The slender shingled spire rising from the top of a round flint tower (only two others like it in Sussex) distinguishes this church as it stands in the busy High Street of Lewes, at the foot of the mound bearing the keep of the Norman Castle.

Believed to have been instituted as ‘the church of the castle’, the expression “tanquam matrici ecclesie” (Mother Church) in the 16th century seems to imply that it held a position of seniority in the town. By the time of the Reformation, St Michaels was in a deplorable condition and its fortunes suffered another serious setback during the Puritan revolution as the citizens of the town remained predominantly Dissenters.

Extensive building works were carried out in 1748 (i.e. rebuilding of South Aisle, with two doors onto the street) and from the incumbency of Frederick Teed (1841 – 1863) a number of changes began to be made to the liturgy and furnishings which reflected the catholicising influence of Newman and Pusey.

Thanks must go to the Rev Edgar Herman Cross (1877 – 1891) for much of the present day character of this church.

The 1851 Religious Census of St Michaels, High Street, Lewes

Morning 50 - Total 50

The number given is considered about the average

John Cooke, Registrar, Lewes, 9 Sept 1851