Church of St Peter

Details

BOUGHTON MONCHELSEA CHURCH HILL TQ 74 NE (East side)

2/13 Church of St.Peter

GV II*

Parish church. Possibly with late C11 or C12 core, C13, C14, C15. Repaired 1832 after fire. Nave, aisles, porches and south transept rebuilt 1874-5 by Habershon. Ragstone rubble to chancel and lower section of tower. Upper section of tower built with larger blocks of roughly-coursed ragstone. Roughly-coursed stone to north aisle. Snecked stone to nave, south aisle, south transept and porches. Plain tile roof to chancel and south transept, slate roof to rest. Nave, south aisle, south porch, crossing tower, south transept, chancel and north aisle which extends across north face of tower. West gable end: Hollow-chamfered plinth. Moulded string below nave window. West end of north and south aisles battlemented above moulded string, string and battlements returning. Diagonal buttresses to aisles, and pilaster buttresses to nave, rising to crocketed pinnacles. Coped gable to nave. C19 five- light window to nave, & to south aisle.Restored C15 two-light window with ogee-headed lights and squared head and hoodmould to north aisle. South porch: hollow-chamfered plinth. Diagonal buttresses. Moulded string below plain parapet, rising to gable over doorway. Re-set C15 pointed-arched south doorway in shafted square-headed cavetto-moulded architrave with trefoiled spandrels and squared hoodmould. C19 pointed-arched inner doorway. Sundial over outer doorway removed from south side of tower in 1874-5. South aisle: hollow-chamfered plinth, moulded string and battlements. 2 buttresses alternating with three C19 three-light traceried windows. South transept: projects south of south aisle. Diagonal buttresses. Hollow-chamfered plinth and string. Plain stone coped parapet rising to south gable. Tall C19 four- light mullioned and transomed south window. Blocked moulded pointed-arched doorway, and rectangular doorway with boarded door to ends of east elevation. Chancel: C13, possibly with earlier core. Plain-chamfered stone plinth. Two-light C14 or C15 south-west window with 2 cinquefoil-headed lights and squared moulded hoodmould. Trefoil- headed south-east lancet. Three-light C19 east window. Two trefoil-headed sandstone north lancets. Tower: probably late C11 or C12, altered and partly rebuilt in C14 and C15. Broad battlements above moulded string. Two-light belfry windows with squared heads; two each to east and west, one to north and south. Broad rectangular hollow-chamfered single light below south belfry windows. Polygonal south-west stair turret. North aisle: rebuilt 1874-5, re-using four C15 windows. Hollow-chamfered plinth. Battlements above moulded string. Diagonal north-east buttress and 2 north buttresses. 5-light pointed-arched east window with 3 cinquefoil-headed lights, tracery of vertical bars, and moulded hoodmould. Three similar north windows, alternating with buttresses. Small moulded 4-centred arched doorway with ribbed door, towards east end. North porch: C19 pointed-arched hollow-chamfered outer and inner doorways and pointed side-lights. Interior: Structure: 5-bay C19 nave arcade to north and south, with moulded pointed arches and octagonal columns with moulded capitals and bases. C14 doubly-hollow-chamfered pointed west tower arch set on C19 engaged columns with scalloped capitals. Similar east tower arch with roll-and-fillet hoodmould with carved heads to label stops, springing from engaged semi-octagonal columns with moulded capitals, and bases corbelled out from wall. Hollow-chamfered C14 pointed north tower arch springing from engaged columns with moulded capitals and bases, set in continuous doubly-hollow- chamfered outer order. Tall late C14 or early C15 two-light window with cinquefoil-headed lights to south side of base of tower. Small blocked east window and possibly blocked west window further up tower. North aisle windows with ashlared concave architraves and moulded pointed rere-arches springing from slender engaged shafts with moulded capitals and bases. Short narrow doorway with rounded head of one piece of stone to west end of south wall of tower. Blocked round-headed doorway with small even voussoirs beside it to east. Moulded pointed-arched doorway to east end of south aisle. Blocked rectangular rood-loft doorway to east wall of nave, south of tower arch. Base of stair turret, with hollow-chamfered plinth, visible from south transept. Roof: C19 hammerbeam roof with boarded rafters to nave. C19 chancel roof of collared common rafters with sous-laces, scissor-braces and ashlar- pieces. Flat roofs to aisles. Fixtures and fittings: small pointed-arched aumbry to south-east end of nave. Piscina with moulded ogee arch, to east end of south wall of chancel. Sedile adjacent to west of piscina, with 3 shallow stepped seats under broad pointed arch with engaged shafts with bell capitals and bases. Blocked hollow-chamfered 4-centred arched opening to north side of east wall of tower base. Monuments: cartouche on north wall of chancel, to Barnham Powell, d.1695; draped, with arms to top and bottom and cherub's head to base. Tablet on north wall of chancel to Richard Savage, d.1772; white marble, with moulded plinth over fluted base-plate, palm branches to side panels, and moulded cornice surmounted by 2 coats of arms and grey urn. Raised black marble inscription panel. Signed by R. Chambers. Small tablet to east end of north wall of north aisle; moulded plinth and cornice, lower frieze under plinth with 3 roses in relief, scrolled base-plate with moulded pendants and shield. Finely-carved finials above cornice, and coat of arms surmounted by small urn. Inscription obscured at time of re-survey. The whole covered with intricate damask patterning. Tablet adjacent to the last to Wotton (?); moulded and consoled plinth, base-plate with text, unfluted Corinthian pilasters carrying moulded frieze with text, surmounted by finials and coats of arms. Inscription, obscured at time of re-survey, on 2 recessed black marble panels in moulded surround. 2 busts set high in south wall of north aisle, towards east end; part of monument to Sir Francis Barnham, d. 1634, by Nicholas Stone. Standing monument at west end of nave, to Sir Christopher Powell, d. 1742; white marble figures, in Roman dress, of Sir Christopher, reclining on black sarcophagus, flanked by mother and wife. Inscription on grey and white marble plinth beneath them. By Peter Scheemakers. (J. Newman, West Kent and the Weald, 1980).

Listing NGR: TQ7692749528

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

174473

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Newman, J, The Buildings of England: West Kent and the Weald, (1980)

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.