The Church of St Cyriac and St Julitta, Swaffham Prior, is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Swaffham Prior.
The church has a dual dedication to Saints Cyriac and Julitta (Quiricus and Julietta), Saint Julitta being the mother of Saint Cyriac.
Both this church and the adjacent church of St Mary were established by the early 13th century. Initially separate parishes, their benefices were united in 1667. In 1743 the nave and chancel of St Cyriac's were restored, but by 1783 the church was in a dilapidated state, and services were being held in St Mary's. By the 1790s the roof of St Cyriac's was collapsing, and it was overgrown with ivy. However in 1779 the tower of St Mary's had been struck by lightning, and in 1802, when builders were working on the tower, part of it collapsed. It was then decided to demolish St Cyriac's church, other than the tower, and rebuild it.
Work began in 1806 to designs by Charles Humfrey of Cambridge. The cost of the work was over £3,100 (£210,000 as of 2014), and the church was re-consecrated in 1809. Towards the end of the century, work was carried out to restore St Mary's. St Mary's was re-opened in 1903, and it then became the sole parish church. The fabric of St Cyriac's was left to decay, and by the 1960s its ceiling was collapsing. Its tower was restored in 1959–60, and in 1974 the Redundant Churches Fund, the forerunner of the Churches Conservation Trust, spent £10,000 (£90,000 as of 2014) on repairing and restoring the rest of the church. Since then, it has been used occasionally for exhibitions and concerts.
For this cache, start at the bottom of the steps from the footpath up to the church and travel anti-clockwise around the churches keeping to the path. You should not have to venture far from the path.
Find; N52 15.ABC E 000° 17.DEF
- A - F ? T H I (-1)
- B - Mary Frances Prince. Died Feb 1B 1901
- C - Find the plaque of the Redundant Churches Fund and add the two digits in the postcode together. Minus one from this total to give you C. Or if you can’t read the plaque, the number of wooden panels in one door plus two.
- D - Susannah Gray. Died Oct 14th 1892 aged D3 years.
- E - Eliza Webb WHO ENTERED INTO REST May E 1923.
- F - Martha Palmby, Born September F3
This should now give you the Co-Ords you need.
The cache is a short walk away and you are looking for a green plastic container. Good luck!