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PATRIXBOU RN E.

UST as it stands oil" the main tracks of the country, in a
bye-way between Littlebourne. on the Canterbury and
Sandwich road. and Bridge. on the Canterbury and Dover
road, so the little village of Patrixbourne is a place by
itself-—silent, beautiful, rural. There is an atmosphere of
antiquity about it. although there are no tumble-down
dwellings, mean thatched cottages or signs of poverty. Quite the
reverse—you feel that the inhabitants are well fed. well clothed and
certainly well housed. For the buildings are substantial, if old, and
were erected when good Kentish timber was solid and seasoned when
used, and when the mason and the bricklayer took pride in their
work.

In this cosy spot the artist could fill many pages of his sketch
book and up in the churchyard the poet could revel in his dreams——
rather melancholy ones perhaps, for the host of pyramidical yews
look sombre under the shade of the taller trees around them. There is
foliage everywhere, save in one gap where one of the two fine
sentinel trees that guarded the churchyard gate has fallen off at the
trunk -and his fellow is hanging dangerously over the road, for his
life's span is nearly finished. The church itself appeals to our
emotions and calls forth our admiration too. Its ancient quaint
tower with entrance beneath, its perfect specimen of the Norman
stonemason's work and its Decorated windows all recall us to the
fact that some seven hundred years have passed since it was built.
And everything is so still and peaceful on this little bit of God's
acre; the song of birds alone disturb the silence. _

And the village itself—that, too. is charmingly free from turmoil.
It is aplace where you might sleep—~a.nd dream when awake. No
public-house, with the exception of a general shop where beer can

 

 


34 P.-\TRIXBOURi\'E

be obtained but drunk only off the premises, no post office, no school
with noisy youngsters——you haveito trudge to Bridge, or close to
Bridge, a mile or more away, for such luxuries. And yet l’atrix-
bourne is the mother of Bridge, for is not the church of the latter
village but an appendage of the former? And here there is a
Vicarage and a parson, but none at Bridge.

Patrixboume derives its name, like its neighbours-—Littleboume.
Bekesbourne and Bridge—-from its close proximity to the stream-—
the famous Nailbourne——that comes through its domains. Sometimes
the bed of the river is quite dry, but as I write it is running wildly
along towards the Stour and roads and gardens are flooded. It was
from this river that Patrixbourne took its original name of Bourne,
and then some great landowner named Patrick prefixed his own nam;
to the village of his possession and it henceforth became Patrix-
bourne, or Patricksbourne, as I find it more generally used until
within the past few years.-

You plunge into the place from three distinct roads, but which‘
ever Way it may be you are struck by the winding roads that
would make a model for the town planner of the twentieth century
And as you ti?.verse each graceful curve picturesque houses meet
your eye one after the other. Coming from Bridge you notice the
beauty of the creeper-clad dwelling‘ known as \Vaterfall Cottage, whose
Tudor chimney stack denotes its age. Before and behind runs the
swirling Nailboume, dashing over tiny cataracts that give the house
its name. Then comes a half-timbered house with projecting upper
storey: the church wreathed in ivy: the Vicarage, which is another
tiinbered house; further along an old brick-built residence with
Elizabethan gable at the back and covering of timber in front.
Close by the rapid stream is undermining the gnarled roots of a
tall fir tree and small boys try their luck with rod and line for
eels, for which the Nailbourne is famous. Some little distance be-
yond are cottages with corbels of weird figures, male and female,
ll?“ 'h‘-‘mam lfalf b¢35t. Some struggling in awful agony, others grin-
ning in ecstacies of delight. Those buildings and their ornainentations

“'5 ‘5l“"¢‘- m°'-‘lfimi lliwing been erected from drawings of the Marchio~
ness of Conyngham. Near by are oasthouses, but alas! useless to-
day. Flanking one side of the village is Bifrons Park. and it is

[remarkable that the land on the opposite side of the street is in

_B°l"¢§b°'~""° Pafish. While to show the peculiar division of parishes
"1 “"5 P3?! Of Kent. we find that the so-called Bridge elementary

 

 

 

A SAUNTER THROUGH KENT 35

schools are built on land in Patrixbourne. All this is confusing,
but not so remarkable as many would imagine, for the neighbouring
parishes of Littlebourne and Ickham overlap in a similar way.

