The area around the church, near where routes from Linköping once divided towards Kalmar and inland Östergötland, is thought to have been an early cult site associated with the goddess Nerthus. Several Christian rune stones survive from around the 11th century, when the first church here is believed to have been built; two or three now stand on or near the churchyard, including the so-called Slaka stone, one of Östergötland's oldest.
A stone church replaced the earlier timber building at the end of the 12th century. Traces of that Romanesque structure remain today, including the lower part of the tower, portions of the south wall, and a door with Romanesque ironwork now set between the nave and sacristy. The medieval church was remodelled more than once, notably when it was vaulted in 1476, and again in the 1680s, a phase that removed much of its medieval interior.
The present church was built between 1781 and 1783, replacing the medieval nave but retaining the older tower. It was consecrated on 2 August 1783 in the presence of Princess Sophia Albertina, and the church took her name according to the custom of the time. The result is a hall church with a three-sided chancel, a barrel-vaulted nave and large round-arched windows.
Several medieval furnishings were carried over from the older church and remain on display, among them a carved altar cabinet made in Lübeck around 1470 and a wooden sculpture of Saint Anne with the Virgin and Child from the late 15th century, both on the north wall. The altarpiece, depicting Christ in Gethsemane, was painted by Pehr Hörberg in 1801.
The church is also known for its gallery organ, built by Pehr Schiörlin in 1783 with a distinctive arcaded façade designed by the architect Olof Samuel Tempelman. It is said to be the oldest surviving arcade-fronted organ in Sweden and one of only a handful of Schiörlin's instruments still playable, restored in the early 2000s to something close to its original character. A smaller mechanical chancel organ was added in 1997.