Tideswell has a magnificent church, dedicated to St John the Baptist and often referred to as the cathedral of the Peak, which was started and completed in the 14th century. It a cruciform building in Decorated style with a Perp, pinnacled tower built later. It stands as a land mark for miles around and has remained relatively unaltered since. The high aisled and clerestoried nave is linked to the tower by a great arch and its beautifully proportioned unaisled chancel has tall traceried windows of clear glass, giving rise to a description of it as ' one gallery of light and beauty'.

The builder of the church was probably Sir John Foljambe, of a prominent local landowning family, whose brass is in the sanctuary. Another splendid brass is of the Bishop Robert Pursglove, a Tideswell man and benefactor of the village, who founded the grammer school in 1569. The school was closed in 1927. Many of the wooden carvings in the church are by the Hunstone family, woodcarvers of repute for 3 generations. Buried here is William Newton, the utilitarian manager of Cressbrook Mill and a poet, known as the Minstrel of the Peak.

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