Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver

Last updated

Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver
St Mary's Church, Reculver, Kent - geograph.org.uk - 858211.jpg
The church viewed from the north-west in 2008
Kent UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver
Location in Kent
51°22′06″N1°10′37″E / 51.368292°N 1.176812°E / 51.368292; 1.176812
OS grid reference TR 212 680
LocationReculver Lane, Hillborough, Kent
CountryEngland
Denomination Anglican
Website United Benefice of St. Mary the Virgin, Reculver, St. Bartholomew, Herne Bay & Holy Cross, Hoath
History
Status Parish church
Dedication St Mary
Consecrated 12 June 1878
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Heritage designationGrade II
Designated14 May 1975
Architect(s) Joseph Clarke
Style Gothic Revival
Completed1878
Construction cost£1,400
Specifications
Capacity150
Materials Knapped flint with limestone dressings
Red clay tiled roof
Bells1
Administration
Diocese Canterbury
Parish Reculver
Clergy
Vicar(s) Susan Martin

The Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver, is an Anglican church on Reculver Lane in the village of Hillborough, in the parish of Reculver, in north-eastern Kent, England. Built between 1876 and 1878, it is the second such church on its site. The first, consecrated in 1813, was a replacement for a church of St Mary that was founded in 669 within the remains of the Roman fort at Reculver, about 1.25 miles (2 km) to the north-east, but was mostly demolished in 1809.

Contents

The first church at Hillborough was poorly constructed, and was itself replaced by the present structure, designed by Joseph Clarke in the Gothic Revival style. It incorporates materials from the demolished church at Reculver, its baptismal font is probably from the medieval All Saints' Church, Shuart, that once stood on the Isle of Thanet, and it is included in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II listed building.

The Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver, is an active parish church in the diocese of Canterbury, the archdeaconry of Canterbury and the deanery of Reculver. Its benefice is united with those of St Bartholomew, Herne Bay, and Holy Cross, Hoath.

History

The present Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver, is the third church dedicated to the mother of Jesus to have served the same parish. The first church recorded in the vicinity was founded within the remains of the Roman fort of Regulbium in 669. [1] Having stood for about 1,150 years and undergone much enlargement and embellishment, that church was mostly demolished with gunpowder in 1809 at the instigation of the then vicar, Christopher Naylor, partly because it had been at imminent risk of being washed away by the sea through coastal erosion. Despite these reasonings, the destruction of this ancient church - which was NOT supported by everyone - constituted the most egregious act of cultural heritage destruction in the UK in the 19th century. [2] [3] [Fn 1] Further, the settlement that it once served had already been greatly diminished largely by the same process, and its displaced inhabitants had moved to Hillborough, about 1.25 miles (2 km) to the south-west. [10] [11]

The second church for the parish was built at Hillborough on a plot of land bought for £30: incorporating some materials from the old church, it was consecrated on 13 April 1813. [12] [13] In 1856 it was described as a "miserable little [church] ... built in a rough and poverty-stricken style", [14] and by 1874 it had a leaking roof and was already decaying. [15] [Fn 2] On 28 April 1874, when R. H. Blakey was inducted as vicar, the hope was expressed that "a new church may some day be erected which will in every way be more suited for the solemn uses of public worship." [17] [18]

Blakey raised funds for the building of a new church, and this is the structure which stands on the same plot of land today. It was begun in 1876 to a design drawn up by Joseph Clarke, who was surveyor for the diocese of Canterbury at the time. [19] [20] [12] Costing £1,400 to build, the new church was consecrated on 12 June 1878 in the presence of Edward Parry, Bishop of Dover, who noted in his address to the congregation that it carried a remaining debt of about £200. [21] [19] On 14 May 1975, this structure was registered as a Grade II listed building for its architect, architectural style and date, and for its inclusion of materials from the old church at Reculver and a medieval baptismal font from a different church. As such it is included in the National Heritage List for England. [22]

Architecture and fittings

Built in the Gothic Revival style, the Church of St Mary the Virgin is faced on the exterior with knapped flint, and has limestone dressings, for example forming the apertures for its lancet windows and at its corners. There is a diagonal buttress at each corner, and another buttress supports the centre of the west wall to the height of the roof line. At the top of the west wall is a masonry bellcote containing a single bell: this is a replacement for a bell made in 1635 by Joseph Hatch for the old church at Reculver and re-used in the present structure until 1970, when it was stolen. [23] The roof is continuous for the full length of the chancel and nave, with a single ridge, and is covered in red clay tiles. These are continued to form a cat-slide roof covering a small, northward extension from the chancel that houses an organ. [12]

Interior of the Church of St Mary the Virgin in 2008, looking east from a position adjacent to the font St Mary's Church, Reculver, Kent - East end - geograph.org.uk - 858204.jpg
Interior of the Church of St Mary the Virgin in 2008, looking east from a position adjacent to the font

