KAS Committee Round-Up
KAS CHURCHES COMMITTEE
Visit to Dover and St Margaret at Cliffe
The visit organised for Saturday 26 September focused on two churches with significant Norman features on the extreme eastern side of the county.
The group first visited the parish church of St Mary the Virgin, Dover, where it was welcomed by the Revd David Ridley. The talks at both churches were given by Mrs Mary Berg, a member of the committee and of the KAS Council, who has recently published a book on the Norman churches of the diocese of Canterbury with her co-author Howard Jones. St Mary’s is the last remaining of several medieval churches of the Cinque Port of Dover. It was heavily rebuilt and restored in 1843 but the fine Norman tower and western bays of the nave survive. Modern additions include a Zeebrugge memorial window, of which there is also an example at St Margaret at Cliffe.
The visitors were welcomed to St Margaret’s by Mr Rodney Stone, whose wife kindly provided the refreshments. Mrs Berg judges this remarkable building to be one of the finest surviving Norman parish churches in southern England. With a few exceptions, such as the rebuilt tower, and allowing for a relatively conservative 19th-century restoration by Ewan Christian, the church survives to us today much as it was by the year 1200. Impressive Norman features include the carved arches over the west door and the north door, and a notable set of carved heads. The use of good quality Caen stone contributes to the wonderfully light interior. Other interesting features include a set of 47 later medieval graffiti engravings of ships on the nave piers.
Both of the churches visited are well cared for and have published excellent guidebooks. They are well worth a visit.
Paul Lee
KAS HISTORIC BUILDINGS COMMITTEE
The Autumn Historic Buildings Conference held on Saturday 17 October in Harrietsham Community Centre was a great success. Over 130 people attended the event, which had a Tudor theme. More details are given on page 12 of the Newsletter.
The Historic Buildings Committee has now started work on the 2010 conference, and is also giving consideration to the contribution it could make to the Peopling Past Landscapes project.
As mentioned in the last Newsletter, preparations are also underway for the 2010 series of visits. A trip to see the ancient vaults of Winchelsea on Saturday, 12 June has been fixed - see the What’s On section on page 6. Arrangements are being made for a group of 16 members to visit Saltwood Castle near Hythe during May or June. For more information on both these visits, see the What’s On section of the Newsletter.
Angela Davies