The lovely church in Bonnington is one of only six surviving churches carrying the dedication to St Rumwold. This site has been a place of Christian worship since AD 796. The architecture and materials used in the construction of the church suggest a Norman date, but the size of the building is an indicator of a Saxon origin which gives a little credence to its reputation for being the oldest church on the Romney Marsh.
There are the remains of an unusually high Jacobean gallery at the west end of the high pitched nave.
Here is a view of the nave looking east towards the chancel, which us largely unaltered other than a two light south window which was inserted at a cost of 28s 8d under the will of William Kynett in 1452. The three early Norman windows in the east wall are arranged in unusual positions, as is the double piscina from no later than the 13th century.
The Georgian pulpit.
The font is 12th century with a Jacobean wooden cover.
The organ.
This saintly figure adorns a niche to the north of the chancel arch. Clearly not the patron saint who died in infancy?
The three lancets are filled with Victorian stained glass.
Fragments of old glass in a nave window.
Here is a view of the church from the north east. The timber framed north porch dates from the 14th century.
A final view of this lovely building from the west. The cupola was added in the 17th century.
Digital photographs
Visitors to this album since June 2003
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