The church is entered at the western end of the south wall through a porch containing a 13th-century doorway also from the old church at Reculver, comprising a "many-moulded arch and keeled nook-shafts with simple foliage capitals." [20] Further stone fragments from the old church are incorporated into the interior, for example in the walls where the nave and chancel meet, and some 17th-century memorials are laid in the floor. [12] [Fn 3] The font, located on the north side of the west end of the nave, also pre-dates the present structure, and probably originated in the medieval All Saints' Church, Shuart, on the Isle of Thanet: All Saints' has been only a matter of historical record since at least 1630. [12] [25] The font was "rescued from a state of neglect, and ... presented to the [new] church by John Rammell, ... of Shuart, St Nicholas[-at-Wade]." [19] It is octagonal, in the Perpendicular style of the 14th to 15th centuries, lined with lead and supported by a modern plinth. [12] [19]

The interior walls of the church are rendered with plaster and painted white, except where stonework such as the window apertures is left bare. The structures of the chancel and nave are distinguished only by width – the chancel being slightly narrower than the nave – and differing treatment of the roof space. While the ceiling in the nave is formed by the shape of the roof, there the latter is supported by exposed tie beams and crown posts. In the chancel, the ceiling is a barrel vault formed by seven longitudinal wooden panels painted blue, which are trimmed with strips of timber painted white and forming squares. [12] An extension comprising a vestry of similar external appearance to the rest of the church, apart from a flat roof and rectangular windows, was added to the southern side of the chancel in 1963. [26] [12]

The church's Communion vessels include a silver cup, paten and flagon dated 1684, made by "T.C." and inscribed as being "[t]he gift of John Hills of Reculver, Churchwarden, 1685." [23] [20] [Fn 4] Stained glass in the windows is all modern, none having survived from the old church at Reculver. [27] [Fn 5] An organ, built in 1955 by F. H. Browne & Sons of Ash, near Canterbury, and in a case designed by Caroe & Partners, is installed in the north wall of the chancel, where it further occupies a small extension built for the purpose. [26] Adjacent to the organ are a pulpit and, on both sides of the chancel, choir stalls. Seating for the congregation is provided by pews along both sides of the nave: when new, the church's capacity was given as 150. [19] [Fn 6] The church is surrounded by a graveyard, at the northern edge of which a war memorial stands facing into the adjacent Reculver Lane. Set up in 1919, it records the names of 27 parishioners who died fighting in the First World War and the Second World War. [28] [29]

Present use

Baptismal font in the Church of St Mary the Virgin in 2015: the font is probably from All Saints' Church, Shuart. It is shown here containing water previously used in a baptism. All Saints font.jpg
Baptismal font in the Church of St Mary the Virgin in 2015: the font is probably from All Saints' Church, Shuart. It is shown here containing water previously used in a baptism.

The Church of St Mary the Virgin, Reculver, remains in use as an Anglican church within the diocese of Canterbury, the archdeaconry of Canterbury and the deanery of Reculver. Its benefice is united with those of St Bartholomew, Herne Bay, and Holy Cross, Hoath. [30] Until 1960, the pastoral care of Hoath had depended on the parish of Reculver since the Middle Ages. [31] [32] [33]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anglo-Saxon architecture</span> Period of architecture in England from the mid-5th century until 1066

Anglo-Saxon architecture was a period in the history of architecture in England from the mid-5th century until the Norman Conquest of 1066. Anglo-Saxon secular buildings in Britain were generally simple, constructed mainly using timber with thatch for roofing. No universally accepted example survives above ground. Generally preferring not to settle within the old Roman cities, the Anglo-Saxons built small towns near their centres of agriculture, at fords in rivers or sited to serve as ports. In each town, a main hall was in the centre, provided with a central hearth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herne Bay</span> Town in Kent, England

Herne Bay is a seaside town on the north coast of Kent in South East England. It is 6 miles (10 km) north of Canterbury and 4 miles (6 km) east of Whitstable. It neighbours the ancient villages of Herne and Reculver and is part of the City of Canterbury local government district, although it remains a separate town with countryside between it and Canterbury. Herne Bay's seafront is home to the world's first freestanding purpose-built Clock Tower, built in 1837. From the late Victorian period until 1978, the town had the second-longest pier in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Canterbury</span> Local government district in Kent, England

Canterbury, also known as the City of Canterbury, is a local government district with city status in Kent, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Canterbury, where the council is based. The district also includes the towns of Fordwich, Herne Bay and Whitstable, along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. Parts of the district lie within the designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty of the Kent Downs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reculver</span> Seaside village in Kent, England

