THE historic village and parish of Penshurst lies within a valley on the northern slopes of the Kentish Weald, at the confluence of the rivers Medway and Eden within the Sevenoaks district of Kent. Much of the parish lies within the High Weald AONB-a majestic landscape of historic buildings, rolling grasslands, ancient woodlands, sunken lanes and captivating villages where, it has been said, London ends and England begins.
The village grew up around Penshurst Place, a 14th-century manor house built in 1341 and granted in 1552 to Sir William Sidney, whose descendants have been custodians of the 2,500-acre Penshurst estate ever since. Penshurst's Grade I-listed church of St John the Baptist stands in the centre of the village, surrounded by stone houses and buildings, one of which is the Old Guild Hall, said to be one of only two still standing in England. Penshurst's first priest, Wilhelmus, was installed in 1170 by Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury: his last public act before his assassination by four knights two days later, reputedly at the behest of Henry II.
According to parish records, from the 13th century onwards, rectors of Penshurst lived next door to the church in a rectory that was later given by the Sidney family to the local Parochial Church Council. Over time, the council became concerned at the cost of maintaining the building and gave it in turn to the diocese, which, in the aftermath of the property market crash of the 1990s, decided to sell the original rectory and built a smaller, modern replacement in the garden.
Denne historien er fra November 01, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra November 01, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Tales as old as time
By appointing writers-in-residence to landscape locations, the National Trust is hoping to spark in us a new engagement with our ancient surroundings, finds Richard Smyth
Do the active farmer test
Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts
SOS: save our wild salmon
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish
Into the deep
Beneath the crystal-clear, alien world of water lie the great piscean survivors of the Ice Age. The Lake District is a fish-spotter's paradise, reports John Lewis-Stempel
It's alive!
Living, burping and bubbling fermented masses of flour, yeast and water that spawn countless loaves—Emma Hughes charts the rise and rise) of sourdough starters
There's orange gold in them thar fields
A kitchen staple that is easily taken for granted, the carrot is actually an incredibly tricky customer to cultivate that could reduce a grown man to tears, says Sarah Todd
True blues
I HAVE been planting English bluebells. They grow in their millions in the beechwoods that surround us—but not in our own garden. They are, however, a protected species. The law is clear and uncompromising: ‘It is illegal to dig up bluebells or their bulbs from the wild, or to trade or sell wild bluebell bulbs and seeds.’ I have, therefore, had to buy them from a respectable bulb-merchant.
Oh so hip
Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland
A best kept secret
Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning
