Bilsington lies on the Tenterden to Hythe road, just north of Romney Marsh.There's a priory dating to 1253, and a strange obelisk standing high on a hill.
the Bilsington Monument. a 16m high obelisk erected in 1835 in memory of Sir William Cosway. In 1825 Sir William Cosway purchased the priory estate. He was a politician who was very interested in the plight of the farm labourers, and in 1830 paid the sum of £150 to help 4 Bilsington families to emigrate to America , he also built the school. On 10th June 1834 he was on the London to Brighton coach when it turned over and he was killed. As a memorial, his family built the 52 ft high obelisk. The obelisk was struck by lightning in 1967 and has recently been restored to its former glory.
SS. Peter &
Paul church. Bit strange getting to this one. You need to go into the farmyard directly facing the Obelisk. At the far end of the farmyard, are two hedgerows framing a rough track. Walk down between hedges and you will find the pretty little church at the and of the track.
Views from the church itself are beautiful, extending across the Royal Military Canal and Romney Marsh.
A church here was recorded in the Domesday Survey of 1086,
possibly a Saxon building, but no evidence of this remains. The current
building dates originally to the 12th century
In the south entrance area, above
the doorway is a blocked Norman window with a small statue of St Augustine.
The medieval octagonal font has
an octagonal stem and base, and carvings on the bowl panels. The
wooden font cover is modern, having been installed in 1956 in memory
of former Sunday school teacher Hannah Edmunds.
A 15th century bell which is
hung outside of the church under a small, tiled gable roof, was taken down from
the belfry in the 1930s because of concerns that the timber bell frame could no
longer support the weight of 2 bells.
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