THE CONSTRUCTION OF ST MARY'S
St Mary’s is first mentioned in the Doomsday Book of the Monks in 1086 (written a decade after the more famous Doomsday Book of William the Conqueror in which Chiddingstone is not mentioned). The church building shows signs of 13 century walling (yellow), but it largely dates from the 14th and 15th centuries. The earliest recorded Rector is Bartholomew de Ferentino in 1278. Sir Bartholomew Burgherst (Lord of the Manor of Chiddingstone Burgherst) was responsible for the rebuilding in the mid 14th century. Sir Robert Rede added the 'Bore Place Chapel' in the North East corner in 1516 and dedicated it to St. Katharine. The fire of 1624 destroyed much of the fabric of the church, and it was rebuilt in 1626 with the roof of the nave replaced at a lower level. If you look carefully at an external photograph you can see the original higher roof level.
The land on the south side of the Church is much higher than the north side. The gravestones are almost at window height when compared to the houses on the other side of the high street only four meters away. This is because the poor of the village thought that evil spirits haunted the north side of the church. They preferred to be buried on the south side so that their souls would be safe. Over the centuries the earth piled up on the south side has made a visible difference.
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