Committee Round Up
CHURCHES COMMITTEE Visits to Lullingstone & Eynsford by Toby Huitson
On a glorious afternoon on the last day of April, some 30 people congregated in north-west Kent for two visits. The first was to St Botolph, Lullingstone, within the castle boundary. Its interior is a fusion of the Gothic and Classical styles. A striking feature is the unusual rood screen with its carvings of pomegranates and the Pechey rebus. For these reasons it is usually dated to between 1502 and 1522, although it sparked interested discussion as to which parts might be original.
Philip Lawrence shared his expertise about the impressive chancel brass inlay commemorating Sir William Peche (1487). There is also sixteenth-century glass in the nave and chapel, both figurative and armorial. The north chapel contains a fine Tudor monument to Sir John Peche with an effigy and finely-carved canopy. The church owes much to the Queen Anne period, including its porch, bell turret, miniature font, raised roof and plaster ceiling, and even the chancel arch.
Like Lullingstone, Eynsford once had two churches, the other long since lost. Eynsford represents picturesque Kent at its best, with the river Darent and castle ruins nearby. St Martin’s is a fascinating building on an unusual uphill sloping site. It has a fifteenth-century font and a spacious thirteenth-century south transept. On the north side there is a Tudor chapel to St Katherine with a ‘green man’ corbel and evidence for a lost chapel. The most surprising feature of the church is its large chancel with its apse. From the outside this appears to be pure Victoriana, but it is original, if heavily re-fenestrated. The Norman origins of the building are clear in the west door with its spiral and zig-zag columns and chip-carved tympanum above. All in all, these two buildings are well worth visiting.
Special thanks are expressed to Joy Saynor for her enthusiastic and knowledgeable introductions to both churches, to those who made the delicious tea at Eynsford and homemade shortbread, and to ex-churchwarden Frank Rogers for opening Eynsford church for us.
The next Churches Committee visits take place on Saturday 24 September – details are on the ‘What’s On’ pages.
Living through the Reformation at St. Dunstan’s, Canterbury by José Gibbs
Once again the KAS Churches Committee managed to combine beautiful weather with a well-organised event to produce an interesting and stimulating day. 94 people made the journey to St. Dunstan’s church. Committee chairman, Mary Berg, opened the day by welcoming everyone, especially the many who were not KAS members, and thanking the team from St. Dunstan’s who were to provide refreshments. She gave especial thanks to Sheila Sweetinburgh and Jacqui Davidson for all their work in preparing for the day.
Alasdair Hogarth, Chairman of the ‘Friends of St. Dunstan’s’, spoke on the history of the church prior to the reformation, showing how it responded to political and architectural changes. First recorded in 1030, it may be the earliest church to have this dedication and was perhaps preceded by a preaching cross at the key position just outside the city walls on the roads to London and Whitstable. Following the murder of Thomas Becket in 1170, it was ideally sited to profit from the thousands of pilgrims, including Henry II, who flocked to Canterbury. In 1525 William Roper, son-in-law to Sir Thomas More, added the Roper chancel. By 1535 (just before the onset of reform) the church looked externally much as it does today, but internally very different, with gilded statues, four altars with expensive frontals, relics of saints and illuminated books.
Professor Ken Fincham of the University of Kent then outlined the religious changes of the 16th century that were to bring about upheaval of all kinds, the consequences of which are still with us, for example, abbey ruins, Tyndale’s Bible and the Book of Common Prayer.
Following lunch, four workshops gave the opportunity to look at the church building and 16th century documentation relating to St. Dunstan’s, such as the Churchwardens
HISTORIC BUILDINGS COMMITTEE by Angela Davies
Over the last few months Committee members have been finalising the arrangements for two events:
- The Workshop on Building Interpretation and Recording to be held in conjunction with the Wye Rural Museum Trust at the Agricultural Museum in Brook on Saturday, 10 September 2011.
