Exploring Kent's Past

It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.

Monument details

Summary

Grade II* listed building. Main construction periods 1100 to 1878. Church of All Saints Listed II* Parish church. C12, C13 and C15, restored 1878. Stone, with plain tile roof to chancel. Nave roof not visible. West tower, short nave, south porch, small chancel. West tower: C15.

Monument Types

• CHURCH (Medieval to Post Medieval - 1100 AD to 1878 AD)

Full description

If you do not understand anything on this page please contact us.

Description from record TR 13 SW 1 :
[TR 10113203] All Saints' Chruch [T.U.] (1)

The Church of All Saints, Burmarsh, is typically C12th with C14th rebuilding in the tower and north wall of the nave. The porch is C16th. (2)

In Normal use. (3)

4/47 Church of All Saints 9.6.59 GV II* Parish church. C12, C13 and C15, restored 1878. Stone, with plain tile roof to chancel. Nave roof not visible. West tower, short nave, south porch, small chancel. West tower: C15. 2 stages on low moulded plinth, with battlements above moulded string. Integral north-west and south-west angle buttresses. Trefoil-headed, hollow chamfered louvred light to each side of belfry. Another, smaller, with square head, hollow spandrels and hoodmould towards base of upper stage to west. West window of two trefoil-headed lights with renewed mullion, no opening between lights and no voussoirs or hoodmould. Corbel head at what would have been apex. Moulded 2- centred arched west doorway with hoodmould. Nave: C12. South elevation: no visible plinth. Battlemented without string. 2 buttresses. C15 window above porch of 2 cinquefoiled lights with cavetto mullion and square head. C19 two-light window towards east, pointed, with two trefoil-headed lights,trefoil and hoodmould. South porch: said to be dated 526. Stone, with cement-rendered quoins. Round-arched outer architrave with decorative cast-iron gate. Inner doorway C12, with fat roll, chevron, and outer billet moulding. Stone face affixed towards apex. Square moulded abaci to single shaft either side with scalloped cushion capitals and slightly moulded bases. Doorway infilled with 3-centred arched stone inner architrave. Chancel: C12. Galleted stone. No plinth. Gabled. Traces of blocked south-west window with trefoiled head. C19 east window. Short narrow C12 north window with rounded head formed from single stone. Nave: north elevation: moulded plinth continuous with that of tower. Battlements above chamfered string. Central C19 north window. Interior: Structure: aisle-less nave. No chancel arch. C13 pointed tower arch with chamfered jambs and imposts. Roof: crown-post roof of 1878 to chancel, unobtrusively stencilled. Shallow-pitched C19 king-post roof to nave. Fittings: Royal Arms of George III to south wall of nave, unusually signed, "J. Marten Tenterden Pinxt". Oval text board. Bell, probably late C14, standing in north-east corner of nave, ascribed to John Danyell of London (Anne Roper, The Church of All Saints,Burmarsh, 1980). Reredos 1897-1900, carved in Oberammergau. (J. Newman, Buildings of England Series, West Kent and the Weald, 1980). (4)

All Saints, Burmarsh. The church has a curious hump-backed outline. Perpendicular west tower with large buttresses. Internally, the C13th tower arch shows that the present tower had a predecessor. It is a small aisleless Norman church with a high-pitched roof in the chancel. The south doorway of the nave survives with scallop capitals, and round the arch roll, zigzag and billet decoration, with at the top a crude head baring its teeth. The church was restored in 1878, and the roofs renewed. (5)

Additional bibliography. (6)

This small church has only a nave, chancel and small west tower. The nave and rectangular chancel must date from the mid-12th century, and there is a fine south doorway with shafts scalloped capitals, a round head with a roll and chevron and billet above, and a crudely-carved head at the top. The original round-headed window also survives on the north side of the chancel, and there are 12th century Caenstone quoins on the north-east side of the chancel, as well as on the south-east and south-west corners of the nave.

As with many churches on the marsh, the ground on which it was built, was unstable, and the walls started to settle differentially, and to lean out in places. As a result of this the church had to be substantially rebuilt and buttressed in the later 14th century. The tower arch tells us, however that a western tower was first added in c. 1200, but only this arch now seems to remain of the earlier tower.

The late 14th century work not only involved completely rebuilding the tower with two angled buttresses, but also rebuilding the north nave wall and adding two very large buttresses to the south side of the nave. All this new work has a hollow-chamfered Ragstone plinth and large side-alternate Ragstone quoins. There is also a new two-light Perpendicular south window in the nave with a square head (but no hood-mould), and the nave walls were given crenellated tops, and a new lower pitched roof. On the north side of the nave there is also an upper offset stringcourse, and the crenellations have Ragstone jambs with repaired (cement) cappings. On the south side there is no string course, and almost all the crenellations now have cement surrounds.

The west tower also has a crenellated top, and in the top bell-chamber stage, there is a single-light Perpendicular window in all four faces (without a hood-mould). The 1st stage chamber has single-light Perpendicular windows, with hood-moulds, in the south and west faces only, while there is also a 14th century west doorway with a (cement repaired) two-centred head and hood-mould. Above it is a two-light early perpendicular window, also without a hood-mould.

