Eythorne Baptist Church originated in the meetings of early 16th century

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

s who had crossed the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

from the

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Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

to escape persecution. Nineteenth-century Baptist writer J. J. Goadby named Eythorne as one of the three "most ancient Baptist churches in England".Goadby For many years the Church had associated village chapels in east Kent. Two of these remain—at Adisham and Nonington. Others were at Eastry, Ashley, Woolage Green, Wootton and Barnsole.

Beginnings

The immigrant Baptists and their English supporters held meetings at

Eythorne Eythorne is a civil parish and small village located 7.3 miles north-northwest of Dover in Kent, with a combined population of approximately 2,500 residents including nearby villages Barfrestone and Elvington. Although not classed as one of the ...

and also at

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

, about away. Joan Boucher, or Bocher, who is sometimes described as ''Joan of Kent'' and known to have been involved in "reforming circles" in Canterbury is said by "uninterrupted and uncontradicted tradition" to have been an early member of the church at Eythorne. She was burnt at the stake at Smithfield on 2 May 1550 after refusing to recant her views on the incarnation of Christ. The church's website tells us that she spoke of "our little meeting in quiet Eythorne" at the preceding trial. Soon afterwards, the Duke of Northumberland, one of the king's advisers, expressed concern about the "

Anabaptist Anabaptism (from New Latin language, Neo-Latin , from the Greek language, Greek : 're-' and 'baptism', german: Täufer, earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re- ...

s lately sprung up in Kent".

18th and 19th centuries

The first recorded meeting house in Eythorne was on the Coldred Road and was probably built about 1755 with seats for 60 people; in 1773 it was doubled in size. In 1786 baptisms started to take place in the village itself, a change from the previous custom of baptising church members in the sea or river at

Sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

. Until 1750 the church seems to have forbidden singing, but half a century later a retired

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

banker, Peter Fector, who lived near the meeting house apparently objected to hearing the congregation's "hearty singing". In January 1804 church members gathered to discuss his offer of £500 for the old meeting house along with an acre of land for a new chapel. This chapel, which is in use today, was built and opened the same year. In the late 1830s William Copley, husband of the writer

Esther Copley Esther Copley, Esther Hewlett or sometimes Esther Hewlett Copley (née Esther Beuzeville, 10 May 1786 – 17 July 1851) was an English religious tractarian and a prolific writer of didactic books for children. Life Copley was the youngest daughte ...

(''née'' Beuzeville, previous married name Hewlett), became Baptist Minister in Eythorne. Though his ministry started well he developed problems, apparently alcoholism, which meant his wife had to support his work and help write his sermons.DNB Esther stayed on in Eythorne when William left in 1843.

References

History section of Eythorne Baptist Church's website

* ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (DNB): articles on Joan Bocher and Esther Copley

External links

{{Coord, 51.1984, 1.2663 , display=title , region:GB_type:landmark , format=dms Churches in Dover, Kent Baptist churches in Kent

Beginnings

18th and 19th centuries

References

Further reading

External links