Contributions of the group The English Parish Church

St Leonard's

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 20:23:18 +0000

St Leonard's church Old Walden, Bedfordshire. Sadly the church was closed for repairs when we visited.

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax "K" 28mm f/3.5 shift.

St Mary's, Titchwell, Norfolk

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 15:22:01 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

Last year we stopped briefly here on the way back to our B&B because I spotted the round tower. It was getting late and the church was locked.

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax 28mm f/3.5 shift lens.

St James, Castle Acre

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 17:18:01 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax "K" 28mm shift lens.

St Pancras Church Coldred Kent

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 15:40:32 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

Coldred comes from the Old English ‘col’ meaning ‘coal, especially charcoal’ with ‘ryde’ as a ‘clearing’; therefore, a ‘clearing where coal is found or made’. The Domesday Book records Coldred as Colret.
Coldred parish church is dedicated to Saint Pancras, one of only 6 such dedicated in the country. The Normans built it in the 11th century, within the newly constructed Motte and Bailey castle which was built by Bishop Odo of Bayeux, half-brother to William the Conqueror. An unknown founder cast a bell in the 14th century, which split in two in 1939. The two cell church remained much the same for the next 500 years.
There was some restoration done by the Victorians.

The uneven ground around the church is the remains of the castle mentioned above, many Roman artefacts have been found in the surrounding area.

Coldred, at nearly 400 feet (122 m) above sea level, is one of the highest places in East Kent

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Interior of St Andrews Church Sheperdswell, Kent

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Fri, 09 Dec 2022 14:16:31 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

The interior is simple and consists of nave, apsidal chancel and little transepts. The east windows are by the St Helens Crown Glass Co., and represent the Ascension and Four Evangelists. The south window of 1900, by Kempe, shows the Epiphany. The good polished marble decorative shafts to either side of the chancel arch, together with the corbels in the nave, are typical of Ferrey's work. It is a pity that the original font, which was of fine Cornish marble and had matching marble shafts, had to be destroyed, owing to its instability, in 1955.

I am digging out archives! (it was a bit dull)

My thanks to all who visit and comment it is appreciated

St Andrews Church Sheperdswell, Kent

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Fri, 09 Dec 2022 14:11:33 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

Although there was a place of worship registered here in the 14th Century, this tiny church is entirely Victorian and is a building of great charm designed by Benjamin Ferrey in 1863. It is built of local flint with Bath stone dressings and is distinguished by a little spire let over, but not quite on, the west end. The interior is simple and consists of nave, apsidal chancel and little transepts. The east windows are by the St Helens Crown Glass Co., and represent the Ascension and Four Evangelists. The south window of 1900, by Kempe, shows the Epiphany. The good polished marble decorative shafts to either side of the chancel arch, together with the corbels in the nave, are typical of Ferrey's work. It is a pity that the original font, which was of fine Cornish marble and had matching marble shafts, had to be destroyed, owing to its instability, in 1955.

I am digging out archives! (it was a bit dull)

My thanks to all who visit and comment it is appreciated

St Augustine's Church Northbourne.

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Mon, 25 Oct 2021 19:10:21 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

Northbourne comes from the Old English ‘nord’ meaning ‘northern, north’ and ‘burna’ as a ‘stream’; therefore, ‘north stream’. The Domesday Book chronicles Northbourne as Norborne.
Northbourne parish church is a Grade: I listed building, dedicated to Saint Augustine. The Saxons built the first church on this site. The Normans rebuilt it as, one of only a few, cruciform churches in Kent in the 12th century. They made some alterations in the following century, particularly to the windows. In 1711, Mathew Bagley cast and hung a ring of five bells in the tower. In 1800, Edward Hasted described St Augustine’s church as a ‘large goodly building, consisting of a nave, chancel, and transept, having a large square tower in the middle, which has probably been much higher. There are five bells in it. The church is built of flint, with quoins, door, and window cases of ashler squared stone; some arches of the windows are pointed, some circular, and some with zigzag ornaments. The western arch of the tower is pointed with triple dancette ornaments; the others circular’. In 1865, the Victorians added the porches and carried out restoration work to the chancel. Alfred Bowell augmented the bells to six, with a treble, in 1911. This Church is in the Eastry and Woodnesborough Benefice in the Diocese of Canterbury.

This is a "Topsy Turvy" Church the front which faces open countryside is exactly the same as the back, this is the "back" where the entrance is!

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View from Dover Castle

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Tue, 21 Sep 2021 18:39:36 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

The Church is St Mary-in-Castro (explanation below) and next to it is the Roman Lighthouse.