- The Autumn Historic Buildings Conference to be held in Harrietsham Village Hall on Saturday, 15 October 2011.
More details of both events can be found in the What’s On section of this Newsletter.
Looking further into the future, following in Joy Saynor’s footsteps, the Committee is planning several visits in 2012, the first of which will take place sometime in the spring. More information will be given in the next Newsletter. Also, preliminary discussions have taken place on the feasibility of a project studying a group of buildings in one area. The aim of the project would be to tie in the buildings with any documentary evidence that can be found relating to their construction, owners or tenants.
Repairing ‘The Comarques’, High Street, Deal by Pernille Richards
In the afternoon of Sunday 4 December 1943, the Germans shelled Deal. Among the properties damaged was ‘The Comarques’ in the High Street. W.P.D. Stebbing had noted this house as a good example of architecture from the first half of the 18th century back in 1937. An architect by training, Stebbing took a keen interest in the old buildings of Deal and one box in the KAS collection contains papers relating to him. In some cases he is merely documenting architectural details, but in other cases the papers reflect Stebbing’s active involvement in local matters relating to historic properties. In 1943 Stebbing became involved in the process of repairing The Comarques as he considered it of architectural merit. Box 14 contains correspondence between Stebbing and the owner, Mrs Gladys Hulke, who was residing in Surrey at the time, as well as other parties involved in the process.
The road to repair was to prove a long one. Initially the house was made secure and some debris was removed under the direction of the Borough Surveyor. In February 1944 Stebbing organized a visit to the building by people from the Ministry of Works in order to obtain their support for the preservation of the house. Once the agreement to save the house had been secured the process of applying for a licence for the repair works from the War Damage Commission began. This required the employment of the architect Fawcett Martindale, further surveys and paperwork. It had all the complications of any large insurance claim and wartime conditions did not aid matters. Progress was slow; it was late April 1944 before the builders Denne & Son commenced clearing more debris.
The repair work was to be limited to the essentials to prevent further deterioration of the building. This proved to be a sticking point, as the owner’s view of what constituted essential repairs differed from the view of the Ministry of Works. Stebbing also championed the view that the repairs should be made in brick, which although initially more expensive to work, would prove more durable. Protracted negotiations took place to sort out the details. The combination of bureaucracy and wartime conditions makes for some surreal paperwork. In May 1944 Stebbing informed Mrs
Hulke that she would have to carry some expenses for the survey of the building and for worm-damaged timbers exposed by the shell as: “The War Damage Commission in such cases say the decay was not caused by the enemy and so expect the owner to bear that pre-war trouble.” Mrs Hulke was initially aghast: “It is incredible to me that the War Damage Commission disclaim their responsibility for worm-eaten timbers, after all it is due to war damage they have been exposed, and their replacement made necessary...” However, she did accept responsibility for the timbers. Mrs Hulke’s letters provide interesting information on how the house was arranged and past alterations made to it. Mr and Mrs Hulke had central heating installed in 1926 and later Mrs Hulke split the house into three flats. Many details are given as to the location of kitchenettes, bathroom facilities etc. The seven pages of repair specifications and plan made by Fawcett Martindale in June 1944 are also of interest, showing what was damaged in each area.
Finally, in July 1944, things were ready for Denne & Son to price the job. The cost proved too high for the Ministry of Works to accept and a new phase of negotiations started. In December 1944 it briefly looked as if the house might be classed as too damaged to rebuild. Once agreement had been reached the labour shortage caused delay. The years 1945 and 1946 passed without repairs. Mrs Hulke was seriously concerned about the property by this stage. Finally, in July and August 1947, reconstruction was underway and Mrs Hulke was reassured that the new bricks would mellow in time and fit in with the old ones. There are no more letters after this point, but the serene facade of The Comarques was eventually restored and the house is today a visual asset of Deal’s Conservation Area. It has just been on the market after being in the same family, descendants of Mrs Hulke, for over 250 years.
Fig 2. The Comarques - present Day