The Church of St. Peter & St. Paul. Peasmarsh.

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There has been a church on this site for nearly 1,000 years and it is possible that there was once a Saxon church here. What is certain is that there was a Norman church, for a charter exists in which Count Henry of Eu records that his grandfather, Count Robert, gave him the church of Peasmarsh soon after the Norman conquest.

The Norman Church.

Of the original building, dating from about 1070, there remain the West Wall of the Nave (with the high window, now blocked), the East Wall of the Nave and the Chancel Arch, and about half the Chancel. The Chancel Arch, in iron-sandstone, is probably the most interesting feature of the Church. It has remained almost untouched since Norman times. Notice the unusual carved, Leopard like creature on either side, The figures are different but are similar in form and size.

The  Trans-Norman Period.

About 1170 the Tower was added and the North and South Aisles formed by cutting through the original walls and making the present arches in Trans-Norman style. The jamb-shafts with rounded capitals and bases, which ornament the corners of these arcades, are typical of the period. In 1240 the Chancel was lengthened to nearly twice its previous size and in the 14th Century the South Aisle was further enlarged (notice the head on the south wall - of the Patron ?) and the South Porch added. The six windows in the Chancel on the North and South Walls are lancet and Early English in style, as is the small Priest's doorway in the South Wall.

The Chancel

In the South Wall are the Piscina (stone basin) which dates from c. 1240, the Sedilia (stone seats) and the small 'low-side' window. At one time this was not glazed and outside there are sockets for three iron bars and the remains of a hook for a shutter. Beyond the Piscina, in the Sanctuary, is an Aumbry (a little cupboard), where the Reserved Sacrament is kept for the sick. The altar rail, pulpit and East window are in memory of Charles Liddell of Peasmarsh Place.

The Triptych

The table of the Ten Commandments, The Creed and the Lord's Prayer over the Chancel Arch appear to be original and date from the reign of Elizabeth !

The Bells

Four bells, tenor 9 cwt were cast by Joseph Hatch of Ulcombe in 1631. The treble was recast by John Taylor in 1883, and the tenor rehung in 1961. Two trebles cast by Eisjbouts were added to make a ring of six in 1989, when the bells were rehung in an Eayre and Smith steel frame, the work being undertaken by the people of the village. There is a 1 cwt Sanctus bell.

The Organ.

Built by Bishop and Starr in the 1860's, the gift of a parish in Southborough, the organ is being rebuilt by Clifford Foster of Rye, with the help of the villagers. The front of the case is a memorial to Viscount Devonport of The Place, and the sides of the organ case were formerly a Sussex oak reeds, behind the High Altar, given in memory of Arthur Rickards of Woodside.

The Exterior

To the East of the Porch on the South Wall are the remains of small lancet windows of the Trans-Norman period. An iron-sandstone carving, similar to those on the Chancel Arch, (a Unicorn ?) can be seen over the Priest's Doorway. Another creature, with antlers, (a Stag ?) is at the base of the south East Chancel buttress, below the netting in the drain-well. And, high on the diagonal buttress at the North East corner of the Chancel, is a carved white-stone figure of a flying bird. In the middle of the North Wall is a blocked up Early English doorway.