For the Love of the British Isles: NEWNHAM

Newnham is a tiny village between Doddington and Sittingbourne. It's not overly remarkable, with the exception of Calico House.

Calico House

This is a Grade II listed building, formerly the vicarage, described as 'new' in a will of 1617. It was later extended in the early 18th. Century, and the terracotta calico painting on the side of the house shows the date as 1710.

Church of St. Peter & St. Paul

This is a village church that never garners much attention. After all, there's no stained glass, no huge memorials, and it is not very notable architecturally. It's a shame, because it is a pleasant building, with a lovely friendly village atmosphere.

to the east of the narrow south aisle is the Champion Court Chapel, which was added to the church in the fifteenth century by the Champion family. Because it was privately owned the floor remains uneven and unrestored.

During the reign of Henry I (1100-1135) Hugh de Newenham was Lord of the Manor. He was first of a family which assumed it’s name from the village (Newenham as it was then spelt). He is believed to have built the original Manor House which was later to be known as Champion Court. He probably built or commenced the building of the village Church for his son Faulk.

Faulk de Newenham founded the nunnery at Davington in 1153, for a prioress and 26 nuns of the Benedictine order. As part of his endowment to that nunnery he gave lands in Newnham and also the right of patronage of the church. The Abbot of Faversham made claim to it, but in 1193 AD the Archbishop of Canterbury granted to Davington on account of the poverty of the Nunnery. However he did order tham to pay the Abbot 2 marcs for the Abbey (approx £1.67 in todays currency)

For many years the church appears to have flourished: but owing to the disturbed condition of religious houses in the early 16th Century there was little incentive for women to take the veil. A few years before the general dissolution of the smaller monasteries in 1536 only the prioress, one nun and one novice remained – the nunnery ceased to exist. The church and it’s glebe lands then passed to the crown and in 1544 Henry VIII granted the lands and the advowson of the church to Sir Thomas Cheney with the rest of the nunnery’s possessions.

From that time money was spent by the rich on their residential properties and in the towns on market places, town halls etc. Whilst churches, particularly in the smaller villages, were allowed to decay. Newnham was certainly one of these and except for occasional patching to keep out the weather and birds seeking nesting places, little appears to have been done. During the 16th & 17th Centuries the churchwardens in their statements at visitations by Archbishop Parker and various Archdeacons complained that the church was “in pitiful ruin and decay, and is untiled and West Windowsunglazed so that communion cannot be administered for rain and cold and the fowles and pigeons defile the same“.

In the centre aisle and in the chancel are memorials to the Hulks (later spelt Hulse) family . From the reign of Elizabeth I they were resident in Newnham and for over a hundred years they seem to have had considerable influence on the village affairs as churchwardens, employers and publicans.

The Newnham estate included the right of the presentation to the church benefice for the Vicars, the Rev. Richard Ames (1623-27) and the Rev. Nathaniel Chambers (1627-??) were both presented by John Hulks. The estate also included the George Inn.

Private chapels containing their own altars were common innovations to churches by wealthy parishioners . Here prayers were said, mainly for the well-being in life of that family and for the repose of their souls after death.

This little section of Newnham church at the east end of the south aisle was added to the main structure during the 15th Century by the Chaumpaine, or Champion family who had descended from the original lord of the manor Hugh de Newenham. Members of the Champion family were probably buried int his chapel although no records of this have been found.

It is always referred to in visitations from the 16th Century as the Chapel of Chempayne or Champion Court. The memorials on the walls are to the Elvy and Prentice families who resided at Champion Court and farmed the lands from the early 18th Century.

Newnham can boast of a peal of four bells

No.III bears the inscription “Thomas Wanstall and Thomas Elvy Churchwardens 1770 Cast by Peck & Chapman Whitechapel Bell Foundry London”. It has been stated by authorities that all the bells are 15th Century and that No. III was recast.

The tower was rebuilt and the bells rehung in the 1860’s in a new oak frame with space for two more. They have not be regularly rung as a peal since 1945 up to which date there were organised teams of parish ringers.