Reculver is a village and coastal resort about 3 miles (5 km) east of Herne Bay on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. It is in the ward of the same name, in the City of Canterbury district of Kent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Nicholas-at-Wade</span> Human settlement in England

St Nicholas-at-Wade is both a village and a civil parish in the Thanet District of Kent, England. The parish had a recorded population of 782 at the 2001 Census, increasing to 852 at the 2011 census. The village of Sarre is part of the civil parish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hoath</span> Human settlement in England

Hoath is a semi-rural village and civil parish in the City of Canterbury local government district. The hamlets of Knaves Ash, Maypole, Ford, Old Tree, Shelvingford and Stoney Acre are included in the parish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herne, Kent</span> Village in South East England

Herne is a village in civil parish of Herne and Broomfield, in the Canterbury district, in the county of Kent, England. It is divided by the Thanet Way from the seaside resort of Herne Bay. Between Herne and Broomfield is the former hamlet of Hunters Forstal. Herne Common lies to the south on the A291 road.

Robert Hunt, a vicar in the Church of England, was chaplain of the expedition that founded the first successful English colony in the New World, at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607.

Joseph Clarke (1819–1888) was a British Gothic Revival architect who practised in London, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herne Bay Museum and Gallery</span> Local history museum, history of the seaside, art gallery, heritage centre in Herne Bay, Kent

The Seaside Museum Herne Bay is a local museum in Herne Bay, Kent, England. It was established in 1932, and is notable for being a seaside tourist attraction featuring local archaeological and social history, for featuring the history of the town as a tourist resort, for its local art exhibitions and for its World War II bouncing bomb. The management of the Museum was awarded by Canterbury City Council to the Herne Bay Museum Trust, who reopened it in July 2015, as The Seaside Museum Herne Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hampton-on-Sea</span> Former British settlement

Hampton-on-Sea is a drowned and abandoned village in what is now the Hampton area of Herne Bay, Kent. It grew from a tiny fishing hamlet in 1864 at the hands of an oyster fishery company, was developed from 1879 by land agents, abandoned in 1916 and finally drowned due to coastal erosion by 1921. All that now remains is the stub of the original pier, the Hampton Inn, and the rocky arc of Hampton-on-Sea's ruined coastal defence visible at low tide. The site is notable for sharing its history with the eccentric Edmund Reid. Reid was previously the Metropolitan Police head of CID who handled the Jack the Ripper case. In retirement he chose to champion the plight of the beleaguered residents of the settlement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St Mary the Virgin, Fordwich</span> Church in Kent, England

The Church of St Mary the Virgin is a redundant Anglican church in the small town of Fordwich, Kent, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The church stands near to the centre of Fordwich, some 3 miles (5 km) northeast of Canterbury.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Nettlestead</span> Church in Kent, England

St Mary the Virgin is a parish church in Nettlestead, Kent, begun in the 13th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Margaret's Church, West Hoathly</span> Church in West Sussex, England

St Margaret's Church is an Anglican church in the village of West Hoathly in Mid Sussex, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All Saints' Church, Shuart</span> Church on the Isle of Thanet, Kent

All Saints' Church, Shuart, in the north-west of the Isle of Thanet, Kent, in the south-east of England, was established in the Anglo-Saxon period as a chapel of ease for the parish of St Mary's Church, Reculver, which was centred on the north-eastern corner of mainland Kent, adjacent to the island. The Isle of Thanet was then separated from the mainland by the sea, which formed a strait known as the Wantsum Channel. The last church on the site was demolished by the early 17th century, and there is nothing remaining above ground to show that a church once stood there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary's Church, Reculver</span> Church in Reculver, England

St Mary's Church, Reculver, was founded in the 7th century as either a minster or a monastery on the site of a Roman fort at Reculver, which was then at the north-eastern extremity of Kent in south-eastern England. In 669, the site of the fort was given for this purpose by King Ecgberht of Kent to a priest named Bassa, beginning a connection with Kentish kings that led to King Eadberht II of Kent being buried there in the 760s, and the church becoming very wealthy by the beginning of the 9th century. From the early 9th century to the 11th the church was treated as essentially a piece of property, with control passing between kings of Mercia, Wessex and England and the archbishops of Canterbury. Viking attacks may have extinguished the church's religious community in the 9th century, although an early 11th-century record indicates that the church was then in the hands of a dean accompanied by monks. By the time of Domesday Book, completed in 1086, St Mary's was serving as a parish church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hatch bell foundry</span> English manufacturer of large bells, c.1581–1664

The Hatch bell foundry at Ulcombe, near Maidstone, in Kent, England, was operated by three generations of the Hatch family from 1581 or earlier until 1664. The bellfounders were based at nearby Broomfield from about 1587 until at least 1639. Joseph Hatch, bellfounder from 1602 to 1639, cast at least 155 bells, including "Bell Harry", after which the central tower of Canterbury Cathedral is named. Most Hatch bells were used in churches east of the River Medway in East Kent.