There are records of a church being built 'within the castle' (Latin 'in castra') by Eadbald of Kent in the 630s. However, it is unclear whether this means within the Saxon burgh (usually dated to later than 630) on the Eastern Heights, or within the ruins of old Roman fortifications in the valley. The large, late-Saxon cemetery around the present church does suggest the existence of a c.600 church, but not definitively. Whether or not it had a predecessor, the present Saxon church was built on the Eastern Heights around AD1000. It is immediately adjacent to the surviving eastern pharos, which was used as a source of spolia (spoil): Roman tiles can be still be seen in the church fabric, particularly in the window arches (usually of stone), and flint and tile from the pharos is used throughout the church's walls. The plinth that projects out from beneath the church and on which it stands, however, is of new stone. The church is cruciform with a central tower the same width as the nave but broader than the chancel and transepts. The nave has no aisles. The door arch is the earliest to survive in any standing church in England.

The building next to the Church is possibly the oldest building in England as it is a Roman lighthouse constructed in the 1st Century AD the top stage was reconstructed 1415-1437. Complete with Roman lightning conducter!!!!

The coast of France is some 20.7 miles from Dover or 33km. I managed to catch 2 ships sailing across the pond!

Taken from the top of the great tower Dover Castle.

My Thanks to all who visit and comment it is appreciated

Rochester Cathedral

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 16:49:22 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

Rochester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an English church of Norman architecture in Rochester, Kent.
The church is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rochester in the Church of England and the seat of the Bishop of Rochester, the second oldest bishopric in England after that of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The edifice is a Grade I listed building
The first mention of a Cathedral in Rochester was when King Ethelbert founded the Cathedral in 604A.D. The Cathedral was consecrated by St. Augustine and was blessed to St. Andrew who was the Patron Saint of Monasteries, where St. Augustine was from.
The first Bishop of Rochester was Justus in 604 A.D. The original Cathedral has since vanished through the re building of the present-day Cathedral. However, in 1889, work on the Cathedral uncovered the foundations of the original Cathedral under the west end.
The foundations were about 1.5m (5 feet) deep and what was left of the walls were 70 cms (2' 4") thick. The walls were made of stone and Roman brick. The original Cathedral had a round end named an 'Apse.' The length was about 14 metres (46' 6") and the width was about 8.8 metres (29' 6") when the Normans invaded England in 1066, Gundulf became the Bishop of Rochester in 1077.
Gundulf also built the Castle opposite the Cathedral and the Tower of London. Gundulf started to design the new Cathedral for Rochester. In 1115, Ernulf was inaugurated as the Bishop of Rochester. In 1137 and in 1179, a fire engulfed the Cathedral and it was badly damaged. In 1215 the Cathedral was looted, first by King John and then in 1264 by Simon de Montfort’s men when they laid siege on the city.
It is traditionally thought that King Henry VIII met Anne of Cleves in the cloisters of Rochester Cathedral. Unfortunately, in the 1800's Rochester had become one of the poorest Dioceses in the country. Again, it was robbed of its treasures by unruly soldiers.

Unbelievably, the Cathedral became a place of ill repute, where often gambling and drinking took place. Samuel Pepys described it as a 'Shabby place.' Through the 1800's, the Cathedral had gone through several restoration processes, and finally in 1880, Gilbert Scott restored the Cathedral to its present-day appearance.

The large tree outside (conveniently hiding a crowd going in to the building!) is a Catalpa tree, sometimes called the American Indian Bean Tree, is not a common species in Britain and is over 100 years old.

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Holy Innocents Church Adisham, Kent.

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 15:21:16 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

The Manor of Adisham was probably given to Archbishop Justus by King Eadbald of Kent (son of King Ethelbert and Queen Bertha) in about AD 624 following the King’s conversion to Christianity. This tradition was preserved in a charter in about 1080 when Archbishop Lanfranc re-allocated the Manor to the Cathedral Priory. The tradition is supported by its rare dedication to Holy Innocents for whom a feast day was designated in the 5th Century. In Roman times the site above the great pond (filled in 1964) had been the centre of an important farming estate.

Nothing remains of the original (presumably wooden) Church. The existing building was erected between 1150 and 1350 and restored in 1869-70.

From the beginning it was probably a Minster or central Church from which a group of priests from the Cathedral served the surrounding area, hence both it’s size and cruciform shape. Adisham Court Farm which is nearby is still the property of the Church.

Between 1542 and 1555 The Vicar of Adisham and Staple was John Bland a firm believer in the protestant faith, who was burned at the stake as a heretic on 12th July 1555, during the reign of the Catholic Queen Mary. He is commemorated on the Martyr’s Memorial in Canterbury’s Martyr’s Field.

There have been some extensive restorations inside the Church. Pews have been removed and the building (which is grade 1 listed) is now more accessible by local community groups and the Village School.

My Thanks to all who visit and comment it is appreciated

Elmstone Church

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Wed, 25 May 2022 18:59:53 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

This is an Anglican church in the village of Elmstone in Kent, England. The church dates back to the 13th century, and was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1963. The church is not known to feature a dedication to any known saint, a rare occurrence for Anglican churches in the United Kingdom; the church is thereby titled as "Elmstone Church" for any official purposes

The nave and lower chancel are from Norman times and are built out of flint. The chancel contains a north window and the nave contains two south windows; all three have Caen stone heads and sills, as well as jambs made of flint there are apparently interesting windows inside but they must have known I was coming as the church was locked!

