St John the Baptist's Church, Harrietsham facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St John the Baptist's church |
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| Location | Harrietsham, Kent |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Designated | 26 April 1968 |
| Administration | |
| Deanery | North Downs |
| Archdeaconry | Maidstone |
| Diocese | Canterbury |
| Province | Canterbury |
St John the Baptist's Church is a very old church located in Harrietsham, Kent, England. It's dedicated to John the Baptist, an important figure in Christianity. Building this church started a long, long time ago, around the late 1000s or early 1100s, and continued until the 1400s. Because it's so old and special, it's protected as a Grade I listed building. This means it's considered a very important historical building.
Contents
The Church Building
This church was built over many years, starting in the late 1000s or early 1100s and finishing around the 1400s. It's mostly made from a local stone called rag-stone and has simple tiled roofs.
The West Tower
The tower at the west (front) end of the church was built in the late 1400s. It has three main sections, with strong buttresses (supports) on the outside corners. There's also a taller stair tower attached to one corner. Stone bands, called string courses, separate each section. The very top of the tower has a battlemented parapet, which looks like the top of a castle wall.
On the west side, there's a window with three lights (sections) above a small door. The middle section of the tower has small, narrow windows called lancet windows. The top section has two-light windows on each side, where the church bells are kept.
The main part of the church, called the nave, was built in the 1300s. On each side of the nave are aisles, which were added in the 1400s. The outside walls of these aisles are made from rag-stone and flint, with some pieces of tufa stone.
Both aisles have a decorative stone band below a battlemented parapet, similar to the tower. You can also see gargoyles on the corners, which are carved stone figures that often act as water spouts. Each aisle has two large windows from the 1400s, each with three lights and decorative stone frames.
Near the west end of the south aisle is the south porch. This porch has arched doorways and a special type of roof called a crown post roof. On the east corner of the south aisle, there's a round tower for the rood stair, which used to lead up to a screen inside the church.
The Chancel and Chapels
The chancel, the part of the church where the altar is, dates back to the 1200s or even earlier. It has a chapel on its south side from the 1300s and another on its north side from the late 1000s or early 1100s. The outside walls are supported by buttresses and are made of knapped (shaped) or rough flint.
The north chapel was once the lower two floors of a tower. It has small windows and a door added in the 1800s. There's also a stair tower on its north-west corner. The south chapel has a three-light window on its south side.
At the very east end of the chancel, there are three tall, narrow lancet windows, with the middle one being the tallest. The south wall has a two-light window, and the north wall has a single lancet window and another from the 1400s. The aisles have gently sloping roofs, while the chapels have pointed gable roofs.
Inside the Church
Inside, the aisles are separated from the nave by arcades (rows of arches). These arcades have three pointed arches supported by eight-sided columns with decorative tops (capitals) and bases. The arcade on the south side was built in the early 1300s, and the one on the north side in the late 1300s.
The north chapel has a special vaulted ceiling from the 1200s. This ceiling has four sections with thick ribs that spread out from slender columns in the corners. The nave roof was repaired in the 1400s and has crown posts. The aisle roofs have decorative wooden beams. The roofs of the chancel and south aisle were redone in the 1800s.
Special Features Inside
The church has a beautiful carved marble font (a basin for baptisms) from the late 1100s. It's considered one of the best Norman fonts in England.
You can find piscina (small basins for washing sacred vessels) in the south wall of the chancel and the east wall of the north chapel. The east wall of the chancel also has aumbries (small cupboards for storing sacred items).
A decorative screen from the 1400s separates the nave from the chancel. This screen was repaired and made longer in the late 1800s. The floor of the chancel is covered with patterned encaustic tiles, which are decorative tiles with patterns baked into them.
Monuments and Memorials
The church holds several important monuments. These include memorial brasses (engraved metal plates) set into the floor of the chancel. There's also a table tomb for William Stede, who passed away in 1574.
You can also see wall memorials for important people like Sir Edwyn Stede, who was a Lieutenant Governor of Barbados and died in 1695. Other memorials are for Constance Stede (d. 1714), Charlotte Baldwin (d. 1788), and William Baldwin (d. 1839).
Outside in the churchyard, there are many old table tombs and headstones. Some of these are also protected as Grade II listed structures because of their historical importance.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in Maidstone
