West Stourmouth - All Saints Church

All Saints Church from the South East © P.E. Blanche 2000

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If ever a building could be accused of looking contented then I think this is it. The Church of All Saints which has, in the past, served the communities of East and West Stourmouth for hundreds of years was made redundant in 1979. It is now cared for by the Redundant Churches Fund and quite honestly, looks a lot better cared for than many churches that are still used on a regular basis. It lies off the beaten track at the end of a long country lane located in West Stourmouth and probably has very few visitors these days. The grass in the churchyard is well kept and it has a fine collection of gravestones. Large trees surround and overhang the building and in the afternoon when I first visited it, the building was bathed in filtered sunlight.

There are records of there being a settlement here in 1066 and for several hundred years after this the villages would still have seen large ships (for those days) making their way up the River Stour to Fordwich and Sturry. The Church has a blocked off Saxon window proving that there was a building here in those days. The interior has stone pillars that are similar to those which can also be seen in Canterbury Cathedral and date from around 1170. There are some large buttresses against the West end of the Church where the ground slopes away from the Church and also against the Chancel.

I have not had a chance to look inside the Church as yet but will do in the future when I will add additional pictures to this page.