The Village is recorded in the Doomsday book as Aelvetone and in later records as Ealmestone, Elmerstone and Elmeston.

The plastic chairs I think belong to a bloke named Norman!

The Fence is there right at the back in the shade of the tree HFF!

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Elmstone Church

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Sat, 06 Nov 2021 16:51:17 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

This is an Anglican church in the village of Elmstone in Kent, England. The church dates back to the 13th century, and was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1963. The church is not known to feature a dedication to any known saint, a rare occurrence for Anglican churches in the United Kingdom; the church is thereby titled as "Elmstone Church" for any official purposes

The nave and lower chancel are from Norman times and are built out of flint. The chancel contains a north window and the nave contains two south windows; all three have Caen stone heads and sills, as well as jambs made of flint there are apparently interesting windows inside but they must have known I was coming as the church was locked!

MY THANKS TO ALL WHO VISIT AND COMMENT IT IS APPRECIATED.

The Coptic Orthodox Church (Margate)

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Mon, 13 Dec 2021 19:51:34 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

The Coptic Church is the Egyptian Church, Copt and aygipt are the same word. The Coptic Church began its history as established by St. Mark the Evangelist in the first century of Christianity. It is now more than nineteen centuries old.
This building is grade 2 listed and was formerly St Stephens Baptist Church, Sited in Cliftonville, Margate, Kent
This Church is dedicated to St Michael and St Bishoy and is in the diocese of Ireland, Scotland and N.E. England. Margate is in S.E. England so my guess is it is an Affiliated Area.

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Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Wed, 02 Feb 2022 16:11:45 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

A remarkable church by Giles Gilbert Scott, designed in 1929 but not completed until 1963. The architectural forms and materials used are traditional but used in an original way, with a low nave and a dramatically tall chancel with an even taller square tower. The general standard of finish is extremely high. I used to walk past this Church on the way to school but could see nothing because of a high hedge and they were still building it!
The first Catholic church in Broadstairs was a corrugated iron church built in 1888 by Dominicans and enlarged in about 1909. The designs for the present church were prepared by Giles Gilbert Scott in 1929. The sanctuary, sacristies and part of the nave were completed in 1931; the church was finished to the original design in 1963, after Sir Giles Gilbert Scott’s death in 1959. His designs for a presbytery were not carried out.
It is a very long Church will post a full length soon.

This is the history of the original Church (no photo due to traffic)
The Shrine of Our Ladye Star of the Sea was an old chapel on the cliffs at Broadstairs (which was formerly known as Bradstowe). Dating back at least to the 1350s, the two towers of the chapel were a major landmark for sailors in the area. Given the veneration in which the shrine was held, the custom developed of ships dipping their top-sails to salute the shrine as they sailed past it.

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St Andrews Chrch, Alfriston, East Sussex

nobody@ipernity.com (John Lawrence) — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 20:23:39 +0000

John Lawrence has posted:

St Andrew's Church is the parish church of Alfriston, East Sussex, England. This Grade I listed building was built in the 1370s and is also known as the 'Cathedral of the Downs' It sits on a small, flint-walled mound, indicating that it was the site of a pre-Christian place of worship, in the middle of 'the Tye' (the local village green), overlooking the River Cuckmere, and is surrounded by the flowered graveyard. It is built in the form of a cross.
No records or monuments indicate who commissioned the church's construction. A consistent architectural style throughout indicates that it was built all at once. Typically, completing such a building before tastes and building techniques have changed is possible only when an individual or family has sponsored the construction, and that person would be buried in the church's graveyard or entombed within. However, St Andrew's does not have any grand tomb or memorial, nor any records indicating who a patron might be. Additionally, there was no Lord of the Manor for Alfriston at the time.
However, on the left-hand side of the south porch there is a Canonical sundial, dating from the 14th century. The stone with the carved sundial was originally on the south wall and was moved to its present location when the porch was built.

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All Saints, Threxton, Norfolk

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Sat, 23 Jul 2022 09:00:23 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax "K" 28mm f/3.5 shift.

June 8: St Leonards

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Wed, 08 Jun 2022 21:19:11 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

This small church in Hertford is a rare example of a Norman apse surviving. Pano by cropping.

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax "K" 20mm f/4 lens.

St Pauls Walden (3)

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Wed, 20 Apr 2022 10:10:02 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

Ondu multiformat pinhole camera with the baffles offset to give a rise effect, Kodak Portra 800 film.

April 03: St Andrew and St Mary

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 16:47:48 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

Watton-at-Stone, Hertfordshire.

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax 28mm f/3.5 shift.

Feb 6th: Datchworth

nobody@ipernity.com (Kris Lockyear) — Mon, 07 Feb 2022 22:14:08 +0000

Kris Lockyear has posted:

Just missed the best of the light, and the wind was howling a gale so even on the tripod the image isn't as sharp as I'd like. Even so, not too bad...

Pentax K-3iii, SMC Pentax "K" 120mm f/2.8 lens.