England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Levington St Peter

The Parish

The parish of Levington sits in the extreme southeast of Suffolk, indeed it forms part of Suffolk's North Sea coast, albeit with the unbridged portion of the River Orwell. Levington is located about 5 miles southeast of the county town of Ipswich and sits, in lanes, just over a mile south of the busy A14 road which connects the port of Felixstowe with The Midlands. Levington is a relatively small village built around a "T" junction of lanes with the majority of properties lining that lane which is parallel to the Orwell. Whilst the nearby estuary would have provided opportunities for fishing, shell fishery and wildfowling, the interior of the parish is rich arable farmland, today marina's dot this coat and it is haunt of weekend sailors. A a coastal community numerous small streams drain the short distance to the nearby Orwell. Levington is sited at around 20 metres above the sea in relatively flat countryside where land rises no more than a further 10 metres within some distance. Levington parish was small, as are many of this area, it covered just over 1,000 acres and would have supported a population of just over 200 parishioners. In Domesday times Levington was largely held by Roger Bigot with a small portion with Hugh de Montfort, collectively their holdings could offer just 3 ploughs and a small meadow making for a small place indeed.

The Church

St Peter's church sits on the eastern edge of the properties lining the coastal lane. The church has its origins in the 13th century but only the doorways, the southern remains a means of entry, the northern is blocked, date from that Early English Gothic period. The church received a major rebuilding during the 15th century when the walls of both nave and chancel were raised and most of the fabric remaining dates from this Perpendicular period. The squat brick tower has had numerous changes, documentary evidence places its build to c1480 but the belfry was rebuilt in the 17th century and the embattlements rebuilt in the 20th. The church sits on the northern side of Church Lane in a slightly elevated position, entrance at the western end, with space for a car, leads to a loping gravel pathway to the church. The brick-wall enclosed churchyard is open and free of photographic obstructions.