History of St Margaret
The church is the sole survivor of three churches, the rectors date from 1317. The church doorway is circa 1190 and the church was mostly rebuilt in 1864.
Kirstead St Margaret is dedicated to the patron saint of pregnant women, childbirth and of the dying Margaret (or Marina) of Antioch, who was possibly martyred in the persecution of Diocletian in the 4th century. Her ordeal with the Devil in the guise of a dragon involved her being swallowed but, proving too much an irritant whilst armed with a cross, was released. She can be seen crowned and slaying a dragon in the double-light window beside the pulpit. The other light records the former church of St Christopher, Langhale, which once stood in a field beside Bungay Road.
There is also a war memorial in the church yard which was overhauled in 2001 with a donation from the Parish Council.