Churchyard of St Mary, Westham

Parish Church of St Mary, Westham, East Sussex

Visited March 2016

This church is believed to be the first built by the Normans after the conquest of 1066 (the site of the infamous battle of Hastings is nearby in the town of Battle). It stands close to the site of Pevensey Castle, and the two were probably connected. The church itself has original features dating back to the late 11th century, with renovations and restorations going up to the 20th century.

The churchyard is still in use, and most of the simple gravestones date from the 19th century onwards; I only managed to find one earlier stone with memento mori features on it. But, it's in a lovely country setting, so could easily be fitted in with a visit to the Castle. Look out, in one of the modern parts, for the graves from the 1930s most of which appear to have a coppiced tree growing out of them (no bones coming up with the roots, I checked!).

 

 

Forbes Mausoleum, Falkirk, Scotland

Forbes Mausoleum, Falkirk

Visited September 2015

The Forbes Mausoleum sits in the grounds of Callendar Park in Falkirk, and is located to the south east of Callendar House. It's about a 15 minute walk through the woods to the mausoleum, but you really don't want to walk there alone. 

It was designed in 1816 by Archibald Elliott in the Greek Doric style to house the remains of the Forbes family, who owned Callendar House from 1783 until the mid-20th century. It must have been impressive when build. Nowadays however, it's covered in graffiti as is the circular enclosure wall. The ground around it is covered in litter, empty bottles and traces of bonfires, and it just feels sad and neglected.

 

 

St Mary's Churchyard, Eastbourne

St Mary's Church, Old Town, Eastbourne, East Sussex

Visited March 2016

Although parts of this church date from the 12th century (more building went on in the 14th century, and there was a huge refurbishment in the Victorian period), most of the memorials in the churchyard are Victorian onwards. Apart from a small area to the east side, most of the gravestones have been cleared and lie against the walls. Part of the churchyard is still in use, as a garden of rest for cremations of parishioners. 

There are a few older monuments around, and (perhaps rather randomly) a Celtic cross brought from Cornwall to Eastbourne in 1817, which probably dates to the 12th century. It's not worth making the journey to visit the churchyard alone, but the church itself is lovely. No pictures, as there was a service when I was there, but it retains some splendid original features including stone carvings.