England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
East Bedfont St Mary the Virgin

The Parish

The parish of East Bedfont lies in southwestern Middlesex roughly 4 miles northeast of the Thames-side town of Staines. East Bedfont sits immediately south of the A30 road which links London with Staines and onwards to Hampshire's Basingstoke. East Bedfont is an area which has changed markedly over the centuries, at the time of this transcript it was a distinct small village gathered around its church separated from others by open farmed countryside; today East Bedfont is suburbia forming almost the western edge of an urban area stretching outward from London. Illustrative of its urban credentials is the proximity of London's Heathrow Airport with its 4th terminal sitting a half mile north of East Bedfont's peaceful church. Where now sits serried ranks of 20th century development, both residential and industrially supporting the airport, once sat arable fields and market gardens supplying the nearby capital. A few peaceful oases have escaped development notably Bedfont Lakes Country Park supplying nature to the area. Modern developments abound, the London to Staines railway line crosses the south of the parish whilst the A30 has been upgraded to fast dual-carriageway, even London's tube network invades the parish with the stations at both Hatton & Heathrow Terminal 4 lying within the parish. Water drains southwestwards, mostly sub-surface these days, to pass through Staines' network of former gravel pits now reservoirs to the nearby Thames, turning east to pass through the capital to the North Sea. East Bedfont is sited at around 20 metres above the sea within a broad plain at similar height for some considerable distance. Covering almost 1,900 acres East Bedfont parish was typically sized for its area, the population is reported often to be close to 1,000 parishioners but the volume of marriages recorded is indicative of a population closer to 500. In Domesday times East Bedfont was a tiny place shared between Count Robert of Mortain and one Walter, its assets of just 5 ploughs and a small meadow are those of a small rural farming manor.

The Church

St Mary's church sits about 100 metres north of Staines Road, the A315 joining Hounslow to the A30, on the northern side of Bell Lane. Before discussing the church one must mention its eccentric topiary which greets you from the Bell Lane entrance. Two ancient yews have been trimmed to resemble large birds, variously reported as fighting cocks or as peacocks, cut into the bases are two dates of 1704 and 1990 recording the date of first creation and of its re-creation. St Mary has its origins in the 12th century as a simple aisle-less church, some fabric remains from that early period as Norman Romanesque styled windows grace both the northern wall of the chancel and the southern wall of the nave, in addition the southern doorway retains its chevron detailing from the period. The chancel arch has been dated to the mid-12th century and is the only example within its county of that date. The traditional church-building era of the Perpendicular saw the chancel extended but it was the 19th century that saw the most change to the original medieval building. Firstly in Georgian times of 1829 the brick southern transept was added. Following that and in Victorian times 1865 saw the original free-standing tower demolished to be replaced by today's connected tower complete with timber upper stages. Furthermore this was adjoined to a new southern porch and the nave extended. Internally the church holds two notable 13th century wall-paintings of the Lat Judgement and the Crucifixion which are unique in this county. Bell Lane has a few spaces for the fortunate and there are spaces to the north at the Church Hall. The topiary requires an image whatever the arrangement of the churchyard but helpfully, other than a single large tree at the southeastern corner, most aspects are readily available to the photographer.