Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Grade I listed building. Main construction periods 1100 to 1774. C12th, nave rebuilt C13th, C14th

Monument Types

• CHURCH (Medieval to Modern - 1100 AD to 2050 AD)

Full description

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Description from record TR 03 SE 2 :
(TR 05703443) St. Rumwold's Church (NAT) (1)

The Church of St. Rumwald, Bonnington, is Early English and consists of chancel, nave, and timber belfrey. The timber-framed north porch is 14th c. (2)

St. Rumwold's Church. In normal use. (3)

24/1 Church of St. Rumwold. Grade B. Parish Church. Chancel, Nave a with timbered bell turret at its west end faced with weather-boarding and surmounted by an ogee-shaped lead roof, also timber-framed North Porch. The Chancel is Norman; the Nave and bell turret C13; the North Porch C14. At the west end of the Nave is an early C17 very high musicians' gallery built on the timbered structure of the bell turret. (4)

St Rumwold, an exceedingly rare dedication. Built of stone with a Norman chancel and a nave that was rebuilt higher and wider but no longer in the 14th century. (5)

The dedication may indicate that the foundations of the church pre-date the standing building. Rumwold was the son of a Saxon King of Mercia. (6)

The following text is from the original listed building designation:
TR 03 SE BONNINGTON 7/77 Church of St. Rumwold 27.11.57 GV I Parish church. C12, nave rebuilt C13/C14. Ragstone with timber framed and brick infill porch and weather boarded turret, with plain tiled roof and leaded turret roof. Chancel and nave with western turret and northern porch. Offset buttresses, repaired with brick, to western end, with double hollow chamfered western doorway with drip mould. Leaded ogee-shaped roof to turret with vane post. Nave with 3 offset buttresses to each wall with 2 cusped 2 light Y-tracery windows on each wall. Chamfered south doorway and hollow chamfered north door with drip mould in timber porch with ragstone base and cusped bargeboard over doorway with durns Nave east wall with lancets (blocked to south). Chancel stepped with Romanesque lancet to north, C16 2 light Perpendicular window to south and Romanesque triple East window. Interior: nave with roof of 2 crown posts and early C17 timber gallery structure at west end, the floor boards missing, but with turned baluster rail and upper flight of newel stairs. Chamfered chancel arch on moulded imposts. Chancel with plastered barrel roof. Fittings: segmentally arched double piscina in east wall and partly blocked aumbrey in south wall of chancel, with window seat to C16 chancel south window. Turned baluster altar rail with wrought iron supports to gate piers, simple wainscotting to sanctuary and raised and fielded panelled choir stalls. C18 octagonal pulpit with attached reading desk, with raised and fielded panels on rendered masonry base, with Greek key cornice and fluted pilastered back panel to tester with Greek key and modillioned cornice. Small trefoiled and ogee headed beaded niche on nave north-east wall. Bulbous font of Bethersden marble on square base, with railed surround (taken from altar rail?) with re-used Poppy head bench end. Bolection moulded prayer boards and benefaction board in nave (dated 1774, recording the benefaction of Valentine Knott of 8 shillings p.a. from Pinn Farm, 1614 Fragments of glass, C14 and Cl5, in nave, and East window dated 1907. Royal Arms, mid C18, on west wall. (See B.O.E. Kent I, 172-3). Listing NGR: TR0587934349 (9)

Watching brief on trench for pipe. Nothing of archaeological interest was found.(8)

<1> OS 6" 1961 (OS Card Reference). SKE48369.

<2> Kent 1935 64 (J C Cox) (OS Card Reference). SKE45696.

<3> F1 ASP 30NOV-1962 (OS Card Reference). SKE42359.

<4> DOE(HHR) East Ashford RD Kent prov list July 1955 8 (OS Card Reference). SKE41163.

<5> Bldgs of Eng 1980 172-3 W Kent & the Weald (J Newman) (OS Card Reference). SKE37701.

<6> Field report for monument TR 03 SE 2 - November, 1962 (Bibliographic reference). SKE5105.

<7> CAT Annual Report, 1992-3. (OS Card Reference). SKE38715.

<8> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1992, St Rumwolds Church, Bonnington, Watching Brief (Unpublished document). SKE7907.

<9> English Heritage, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest (Map). SKE16160.

Sources and further reading