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The church of St. James the Great in Radley consists of a chance' 26 ft. 6 in. by 14 ft. 6 in., nave 48 ft. 6 in. by 17. ft. 3 in. with south aisle and south transept together making a width of 26 ft. 9 in., and west tower 8 ft. 9 in. square.

The south transept is apparently of 14th-century date, but the whole of the rest of the church was rebuilt in the 15th century, and the nave is a particularly interesting example of timber construction. The building suffered severely during the Civil War, when Radley formed an outpost of the Royalist garrison of Oxford. It was at this period that the north aisle and transept of the nave were destroyed and the existing north wall built in their place. The church was considerably restored in 1902.

The chancel is of the 15th century and has a three-light traceried east window with a four-centred head. In the side walls are three-light square-headed windows of similar date, one on each side, and there is also a priest's door in the north wall. The east end has diagonal buttresses terminating in modern pinnacles, and on the east gable is an old cross carried up from a hood corbel on the east wall. The side walls of the chancel are embattled. The chancel arch is modern and takes the place of an old arch of oak, the remains of which now lie in the vicarage garden. On the east side of the north respond is a moulded corbel embedded in the wall.

The nave has two threelight windows with square heads in the north wall. In the eastern the lights are plain, but in the western they have cusped heads. The south aisle is separated from the nave by a row of oak posts resting on stone bases. The angles are chamfered off, and from the inner faces spring curved braces, forming an arcade of five fourcentred arches. The south transept has a two-light east window, and a similar window in the south wall; both have pointed heads and uncusped lights, and the mullions are modern restorations. In the south wall is a trefoilheaded piscina, apparently of the 14th century, and the roof is of the trussed rafter type and open to the ridge. The south aisle has a three-light square-headed 15th-century window in the south wall, and further west a south doorway of similar date with a four-centred arch. At the west end of the aisle is a two-light square-headed window, on the sill of which is a stone taken from near the chancel arch with a consecration cross. The nave roof is of king-post type, the tie-beams being supported on carved oak supports of modern date; the pent roof of the aisle has been largely renewed. In the south doorway is a panelled oak door inscribed 'Rodericus Lloid 1656.' The south porch is a modern timber structure.

The west tower is three stages high and finished with an embattled parapet; the walls are faced with ashlar. The ground stage has a pointed 15th-century tower arch with a modern inner order and side shafts. The two-light west window is square-headed and of the same date restored, and the west doorway below it is pointed with a square label and quatrefoils in the spandrels. The second stage is lighted by a square-headed window in the south wall, and the bell-chamber has a two-light square-headed window in each face, all of the 15th century. On the east face of the tower, immediately above the nave roof, is the inscription 'H. Perrin flattened this roof 1703.'

In the churchyard, to the north of the church, the foundations were recently discovered of the north transept and aisle, destroyed in the Civil War.

There is a stone altar with a panelled front, much restored; behind it is an elaborately carved modern oak reredos, gilded and painted. The stalls, six on either side of the chancel, are of early Renaissance character with carved divisions and feet; the misericordes have each a cherub-head bracket. At the back are crocketed and panelled canopies, each bay having a flat ogee head and a cusped and panelled back, with a straight cornice above finished with a carved cresting. The crockets to each bay are of different design, and the spandrel carving and cusping is of great variety. The stone pulpit is modern, but at the back is fixed a very fine example of a late Gothic oak canopy. It is in three bays with angel pendants to the front, a richly traceried cresting and a traceried fringe to the soffit. At the back is a row of traceried Gothic panels. The lower portion consists of linen-fold panelling apparently pieced together. It is said that this piece of furniture was originally the canopy to the Speaker's chair in the House of Commons, and was a gift to the church by William Lenthall, Speaker of the Long Parliament. The font has a circular bowl of mid-13th-century date, ornamented with a rich arcade of semicircular arches resting on carved pilasters of varying designs with capitals and bases; this was long put to secular use, and was restored to the church in 1840.

