The present building was begun in 1430, on the site of an existing church, and consecrated in 1455. It is an ambitious building, 180 feet long and ashlar faced with a tower at the west end. It is a Grade I listed building. It has a Norman foundation dating from 1075, a 1463 font, a 1573 Flemish tapestry and medieval glass. The North transept displays a remarkable collection of church silver including the Gleane and Thistle cups, as well as memorabilia associated with its most famous parishioner, the physician-philosopher Thomas Browne, author of Religio Medici. The small lead-covered spire with flying buttresses was added by A.E. Street in 1896. In 1850 two L-shaped trenches accommodating a number of acoustic jars were discovered beneath the wooden floor on which the choir stalls had previously stood. The earthenware jars were built into its walls at intervals of about three feet, with the mouths facing into the trenches.
Bells
St Peter Mancroft has a ring of fourteen Whitechapel bells in the western tower, eleven of which date from 1775 and the latest of which dates from 1997. St Peter Mancroft is important in the history of change ringing because in 1715, 5040 changes of Plain Bob Triples were rung for the first time, in 3 hours and 17 minutes, as recorded in an inscription in the tower. Subsequently, the first complete peals to the change ringing systems known as Grandsire and Stedman were also rung in St Peter Mancroft. Supernatural folklore is linked to the bells in St Peter Mancroft. In the story "Our Bells" authored by Mark Knights, which featured in the undated booklet "Norfolk Stories", Knight writes: The story tells of how a nobleman, fallen upon hard times, unwittingly tries to rob his own brother, but stays his hand after hearing the moving and beautiful Christmas Eve peal of bells. He subsequently assists in the ringing of the New Year's Eve peal, and bequeaths a sum of money to ensure that a jug of spiced ale is made available to future bell-ringers on that date. The story is recounted by a ghostly descendant of the sexton who was in residence when these events occurred. In 2018 the Mancroft Ringing Discovery Centre was opened, to promote the history of the bell-tower and to train a new generation of bell-ringers.
There was once a large male voice choir which disbanded in 2000, though music is still an essential part of worship with the majority of the services being sung by one of the choirs at the Church. The baroque style organ, one of the finest of its kind, means that St Peter Mancroft is also an exceptional concert venue with many concerts being held all the year round.
