Itchen Abbas is a small village in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, 4 miles NE of the city centre. The church is close to the River Itchen, which runs from E to W on the S side of the village. It was originally Norman but was rebuilt in 1867 in the Romanesque revival style, incorporating a doorway and the chancel arch from the Norman church. The architect was William Coles of Winchesterand he produced a Greek Cross plan with a short chancel attached amd a double bell cote over the W gable of the nave. The 12thc. doorway was installed as the entrance to a small porch in the E wall of the N transept, and construction was of flint. In 2009 the church was re-ordered by local resident Nick Owen to provide a more flexible space. Owen added a new vestry on the N side of the nave, with kitchen and wc facilities. All the pews and choir stalls were taken out and replaced with chairs. The nave was carpeted, the N. gallery enlarged to give additional seating and better access for disabled people was provided.

The manor of Itchen Abbas was held by the abbey of nuns of St Mary's Winchester in 1066, when it was assessed at 12 hides, and by Hugh FitzBaldric in 1066, when it was assessed at 3½ hides. In 1086 the Abbess wes recorded as claiming the manor, and the whole hundred, and indeed the whole shire bore witness that it was the abbey's in King Edward's time and ought to be so still. It was restored to the abbey by King William as a result. In 1205 the manor was leased to Emma de Stanton, and when this expired the manor was returned to the abbey, where it remained until the Dissolution.

The earliest mention of the church was in 1285 when the parson John of Lexford made suit for a virgate of land for the church, which the abbess granted.

The Romanesque features are similar in their details; both the doorway and the chancel arch including a plain inner order, a second order with cushion capitals with outlined shields and a heavy roll in the arch, and a billet label. The VCH dates this c.1110-20 while Pevsner prefers Early-Norman, which could amount to the same thing. The only worry with this dating is the presence of a flat-leaf capital on th chancel arch. The 1911 VCH description of the church notes that the nave floor was then paved with coloured tiles about 6 in. square while the chancel floor had large squares of black and white marble. The chancel flooring remains but the nave is now carpeted, presumably over the tiles.

The doorway was partly obscured by a lavish floral decoration when we visited, but the photographs will be retaken in 2025.