St Laurence's Church, also known as St Laurence-in-Thanet, is a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

Thanet Thanet may refer to: *Isle of Thanet, a former island, now a peninsula, at the most easterly point of Kent, England *Thanet District, a local government district containing the island *Thanet College, former name of East Kent College *Thanet Canal, ...

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 ...

History

The church, founded in 1062, is a

grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, and is the oldest church in Ramsgate. It was an abbey church until 1275, when it became a parish church. The building was enlarged in the 12th and 13th centuries, including a chancel and side aisles being implemented. A lightning strike in 1439 resulted in the church being rebuilt, with the tower being raised to its present height. As Ramsgate grew, the town developed its own church: St Laurence became a separate parish in 1826.

Churchyard

St Laurence has a large churchyard covering three and a half acres. It contains over 1400 graves, the earliest of which is dated to 1656.

Notable burials

* D'Este Mausoleum **

John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore (1730 – 25 February 1809), known as Lord Dunmore, was a British people, British Peerage, nobleman and Colonial government in the Thirteen Colonies, colonial governor in the Thirteen Colonies, American colonies ...

(1732–1809) **

Lady Augusta Murray Lady Augusta De Ameland (''born'' Murray; 27 January 1761 – 4 March 1830) was the first wife of Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, the sixth son of George III. They married on 4 April 1793 in Rome. Their union was in contravention of t ...

(1761-1830) **

Thomas Wilde, 1st Baron Truro Thomas Wilde, 1st Baron Truro, (7 July 178211 November 1855) was a British lawyer, judge, and politician. He was Lord Chancellor, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain between 1850 and 1852. Background and education Born in London, Truro was t ...

(1782–1855) **

Augusta Emma d'Este Augusta Emma Wilde, Baroness Truro (née d'Este; 11 August 1801 – 21 May 1866) was the daughter of Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, by his marriage with Lady Augusta Murray, second daughter of John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmor ...

(1801–1866) * Admiral William Fox (c1733-1810) *

Sir William Garrow Sir William Garrow (13 April 1760 – 24 September 1840) was an English barrister, politician and judge known for his indirect reform of the advocacy system, which helped usher in the adversarial court system used in most common law nations t ...

(1760–1840) * John Collis Browne (1819–1884)

References

External links

A Church Near You entry

Parish website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramsgate, Saint Laurence Church of England church buildings in Kent Grade I listed churches in Kent

Saint Laurence Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. " laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman ...

11th-century church buildings in England Diocese of Canterbury