Ford Palace was a residence of the Archbishops of Canterbury at Ford, about 6.6 miles (10.6 km) north-east of Canterbury and 2.6 miles (4.2 km) south-east of Herne Bay, in the parish of Hoath in the county of Kent in south-eastern England. The earliest structural evidence for the palace dates it to about 1300, and the earliest written references to it date to the 14th century. However, its site may have been in use for similar purposes since the Anglo-Saxon period, and it may have been the earliest such residence outside Canterbury.

References

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Sources frequently date the old church's demolition to 1805, [4] but a meeting to discuss the church's future was held at the church on 12 January 1808; [5] a detailed description of the standing church, including pleas for its preservation, was submitted to The Gentleman's Magazine on 3 March 1809; [6] The Gentleman's Magazine reported in 1809 and 1856 that the church's demolition began in September 1809; [7] [8] and the year of the church's demolition is given as 1809 in Blair 1999 and in the archive of Canterbury Cathedral. [9]
  2. ↑ The writer who described the church of 1813 as "miserable" noted that, "though we have paid a visit to it, we would not advise any one else to take so much trouble." [16]
  3. ↑ The memorials are listed at Gough 1995, p. 11, and on the church's web page. [24]
  4. ↑ The silver vessels are "held in safe-keeping away from the church". [23]
  5. ↑ A detailed description of the stained glass is at Gough 1995, pp. 12–3.
  6. ↑ The capacity is estimated on the church's own website to be about 100. [24]

Notes

  1. ↑ Garmonsway 1972 , pp. 34–5; Fletcher 1965 , pp. 16–31; Page 1926 , pp. 141–2; Kelly 2008 , pp. 71–2.
  2. ↑ Gough 1983, p. 135.
  3. ↑ Kerr 1982, p. 194.
  4. ↑ Fletcher 1965, p. 24; Jessup 1936, p. 182; Kerr 1982, p. 194; Kelly 2008, p. 67; Kozodoy 1986, p. 68; "History of Reculver Towers and Roman fort". English Heritage. n.d. Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  5. ↑ Anon. 1808, col. 1310.
  6. ↑ Mot 1809, pp. 801–2.
  7. ↑ Cozens 1809, p. 906.
  8. ↑ Anon. 1856, p. 315.
  9. ↑ Canterbury Cathedral Archives (2012). "Reculver, St Mary Parish Records". Dean and Chapter of Canterbury Cathedral. Archived from the original on 19 May 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  10. ↑ Kelly 2008, p. 67.
  11. ↑ Harris 2001, p. 36.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Exploring Kent's Past (n.d.). "Parish church of St Mary the Virgin, Hillborough". Kent County Council. Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  13. ↑ Crudgington, L. (18 March 2014). "Modern church proud of links to Roman times". Canterbury Times. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  14. ↑ Anon. 1856, p. 317 & note.
  15. ↑ Crudgington, L. (18 March 2014). "Modern church proud of links to Roman times". Canterbury Times. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2016; "Hoath" . Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald. 9 May 1874. Retrieved 2 May 2016; "Reculver. Dedication of the new church" . Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald. 22 June 1878. Retrieved 2 May 2016;Exploring Kent's Past (n.d.). "Parish church of St Mary the Virgin, Hillborough". Kent County Council. Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  16. ↑ Anon. 1856, p. 317, note.
  17. ↑ "Hoath" . Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald. 9 May 1874. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  18. ↑ "Preferments and appointments". The Church Herald. 13 May 1874. p. 305. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 "Reculver. Dedication of the new church" . Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald. 22 June 1878. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  20. 1 2 3 Newman 1976, p. 431.
  21. ↑ Gough 1995, p. 10.
  22. ↑ "Church of St Mary the Virgin". Historic England. 2015. Archived from the original on 9 June 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  23. 1 2 3 Gough 1995, p. 11.
  24. 1 2 "St. Mary the Virgin, Reculver – Church History and Background". stmaryreculver.co.uk. 2010. Archived from the original on 7 December 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  25. ↑ Hasted 1800, pp. 237–53.
  26. 1 2 Gough 1995, p. 12.
  27. ↑ Gough 1995, pp. 12–3.
  28. ↑ War Memorials Archive (n.d.). "Reculver". Imperial War Museum. Archived from the original on 20 May 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  29. ↑ Exploring Kent's Past (n.d.). "Reculver War Memorial". Kent County Council. Archived from the original on 5 June 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  30. ↑ "St Mary the Virgin, Reculver". The Church of England. 2016. Archived from the original on 3 May 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  31. ↑ Kelly 2008, p. 82.
  32. ↑ Graham 1944, pp. 10–1.
  33. ↑ Gough 1995, p. 8.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.