On the south side of the altar is a handsome marble and alabaster monument to Sir William Stonehouse, bart., of Radley (d. 1631), and his son Sir John Stonehouse (1632), erected by Elizabeth daughter of John Powell and wife of Sir William. On a broad altar tomb, with a slab of Purbeck marble, rest the alabaster recumbent effigies of Sir William in a ruff and long black gown and his lady. At the head is a smaller figure of Sir John dressed in armour and kneeling upon one knee. In front of the tomb are kneeling figures of two sons, five daughters and four chrysom children. The canopy at the back has a semicircular arch, cornice and cleft pediment, and an achievement of the arms of Stonehouse. There are also four other shields, two of them Stonehouse impaling Powel, Or a cheveron gules between three lions' feet razed gules, Powel alone and Stonehouse quartering Powel. On the same wall, further west, is a diminutive brass plate to Margaret Lady Stonehouse (d. 1694).

The windows of this church contain a remarkable collection of royal heraldry in stained glass. It appears to be of two dates, the earlier belonging to the latter part of the 15th century and the later tc the time of the Tudors. In the middle light of the east window are the arms of Henry VII supported by a red dragon and a white greyhound, and in the side lights are a kneeling bishop with Resurrection figures behind and a group representing the return of the prodigal. In the tracery are figures of our Lord, St. Peter and two angels. In the north window of the chancel are the king's arms encircled by the Garter, and in the side lights two Tudor roses crowned and gartered. In the south chancel window the first light has the royal arms as represented in the east window; in the second the shield is supported by the antelopes of Henry VI; in the head of this light is an angel. The third light has the arms of Henry VIII supported by a crowned leopard and a dragon gules. The background is diapered with the initials H.R. In the window on the north side of the nave the middle light has a full-length figure of an angel holding a shield of the arms of Bowyer. The third light has the shield of Henry VI supported by spotted antelopes and is diapered with H.R. The third light has the arms of Henry VIII with the leopard and dragon supporters. In the south aisle window the first light has a royal arms twice repeated, the lower with leopard and dragon supporters. The second light has a richly jewelled mitre at the head and the royal arms encircled by the garter below in a cartouche. The third light has two shields of France and England, the lower supported by a leopard and the boar of Richard III. In the west window is a half-length portrait said to be of King Henry VII. In the churchyard, to the south-west of the church, is a mid-17th-century panelled altar tomb of stone.

There are six bells: the treble is inscribed 'Abel Rudhall of Gloucester cast me, 1754'; the second inscribed 'Prosperity to this parish, A.R. 1754'; the third 'Peace and good neighbourhood, A.R. 1754'; the fourth 'When you us ring, we'll sweetly sing, A.R. 1754'; the fifth 'Hark to our melody, A.R. 1754'; the tenor is modern. There is also a ting-tang inscribed 'Henry Wright made me, 1617.'

The plate includes a flat paten dated 1571, but without marks, a cup, London, 1605, an almsdish of circa 1700 bearing a shield of arms, a chief indented with three heads thereon, and a flagon, London, 1705, with the Stonehouse arms. There is also a modern set of cup, paten and credence paten. A brass almsdish belonging to the church is probably Flemish work of the 16th century and is inscribed 'Wart der infridech.'The brass cross head is probably foreign work of early 16th-century date. It has the figures of the Virgin and Child with the symbols of the Evangelists on the arms.

The registers previous to 1812 are as follows: (i) mixed entries 1599 to 1741; (ii) mixed entries 1741 to 1812, marriages to 1754. only; (iii) marriages 1754 to 1812. In 1643 are recorded the burials of several troopers and officers killed during a skirmish in connexion with the siege of Oxford. Their names are indicated by small marks in the margin.

Historical information about St. James' Church is provided by 'Parishes: Radley', in A History of the County of Berkshire: Volume 4, ed. William Page and P H Ditchfield (London, 1924), pp. 410-416. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/berks/vol4/pp410-416 [accessed 8 March 2023].

St. James' Church is a Grade II* listed building. For more information about the listing see CHURCH OF ST JAMES, Radley - 1048324 | Historic England.

For more information about St. James' Church see Parishes: Radley | British History Online (british-history.ac.uk).