For the Love of the British Isles: LENHAM

Lenham is a pretty village, centred around a square surrounded by lime trees. It holds a monthly market in the square. Although the church stands on one side of the square, the cemetery is on the edge of the village, over the A20 crossroads, leaving the church surrounded by an old graveyard. Lenham was once renowned for it's watercress, which grew along the little river Len.

The market square is surrounded by beautiful old buildings, covering all decades from the medieval to the Georgian

This row of little cottages, is known as Douglas Court. They are, in fact, almshouses.

An 'historic building of Kent' - not yet found out anything about it though.

Just off one corner of the square is this small building. As you can see, it was built originally as the mortuary for the workhouse, but has had a very varied life since! The associated workhouse has been demolished. Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The Dog & Bear Hotel was an important staging post on the road to London. The former stables still exist at the rear. Originally built in 1602, the historic pub and hotel was visited by Queen Anne in 1704 - and her coat of arms is still displayed above the door today.

The Red Lion pub, a 14th. century inn, stands right next to the Dog & Bear, on the crossroads in the centre of the village. The timber-framed building opposite, is the local pharmacy.

There is more history to enjoy outside the church; the lych gate separating the churchyard from Church Square is a copy of the original 15th-century gateway. At that time there was a monastery attached to the church. The last vestige of the monastery is the building at no. 4-7 Church Square, which is thought to have provided housing for clerics working on the monastic farm.

The war memorial, which stands directly outside the main door to the church. These granite blocks were originally placed next to the chalk cross up on the Pilgrim's Way above the village. They were brought down into the village in 1960, for safe-keeping.

The church of St. Mary, dates back to the 12th. century, although there is evidence of an older Saxon church before then. The Saxon church was replaced by a Norman one.

In 1297 arsonists set fire to the Norman building, badly damaging the church and destroying its tithe barns.

Part of the east end of the Norman church was salvaged and incorporated into a new building.

In 1297 arsonists set fire to the Norman building, badly damaging the church and destroying its tithe barns. The arsonists were never caught, and in the following year, Archbishop Winchelsea of Canterbury came to Lenham in person to pronounce a sentence of excommunication on them. Part of the east end of the Norman church was salvaged and incorporated into a new building.

One former vicar of Lenham was Edward Bridges, a relative by marriage of author Jane Austen.

The high altar is medieval. It was hidden under the sanctuary floor during the Reformation and only rediscovered in the early 20th century.

The richly carved pulpit dates to 1574 and is one of the finest in Kent. Above it is a sounding board added in 1622.

This was a gift of Mary Honywood, who died in 1620 at the age of 92, a surprisingly old age for the time. At her death, Mary left behind 16 children, 114 grandchildren, 228 great-grandchildren, and 9 great-great-grandchildren. That makes a quite astonishing total of 367 descendants.

Against the south wall is a 13th-century sedilia, or stone seat for clergy that survived the 1297 fire. It is set under a 14th-century canopy.

Set into the north wall is the effigy of a 14th-century priest thought to be Thomas de Apuldefelde, rather oddly divided into two halves by a stone partition.

On the south nave wall is a well-preserved 14th-century wall painting depicting St Michael weighing souls. You can clearly see a devil on one scale trying to bring it down, while the other scale is raised up by the Virgin Mary's rosary beads.

The chapel dedicated to St. Edmund. The original east wall of the Norman church is now part of St Edmund's Chapel, beside the chancel. A pillar separating the chancel and chapel also comes from the earlier building.

St Edmund's Chapel altar is carved from Bethersden marble and originally served as the tomb of Thomas Horne (d 1471).

I didn't recognise the arms on the kneelers in St. Edmund's chapel. so I went on a hunt for them. Turns out, they are the arms of St. Edmund's Hall at Oxford University.

The College of Arms has it thus:

Official blazon:

Or, a cross patonce between four sea-pies sable, winged argent.

Origin/meaning:

These arms are not officially granted.

The founder of this Hall is supposed to have been Edward (or Edmund) of Abingdon, who was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1233 to 1240. The arms used by the College are those attributed to the Archbishop. The birds are variously referred to as sea-pies, oyster-catchers or Cornish choughs.

The pulpit was a gift of Mary Honywood, who died in 1620 at the age of 92. That was a ripe old age for the time. At her death, Mary left behind 16 children, 114 grandchildren, 228 great-grandchildren, and 9 great-great-grandchildren. That makes a quite astonishing total of 367 descendants. The story is recounted in the epitaph of her grandson Robert Thompson set into the floor on the north side of the altar.