It is worth noting that another St. Augustine's Abbey church in Romney Marsh, Snave, also received crenellated parapets and a tower in the 14th century, and a new bell. At Burmarsh all three late 14th century bells still survive in the church (a great rarity), though sadly one was cracked in 1914, and can no longer be rung.

The porch, on the south side, was perhaps added a little later (c. late 15th century), and it has a small low rectangular window on the west side (now blocked with bricks). Its south side and roof have been completely restored, however, and it contains c. 18th century benches. At about the same time that the porch was built, a low four-centred arch was put into the 12th century doorway.

The chancel arch has disappeared, perhaps it collapsed at an early date, and there are few traces of the Rood (the present screen was put in in 1923). The south side of the chancel, and the south east corner, have also been rebuilt at a later date - perhaps in the 16th century, but the use of galleting also suggests an early 19th century repair. The chancel south wall contains various reused Roman bricks and earlier window fragments. Its south-east quoin is now of large Ragstone blocks.

There was a heavy restoration of the church in 1877-9 when the whole of the interior was refurnished and reseated. Also the roofs were renewed at this time, and new two-light windows were put into the north and south-east sides of the nave. The tracery is fanciful (early 14th century in style, roughly), and perhaps replaces 18th century windows. Petrie's 1806 view of the church from the SE shows a very tall nave south-east window of two lights. The east window is also a fanciful Victorian restoration of three lights. The reredos below it inside was added in c. 1897-1900. (7)

The following text is from the original listed building designation:
TR 101 321 BURMARSH
4/47 Church of All Saints 9.6.59 GV II*
Parish church. C12. C13 and C15, restored 1878. Stone, with plain tile roof to chancel. Nave roof not visible. West tower, short nave, south porch, small chancel. West tower: C15. 2 stages on low moulded plinth, with battlements above moulded string. Integral north-west and south- west angle buttresses. Trefoil-headed, hollow chamfered louvred light to each side of belfry. Another, smaller, with square head, hollow spandrels and hoodmould towards base of upper stage to west. West window of two trefoil- headed lights with renewed mullion, no opening between lights and no voussoirs or hoodmould. Corbel head at what would have been apex. Moulded 2-centred arched west doorway with hoodmould. Nave: C12. South elevation: no visible plinth. Battlemented without string. 2 buttresses. C15 window above porch of 2 cinquefoiled lights with cavetto mullion and square head, C19 two-light window towards east, pointed, with two trefoil-headed lights,trefoil and hoodmould. South porch: said to be dated 526. Stone, with cement-rendered quoins. Round-arched outer architrave with decorative cast-iron gate. Inner doorway C12, with fat roll, chevron, and outer billet moulding. Stone face affixed towards apex. Square moulded abaci to single shaft either side with scalloped cushion capitals and slightly moulded bases. Doorway infilled with 3-centred arched stone inner architrave. Chancel: C12. Galleted stone. No plinth. Gabled. Traces of blocked south-west window with trefoiled head. C19 east window. Short narrow C12 north window with rounded head formed from single stone. Nave: north elevation: moulded plinth continuous with that of tower. Battlements above chamfered string. Central C19 north window. Interior: Structure: aisle-less nave. No chancel arch. C13 pointed tower arch with chamfered jambs and imposts. Roof: crown-post roof of 1878 to chancel, unobtrusively stencilled. Shallow-pitched C19 king-post roof to nave. Fittings: Royal Arms of George III to south wall of nave, unusually signed, "J. Marten Tenterden Pinxt". Oval text board. Bell, probably late C14, standing in north-east corner of nave, ascribed to John Danyell of London (Anne Roper, The Church of All Saints,Burmarsh, 1980). Reredos 1897-1900, carved in Oberammergau. (J, Newman, Buildings of England Series, West Kent and the Weald, 1980).
Listing NGR: TR0949831932 (8)

<1> O.S. 6" 1937-8. (OS Card Reference). SKE47823.

<2> Elliston Erwood, F. C., 1925, Notes on the Churches of Romney Marsh, 1923, t. vol. 37, 1925, pp. 203-4 (plan) (F.C. Elliston Erwood). (Article in serial). SKE7802.

<3> F1 CFW 06-DEC-62 (OS Card Reference). SKE42449.

<4> DOE(HHR) Dist of Shepway, Kent, April 1985, 22. (OS Card Reference). SKE41067.

<5> Bldgs of Eng W Kent & the Weald 1980 196-197 (J Newman) (OS Card Reference). SKE37855.

<6> Field report for monument TR 13 SW 1 - December, 1962 (Bibliographic reference). SKE5377.

<7> Diocese of Canterbury (Tim Tatton-Brown), 1986, 90, 94, Church Survey - All Saint's Church, Burmarsh. (Unpublished document). SKE7604.

<8> English Heritage, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest (Map). SKE16160.

Sources and further reading