Essendine / Esenden / Esinden / Esindon / Esindone / Essenden / Essingden / Esyndon / Issingden

There is an entry for Essendine [variant spelling] in the Domesday survey [http://opendomesday.org/place/TF0412/essendine/] [accessed 23 July 2015], but it mentions neither cleric nor church in it. The Victoria County History (Rutland, vol. 2, 1935) notes: "The church [...] stands on the southwest portion of the site of the earthwork known as Essendine Castle [...] The building has been a good deal repaired, and in part rebuilt, but in the main is a 12th-century structure remodelled in the 13th century, in which latter period the chancel appears to have been rebuilt on its present plan, new windows being inserted later in both chancel and nave. A considerable amount of reconstruction appears to have taken place during the second quarter of the 19th century [...] The chancel has also been rebuilt but retains many of the ancient features. There was a further restoration in 1888. [...] Though much rebuilt, the south wall of the nave retains its original doorway, the date of which is c. 1130–40. The semicircular tympanum is set within a segmental arch, [...] the space on either side being made up with stone filling, which suggests that it is part of an older [...] doorway re-used, or that there has been some reconstruction of the existing doorway subsequent to its erection. [...] The apparently earlier character of the tympanum has frequently been noticed: Keyser, List of Norman Tympana, 2nd ed. p. lxv. It is, however, probably not older than the sculptured jambs of the doorway. [...] The font has a plain octagonal basin with chamfered under edge, on a modern square stem." The present font is located at the west end of the nave; not known whether the basin is medieval or not; its wooden font cover with low scroll ribs appears modern.