Alderton, Suffolk
Alderton is a small village just north of Bawdsey, on the north side of the River Deben, in the Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The manor house of Alderton Hall dates to at least the 15th century, and within the grounds stand ruins of ecclesiastical buildings built by Augustinian monks who controlled much of the Bawdsey peninsula in the medieval period.
There is a secret passage between the Hall and the parish church of St Andrew's, perhaps used by smugglers, or by Catholic priests during the Reformation.
The church is an intriguing mix of new and old; a 14th-century building almost completely rebuilt by AW Blomfield in the 19th century.
The most unusual feature is the romantic, ruined tower, covered in ivy. According to one story, the tower fell down in 1821, killing a passing cow. More prosaically, it may have been destroyed by an 18th-century storm. The church bell stands outside, at the foot of the tower, supported by a modern timber frame.
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