England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Streat Parish Church

The Parish

The parish of Streat lies in southern Sussex roughly 7 miles northwest of the town of Lewes. Streat sits just under 2 miles north of the B2116 road which skirts the base of the South Downs escarpment from Hassocks to the A275 immediately north of Lewes. Streat is a rather small crossroads settlement with its few properties gathered close to the church, the wider parish is a thin strip of land stretching from the South Downs northwards yet only a few hundred yards in width. The intention was to give the parish a share of all of the land-forms available and this gave Streat a more diverse farming regime with almost equal proportions of arable and pastoral methods. Modern developments have come to the parish, the railway line between Lewes and Burgess Hill passing through without granting Streat a station. Streat is drained eastwards by several small streams which coalesce to form the Bevern Stream, on meeting the Sussex Ouse water turns southwards, squeezes through the chalk and reaches the English Channel at Newhaven. Streat's church stands at 60 metres above the sea in fairly gentle terrain, southern views are, however, dominated by the chalk ridge of the South Downs which rises to 248 metres at Ditchling Beacon and which is followed by the South Downs National Trail. Streat parish was a small one its thin strip of land covering just over 1,200 acres and supporting a population of around 200 parishioners. In Domesday times Streat was equally rural and dominated by farming, held by William of Warenne it could offer 12 ploughs backed by meadows & woodland.

The Church

Streat's parish church has no known dedication it sits immediately west of the main crossroads which is the notional centre of the small village. Whilst the church has been heavily restored in Victorian times, over restored according to Pevsner, we are still able to judge the origins of the church. The oldest part is the nave which is completed c1200 and shows the Early English Gothic details accordingly. Also from the 13th century is the chancel again in the same style. The dates of both the northern porch and the shingled bell-turret are not listed either by Pevsner or by Historic England. The radical restoration came in 1854 and was a thorough exercise, in addition to restoring both nave and chancel the Victorians added the southern aisle. The southern porch and vestry were later additions being added in 1882. The entrance to the churchyard, through a lychgate, has a gravelled parking area allowing several vehicles to park. Apart from a single close tree at the eastern end there are no obstacles for the photographer.