Situated outside the Church of St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham is  an interesting ancient Greek marble font.

This was brought from the Island of Rhodes in 1886 by the Duke of Edinburgh for his brother, the Prince of Wales, and is very probably of the ninth century. There is a Greek inscription around the upper rim which, translated, reads: ‘In the treasureship of Cyriacus, a deacon and Calvinus (the) humble this work was executed; and may the Lord preserve those that erect it. Amen‘*

*From the Church of St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham guide book

The original medieval church was considered, by the 6th Earl of Coventry and Capability Brown (who landscaped the estate) to be too close to the house and was demolished. A new church was built in 1763 which incorporates interior masonry and timbers from the old church. The exterior of the church was designed by Capability Brown in imitation of the ‘Gothic Style’, whilst the interior was designed by Robert Adam in a ‘Georgian Gothic’ style. As part of his design Adam had suggest stained glass windows but instead the church has clear glass in its windows.

The Coventry family cared for the church until 1949 when the house passed out of the family, and they are commemorated by a series of magnificent monuments. By the late 1960s the building was no longer viable as a parish church and was placed in the care of The Churches Conservation Trust in 1975.*

The 6th Earl had the tombs of four of his ancestors moved here from the demolished church and installed in the chancel. The bodies of the Coventrys, including the 6th Earl, are buried in a vault beneath the Church, which could be accessed via a secret passage at the side of the building, marked with the words Candide et Constanter, the family motto. Not all of the ancestors appear to have been moved, so it is assumed that there are many more still under the soil near the house.. **

The new Church was built on higher ground so that it could be visible from many parts of the estate.

*The Churches Conservation Trust

**From the National Trust, Croome handbook