England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Penshurst St John the Baptist

The Parish

The parish of penshurst lies in the extreme southwest of Kent, indeed it forms a small part of the border with neighbouring Sussex, Penshurst is located about 6 miles southwest of the market town of Tonbridge and sits at the junction of the B2176 (which connects it to the busy A26) and the B2188 road which connects it with the Sussex village of Groombridge and ultimately Uckfield. Penshurst sits just north of the confluence of the Medway & Eden, the two main rivers draining this part of The Weald. Penshurst is a medium sized village largely built along the two roads described above. At the time of this transcript Penshurst would have had a mixed economy, farming (a mixed regime) would have predominated but the local stone was quarried for building and Penshurst was also a centre for paper making giving a varied source of incomes. The Medway drains the parish eastwards and after passing through Tonbridge & Maidstone before turning north to reach the Thames Estuary through the port of Chatham. Penshurst is sited at around 30 metres above the sea in undulating countryside where local heights rise to just above 100 metres with a couple of miles. Penshurst parish was typically large as are many such Wealden parishes in both Kent & nearby Sussex, the parish covered just over 4,500 acres and would have supported a population of almost 1,500 parishioners. There is, however, no specific mention of Penshurst in Domesday Book.

The Church

St John the Baptist church sits on southern edge of Penshurst Park, the landscaped grounds of Penshurst Place, a 14th century manor house; the church is reached by a short lane leading north from the B2176 just east of the Leicester Arms. The church outwardly appears to have been almost completely rebuilt in the 19th century but the interior tells Pevsner of a very different origin. Here the style is of the Early English Gothic period and he dates many features to 13th or 14th century. Highlighted are the arcades, the northern of 13th century, the southern mid-14th. Other features are later, the clerestory being Perpendicular in style and thus probably 15th century. Of course the church was massively restored by the Victorians, hence the outward appearance. The main restoration of 1864-1865 not only refreshed large parts but rebuilt the northern aisle and eastern wall of the chancel. The church is just a short walk from the B2176 (Rogue's Hill) and the site has few obstructions for photographers.