having settled on the site of an earlier river settlement established by the Beaker People at a convenient fording place as long ago as 1800 – 1600 BC.
Whatever its origins may be, the people of Turvey are fortunate indeed to enjoy this legacy, handed down over the centuries, of a very beautiful, and at the same time very friendly parish church. We hope this guide will help you to share with us some of its interesting history.
