Churchyard of St Mary the Virgin, Fordwich, Kent
Visited September 2017
The church of St Mary the Virgin is in the small town of Fordwich, near Canterbury. Fordwich itself is a lovely, old town with lots of timber framed buildings, and a timber framed town hall. It’s the smallest town in Englan with its own town council, and used to be an important Medieval port.
The church itself is Norman in parts with a lot of later additions. It’s been out of use since the 1990s but is now looked after by the Churches Conservation Trust and is open to the public. Inside are old box pews, wall decorations and memorial brasses. There’s also a carved stone reputed to be part of the sarcophagus of St Augustine, but it was behind trestle tables on my visit and inaccessible.
In the little graveyard surrounding the church are some wonderful old gravestones with plenty of skulls and other symbols of death and remembrance. Behind the church the burials continue, with more Victorian and later stones.
If you’re in the area, Fordwich and it’s old church are definitely worth a visit (including the dog-friendly pub next door!)
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