The church of St. Manacca is sited at the centre of the village within its raised and wooded churchyard or lann. The church dates to the 12^th and 15^thC and was probably cruciform originally. Considerable parts of the 12thC chancel, south transept and south wall of the nave remain today. The most important feature from this period is the south doorway. A Romanesque pier with a chamfered leading edge is exposed at the angle of the chancel and south transept.

Manaccan first occurs in a charter of King Edgar, dated 967, where it is called Lesmanoc – Place of the Monks – suggesting perhaps that it was originally a Celtic monastery. The church seems to have been known as a Minster down to the time of Henry VI.

Manaccan is one of the Meneage parishes, which form part of the Lizard peninsula. Meneage may mean 'Monkish land'; other parishes in the Meneage are St. Anthony, St. Keverne, St. Mawgan and St. Martin. The name Manaccan probably means Monk’s Church, as Managh means monk in the Cornish language. St Manacca is given as the patron saint in 1308, and the invention of the saint may date from that period. (Orme, 2000, 22)

An unusual feature of the church is a very large fig tree, thought to be over 200 years old, growing out of the rubble in the centre of the Romanesque south-west wall.

The church was extensively restored at the end of the 19thC, when the roofs had to be replaced, although attempts were made to imitate the original work. The south porch, said to be of a later date than the church and poorly constructed, was removed as part of the restoration programme, thus opening up the view of the south doorway.