Fordcombe is a village within the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

Penshurst Penshurst is a historic village and civil parish located in a valley upon the northern slopes of the Kentish Weald, at the confluence of the River Medway and the River Eden, within the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England. The village is situ ...

in the

Sevenoaks Sevenoaks is a town in Kent with a population of 29,506 situated south-east of London, England. Also classified as a civil parish, Sevenoaks is served by a commuter main line railway into London. Sevenoaks is from Charing Cross, the traditio ...

district of

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. The village is located on the northern slopes of the

Weald The Weald () is an area of South East England between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It crosses the counties of Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It has three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the ...

, five miles (8 km) west of

Royal Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Rocks ...

. The church, part of a united benefice with Penshurst, Chiddingstone and Chiddingstone Causeway, is dedicated to St Peter. Several members of the Hardinge family are buried in the churchyard: *

Henry Hardinge, 1st Viscount Hardinge Henry Hardinge, 1st Viscount Hardinge, (30 March 1785 – 24 September 1856) was a British Army officer and politician. After serving in the Peninsular War and the Waterloo Campaign he became Secretary at War in Wellington's ministry. After ...

(1785–1856), British Army Field Marshal,

Governor-General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 1 ...

Charles Hardinge, 2nd Viscount Hardinge Charles Stewart Hardinge, 2nd Viscount Hardinge (2 September 1822 – 28 July 1894), was a British Conservative politician. Hardinge was the son of Field Marshal Henry Hardinge, 1st Viscount Hardinge, and Lady Emily Jane Stewart, daughter of ...

(1822–1894), British politician *

Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst, (20 June 1858 – 2 August 1944) was a British diplomat and statesman who served as Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 1910 to 1916. Background and education Hardinge was the second ...

(1858–1944), British diplomat and statesman,

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

* Alexander Hardinge, 2nd Baron Hardinge of Penshurst (1894–1960), British Army officer and courtier * Sir Arthur Edward Hardinge (1828–1892), British Army general,

Governor of Gibraltar The governor of Gibraltar is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government. The role of the governor is to act as the ...

* Sir

Arthur Henry Hardinge Sir Arthur Henry Hardinge, (12 October 1859 – 27 December 1933), was a senior British diplomat. Early life Hardinge was born in London, the son of General Hon. Sir Arthur Edward Hardinge, (1828–1892), KCB, Commander of the Bombay Army and ...

(1859–1933), British diplomat

The Chafford Arms pub is at the heart of the village.

External links

Villages in Kent Penshurst {{Kent-geo-stub