Penshurst, St John the Baptist Church

St John the Baptict Church, Penshurst

St John the Baptist Church, Penshurst, is one of the great English country churches, home to a magnificent collection of historical treasures, many linked to nearby Penshurst Place, home of the Sydney family for more than 450 years.

History

The earliest church in Penshurst probably existed by the late 9th century, with a likely beginning around AD 860. The first known rector of St John's, a man named Wilhelmus, was installed in 1170 by Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, only two days before Becket's murder in Canterbury Cathedral.

In the south-west corner is the Becket Window, given by parishioners to mark the 800th anniversary of Wilhelmus' installation. The window is the work of Lawrence Lee, who created many of the stained-glass designs for Coventry Cathedral.

Margaret Sidney brass (d. 1558)

Perhaps the most memorable rector of Penshurst was Rev. Henry Hammond, who came into office in 1633. A staunch Royalist, Hammond was forced to flee Penshurst at the outbreak of the Civil War. He fled to join Charles I's court where he rose to become the king's chaplain, and he later helped moderate Cromwell's attempts to suppress the Church of England.

Much of the present building dates to the 12th century, with the addition of a 15th-century west tower. The tower has striking corner turrets topped with delicate spirelets, a 17th-century addition. The south porch dates to 1631. The Sidney Chapel, at the eastern end of the south aisle has its own porch, a testament to the Sidney family's importance in the history of Penshurst.

The Old Guild House

The church was originally built with no division between chancel and nave, but in 1865 a timber arch was erected to mark the separation. A wooden screen was added later.

The striking font, painted in rich colours, dates to the 15th century, though the painting is modern. The stone pulpit is a product of the 1860s, inlaid with mosaic and boasting marble pilasters.

Old Guild House

You approach the church via a courtyard of timber-framed buildings known as Leicester Square, so named in honour of the Sidney Earls of Leicester and a forerunner of the London square of the same name. One of these timber-framed buildings is the Old Guild House, sometimes known as Church House, built perhaps as early as 1475.

The medieval dole table

The Dole Table

By the churchyard path to the south door is a dole table, looking for all the world like a traditional altar tomb. This large, table-like monument, one of only three left in England, was used to distribute alms, whether money or food, to the poor of the parish. The dole, usually in the form of bread, was distributed to the needy on the feast day of St Thomas, 21 December.

A Georgian murder

As you enter the churchyard from Leicester Square the first memorial you see on the right is that of Richard Sax, or Sack, a farmer who was murdered by a labourer named Henry Langridge on 7 February 1813. Details on what happened are hard to determine but according to reports at the time, Langridge absconded, and there is no report of him having been found.

The Sidney Chapel ceiling

Sidney Chapel

The chapel hosts memorials to generations of the Sidney family. The barrel-vaulted roof boasts a painted ceiling decorated with heraldic shields. The Sidney family still use this chapel when they attend services.

Against the south wall of the Sidney Chapel is the effigy of Sir Stephen de Penchester (d. 1299), the first owner of Penshurst Place. This Purbeck marble effigy probably topped a tomb chest, now lost. Next to this effigy is a brass commemorating Margaret Sidney (d. 1558). Another brass is that of Thomas Bullayen (Boleyn), brother of Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII's second wife.

The Yden family brass, 1514

Another brass commemorates Thomas Yden and his wife, Agnes, and dates to 1514. At the base of the brass is a small likeness of the couple's daughter, Joan, who grew up to marry Edward Shelley, Lord High Steward under Henry VIII.

A poignant brass plaque remembers siblings Alice and Bridget Sidney, who died in 1599 at the respective ages of 6 months (Alice) and 2 years and 4 months (Bridget).

Against the south wall of the chapel is an ornate monument in Perpendicular style to Sir William Sidney (d. 1554). It was to Sir William that Edward VI gave Penshurst Place in 1552. Against the wall is a memorial to Robert Sidney, the 4th Earl of Leicester (d. 1702). The memorial commemorates 9 of Sidney's 15 children who died in childhood, with figures of two children depicted as dancing angels and the others represented by heads in the clouds.

At the south-western corner of the chapel is a memorial to Lady Sophia Fitzclarence (1796-1837). Lady Sophia was the daughter of King William IV and married Philip Sidney, the 1st Baron De L'isle. The memorial was sculpted by William Theed, who also created the death mask of Prince Albert (d. 1861). Nearby is a more modern memorial to William Sidney, Viscount De L'isle (d. 1991), who served as Governor-General of Australia.

The 13th-century Smiling Lady of Penshurst

Smiling Lady of Penshurst

Set into the south wall of the tower is a fragment from an ancient coffin lid. The stone is carved with the likeness of a woman known as The Smiling Lady of Penshurst. Integrated with the woman's face is a foliated cross. Tradition, though doubtful, says that the carving is of 13th-century date and may have links to the Albigensian rebellion in France.

The tower's west window holds armorial glass dated to 1627. The window glass was being stored, unused, at Penshurst Place, when the original tower window was destroyed by a doodlebug bomb during WWII. The armorial glass was installed after the war's end.

On the north tower wall is a memorial to four men of Penshurst who died during the Boer War. A fifth soldier is commemorated by a small plaque near the organ. At the north-west corner of the nave is a beautiful war memorial erected in 1920 to a design by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. A panel was later added to take the names of the WWII fallen.

Effigy of Sir Stephen de Penchester (d. 1299)

Against the south wall of the south aisle is a memorial to Sir William Coventry (1628-1686), who served as Secretary to The Admiralty. The memorial is to a design by William Kidwell, but the carving under the memorial is by Grinling Gibbons.

In the north aisle is the memorial to Henry, Viscount Hardinge (d. 1856), who served as Governor-General to India and as the Commander of British forces in the Crimean War.

On the wall is a very fine brass memorial to John Palwater (d. 1577). Palwater served as steward to Sir Thomas Ebeney, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and later to Sir Henry Sydney, Lord President of Wales and Lord Deputy of Ireland.

Sir William Sidney memorial (d. 1554)

Algernon Sidney

In 1683, Algernon Sidney was implicated in the Rye House Plot, an attempt to murder King Charles II. Sidney was executed for treason and buried in the family vault beneath the chancel. His head arrived in Penshurst sometime after his torso, for the head was put on public display as a deterrent to others.

The corbels supporting the nave roof bear the marks of destruction by Oliver Cromwell's soldiers during the English Civil War.

Visiting

St John the Baptist, Penshurst, is a magnificent country church, full to bursting with historical interest, and repays a visit many times over. The church is normally open to visitors and was open when we visited.