Stodmarsh is a small village 5 miles to the east of

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. ...

in east

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 ...

, England, overlooking the valley of the River Stour. Stodmarsh is now part of the parish of

Wickhambreaux Wickhambreaux ( ) is a small rural village in Kent, England. The village is just off the A257 Sandwich Road, four miles east of the city of Canterbury. Since Roman times the village has had connections to the Church and the Crown, including bei ...

. The parish had a 2001 population of 479. The name Stodmarsh is derived from the Saxon words "stode", meaning mare, and "merse", a marsh, demonstrating its former use of pasture for cattle among the marshes.

History

Stodmarsh has been occupied since at least Saxon times, and Saxon burial tumuli have been found near Stodmarsh Court, the 17th century former manor house. In 686 king

Eadric of Kent Eadric (died August 686/ 687?) was a King of Kent (685–686). He was the son of Ecgberht I. Historical context In the 7th century the Kingdom of Kent had been politically stable for some time. According to Bede: Eorcenberht was succeeded by ...

gave the manor, consisting of three ploughlands in the marsh called "Stodmersh", to the monastery of

St Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Afr ...

in Canterbury. In 1270 Henry III extended this by granting free-warren in all their demesne lands of "Stodmarsch" to the abbot. When the monastery was dissolved in 1537 by

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

the manor fell into the hands of the king, before being granted to John Master of

East Langdon East Langdon is a village in the Dover district of Kent, England, and northeast from Dover town. The population is included in the civil parish of Langdon East Langdon was mentioned in the ''Domesday Book''. The word 'Langdon' is "long hill" ...

six years later who moved to Stodmarsh Court. Stodmarsh was originally a separate civil parish but was added to Wickhambreaux parish in 1934. It falls into the deanery of Bridge within the diocese of Canterbury.

Church

The church, dedicated to

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

is small and consists of a single aisle and chancel. It has a low pointed turret at the western end containing two bells. This church was originally part of the possessions of the abbey at Canterbury, and remained so until 1243, when the abbot Robert, at the insistence of archdeacon Simon de Langton, granted it to the hospital of poor priests in Canterbury, together with four acres of Stodmarsh, on the condition that they should not demand in future any tithes from the abbey. When the hospital was dissolved in 1575

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

gave all its possessions to the city of Canterbury. Stodmarsh church seems not to have been passed to the city but instead fell to the archdeaconry of Canterbury where it still remains. The church was first built in the 12th and 13th centuries and modernised around 1880. The porch contains notable carvings known as "Crusaders' Crosses". The X-shaped brace that supports the bell turret is believed to be unique in Kent.

Village life

The village has one public house, the Red Lion. Originally built in the fifteenth century, it was rebuilt in 1801 after a fire.

Nature Reserve

The

Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve Stodmarsh SSSI is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Stodmarsh, north-east of Canterbury in Kent. Parts of it are a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, a National Nature Reserve, a Ramsar internationally important wetl ...

lies immediately to the north and the

Stour Valley Walk The Stour Valley Walk is a recreational walking route that follows the River Stour, through the ''Low Weald'' and ''Kent Downs,'' from its source at Lenham to its estuary at Pegwell Bay. The walk passes through some of Kent's finest landscap ...

passes through the village. Covering an area of 241 hectares of wetlands, the reserve is known for the diversity of birds that have been sighted there, with over 200 species recorded.

References

External links

Stodmarsh Parish Church
{{authority control Villages in Kent