The church of St. Mary is mentioned in Domesday in 1086, when
Patrixboume was chiefly owned by the famous Odo, Bishop of
Bayeux. Here is the quaint extract :———" There is a church and one
servant and four mills of sixteen and eight. A fishery of sixpence.
Pasture of which the foreign tenants have ploughed six acres of land.
Wood for the panage of four hogs." In 1258 the church of Patrix-
bourne and the chapel of Bridge were given to the Priory of Merton
in Surrey, on condition that three canons should reside in the place,

=and there appears but little doubt that they carried out this injunc-
tion. But previously the church was re-built, as the fine specimens iv

of Norman architecture are of the twelfth c n ur _

The first thing you notice when approaching St. Mary's is its
compact appearance, obtained through the remarkable position of the
porch—underneath the tower. The nave. tower and chancel are all
original Norman work, but the north aisle was built when the church
was thoroughly restored in 1824 and the Norman doorway and De-
corated window on that side were taken from the old wall and
built into the new. The greatest treasures of the church are its
Norman doorways. There is a. small one on the south side of the
chancel, with its mouldings somewhat battered, while a small stone
figure is in the same condition. This figure apparently has a crown
upon its head and the hands are uplifted, but what it represents
cannot accurately be decided. This doorway sinks into insignificance
in comparison with the magnificent ‘richly-moulded doorway through
which we enter the church on the south side. This doorway—one of
the best of its sort in Kent—-is cut under the tower. It forcibly
reminds one of Barfrestone, although not quite so elaborate. The
mouldings are deeply carved, but the principal embellishments are
reserved for the tympanum, the subjects being "Our Lord and Majesty
attended by angels," while below are carvings to represent foliage and
strange birds. The head of the arch contains much ornamentation,
including dog-tooth work, and this is surmounted by a tall pointed
canopy. with a. niche carved with the Agnus Dei. This work dates
back as late as 1170.

Entering the church under the tower the outlook is impressi\'e——
everything seems much more massive than one is accustomed to find
in a village church. There are three pointed arches, one in front

. ' .«¢—~ ~.—..~......,. -. ....  

g


36 PATRIXBOURNF.

and one on either side, each cut out of the huge square supports of
the tower. \Vith the exception of the modern north aisle the roofs
are open and timbered; a modern arcade divides the aisle from the
nave along the spot where the old Norman wall used to stand. The
chancel is approached under an arch which is probably of even earlier
date than the south doorway, while the priest's door just inside the
chancel is equally ancient. This doorway is surmounted by :1 statue
of the patron saint of the church, St. Mary. There are two aumbries
in the chancel as well as the thirteenth century canopied piscina,
while in one of the corners is a squint through which the occupants
of the private chapel could see the altar; but this hagioscope is now
blocked up. .

There are several interesting Norman windows, including seven in
the chancel. Those on the north and south walls are small with-
out anv moulding and contain glass given by the Marchioness
Conyngham, in 1849. Over the altar are triplets. the central one
being surmounted by a marigold window of eight lights radiating
from a. central circle. For many years these windows were’ scaled
up, but when the church was restored in 18-$9 they were opened
up and filled by the Marchioness Conyngham with ancient Flemish
glass. One of these chancel windows with the Crucifixion as its
subject is dated 1532, while the glass containing a figure of Samson
with the jawbone of an ass hears the date of L538. Another window
depicting Christ in the garden of Gethsemane is dated 1589, while
another has 1602 marked upon it.

The south chapel contains the family pews of the owners of
Bifrons. and is known as the Bifrons chapel. It is seldom that an
open fireplace is seen in a. church but, let into the wall, is an
ordinary household stove that throws out its warmth to the wor-
shippers in cold weather. in the window is some more Flemish
glass with dates extending from 1550 to I67(). Here are several
monuments in memory of various owners of Bifrons. including John
Bargrave, who built the mansion and lies with his wife beneath the
floor of the south chapel. The Latin inscription on the stone is
interesting as being the composition of the Rev. John Bargrave, son
of the builder of Bifrons, and rector of Harbledown and Pluckley
in the 17th century, while he was also a Prebendary of Canterbury.
He died in 1680. Amongst other tablets is one to john Taylor_
who purchased Bifrons in 1694 and died in l729. The inscription
states that he " Raised a beautiful garden to Bifrons, gave several

 

 

 

A SAUNTER THROUGH KENT 37

\

ornaments of value to the church, was a strict economist, at just
dealer and a friend to the poor." It further states that.his“eldest
son, Brook, died in London in 1731. and was endowed with many
valuable qualities, both natural and acquired." Dr. Brook Taylor was
an author and married Elizabeth Sawbridge, of Olantigh, \Vye.
Another tablet commemorates Captain Bridges VVatkinson Taylor,
who served in the Royal Navy and was accidentally drowned by
the upsetting of his boat otT Brindisi in 1814:. He fought in the
battle of the Nile and later on, when lieutenant on board the
Leander of fifty guns, was wounded and taken prisoner during a
hard contested action between that ship aud the French ship Gene-
vent of seventy-four guns. Other monuments in the church are to
the memory of John and Elizabeth Denne, of Patriclcsbourne Court
Lodge, who died in 1690 and 1680 respectively; also Daniel, a son
of the above, who died in 1702. and from whom the Dennes, of
Lydd are descended. There are tablets to the memory of the Rev.
Charles Hughes-Hallett and his family: he was formerly vicar of the
parish, but died at Higham. The monuments to the memory of
the Conyngham family include those of Henry, the first Marquess
Conyngham and his wife Elizabeth, the former dying in 1832 and
the latter in 1861; Francis Nathaniel, second Marquess, who occupied
several public offices during the reigns of King William IV. and
Queen Victoria, and died in 1876; Jane, wife of the above, who
died in 1876, three weeks before her husband; Lord Francis Nath-
aniel Conyngham, R.N., and M.P. for Co. Clare, who died in 1881
at the age of forty-eight, and also two sisters of the second Mar-
quess, namely, Elizabeth Henrietta, married to the Earl of Aboyne,
dying in 1839, and Harriet Maria, married to Sir Vllilliam Somervile,
dying in 1843.

