It is very difficult to give an exact date for
the building of the church, but judging from the general
architecture of the chancel with its lancet windows, it
can be fixed approximately at the end of
the 12th century.
The church was built through the efforts and
generosity of the Abbess of Barking Abbey, and was
intended to provide for the spiritual needs of the
tenants of the abbey lands, and of the local
fishermen, woodmen, farm workers and other dwellers of
the district. The site was given by
the abbey and the building carried out by workers on the abbey
estate.
There is no evidence of an earlier church on
this site, but archaeologists think it is likely that there
may have been an earlier church, due to the proximity of
the abbey.
The original building was constructed with
Kentish ragstone, brought across the Thames. Timber
came from the king's forest at Hainault. The consecration
was probably between 1180 and 1220.
The North Chapel is mentioned as "new” in a will of 1475, and
the two bays separating the chancel
and north chapel have moulded form centred arches, typical of
late 15
centuryarchitecture (see Urswick Tomb).
During the Reformation, the church was plundered
and spoiled and the majority of the treasures
confiscated. With the generous aid of the Fanshawe
family, the building was restored and
strengthened. A stone buttress was added to the outside of the
east wall. This can still be seen.
By 1770 the church was in a dangerous condition
owing to the foundations of the tower having
crumbled, causing the tower to press on the west and
south portions of the nave. Temporary
repairs were carried out and plans made to rebuild the tower at
a cost of £1176 5s. The inevitable
happened on the second Sunday in Advent 1800! The congregation
were assembled in the churchyard,
waiting for the vicar, who happened to be late for the service
that morning. Whilst they were
waiting, the tower fell with a tremendous crash on to the nave.
The roof, porch, gallery, font and
pews were destroyed and the chancel arch damaged. No lives were
lost but the church was damaged beyond
repair. All but the chancel and north chapel had to be rebuilt.
The parishioners redoubled their efforts to
replace their house of prayer, and the foundation
stone was laid by Mr H Fanshawe on 13th April 1801.
Debris from the fallen tower was used for the
floor of the nave, which made it 15 inches higher
than the chancel.
By 1841 the population was growing, so a new
gallery was added.
In 1844 an organ was installed in the gallery
where the village orchestra had once performed.
(Sounds like a late date for an orchestra - Ed.)
In 1877 it was decided to lower the floor of the
nave by 15 inches (this is why the windows are so
high in the church today). The organ was removed to the
chancel, the "two‐decker" pulpit replaced,
and the entire church furnished with deal benches.
During excavations a human skeleton, in armour,
was found in the nave, together with the
jawbone and teeth of a horse. It is thought that they are
the remains of a warrior who decreed
that his steed be buried with him.
The restoration was completed in 1878.
The church was re‐roofed in 1913.
In 1938 improvements were made to the interior
of the church. Electricity replaced the gas
lamps, the organ pipes were placed in the gallery and
pumped by electricity, the console enlarged
and placed where it is today.
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