Bifrons Park lies in the heart of the village and many of the
towering trees that shade the churchyard are part of its timbers.
The house itself is white and plain in style. Originally built by
Sir John Bargrave, member of a Bridge family, in the sixteenth
century, it was practically rebuilt at the close of the eighteenth
century by the Rev. Edward Taylor, and on the front he placed
the following rnotto in honour of his wife :———“ Diruta aedificm.‘ uxor

boua, aedificata diruit mala." This motto can still be seen. From.

the Taylors it came into the possession of the Marquess Conyingham.
The whole of the valley watered by the lesser Stour is rich in
old Saxon cemeteries, and it is computed that this special district


 

38 PATRIXBOURNE

was more thickly inhabited than any part of Kent in early days.
In 1866 a few graves were discovered near the keeper's lodge op-
posite Patrixbourne church, but on Patrixbourne lIill a great many
were unearthed in the year 1866. Strangely enough the ground
was perfectly smooth and it was only while the workmen of Mar-
quess Conyngham were digging for a new plantation in that part of
Bifrons Park that they came upon evidence of the graves. Under

the supervision of antiquarians the excavations were carried out and 3
various skeletons discovered, and it is remarkable that most of the 
I
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I

men had been over ’s_i_:(__t'eet/£i_’_h¢fl;hAt._M The majority _o_f_‘the4_b9d‘igs
were biii7ied”nearly_north and south, but awfegz lay“eas~twVa_nd west,
and it is assumed that the latter may have beenwvearly _Ch_i§§_t1'1n§L‘
amongst whom a certain position of a_ deadwbody wasmstudied just
as it is at the present day. \Vithin the graves were discovered a
great number of relics, the most frequent being hammer-shaped
brooches, a crystal ball and a perforated spoon. One remarkable
feature was that the crystal ball and perforated spoon were found
close together between the thigh bones of the female skeleton. and
it is argued by many that the supposed magical properties of the
crystal ball were believed in by the pagans of old. Mr. T. G.
Godfrey Faussett, the eminent antiquarian, took_ a great interest in
the excavations. and has given us descriptions of other relics found
within the graves. They include, besides what I have already men-
tioned, a drinking cup of delicate green colour, knives, iron buckles,
iron awls, iron shears, keys, pins, ear rings, beads, bracelets, studs,
and a great variety of personal ornaments.

One opens the graves of the dead with awe and a feeling akin
to remorse. Centuries may have elapsed since those same bodies were
consigned to their Mother Earth, and yet time cannot erase the fact
that the disinterment savours of sacrilege, and probably the dis-
coverers of this old Saxon cemetery found it rather a gruesome sight
as the secrets of the earth were disclosed one by one. VVe read
how in one grave the body of a. little deformed child was found;
in another where a man who had once had his legs cut oil’ was lying
side by side with a stalwart fellow of over six feet perfect in limb;
then again the body of a woman lay in a long grave with a space
at her head in which the body of a baby had once been buried,
but while the latter had fallen to dust the bones of the mother
stood the ravages of time. The graves of children were numerous,
and in almost every case a string of beads had been placed around

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A SAUNTER THROUGH KENT 39

the neck, while similar ornaments were sometimes found with the
women, and by the side of most of the men lay a sword.

It was probably the existence of the ancient cemeteries at Pat-
rixbourne that gave rise to an old tradition of this village that on a
certain night of the year a procession of skeletons could be seen
slowly wending their silent way around the church. They entered
from the gate _by the roadside, led by a cowled monk, walked around
the building and then disappeared. This story I found in an old
manuscript written over a hundred years ago. Possibly human skeletons
and bones had been discovered by the inhabitants, and it would be
easy in days gone by for the rustic mind to conjure up a ghost
story on the strength of so gruesome a discovery. No one in Patrix-
bourne at the present time knows anything of the skeletons' church
parade. It has gone the way of most ghost stories—choked by the
matter-of-fact atmosphere of the present day.