Church of St Stephen, Lympne, Kent

Entry Name: Church of St Stephen

Listing Date: 29 December 1966

Grade: I

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1101780

English Heritage Legacy ID: 175587

ID on this website: 101101780

Location: St Stephen's Church, West Hythe, Folkestone and Hythe, Kent, CT21

County: Kent

District: Folkestone and Hythe

Civil Parish: Lympne

Traditional County: Kent

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Kent

Tagged with: Church building

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Lympne

Description

TR 13 SW LYMPNE CASTLE CLOSE

6/11 Church of
St. Stephen
29.2.66
GV I

Parish church. Late C11, C12, C13 and C14, restored circa 1859. Further
restoration 1878-80 by St. Aubyn. Small blocks uncoursed ragstone, with
Caen-stone, tufa and ragstone dressings. Plain tile roofs. Late Cll
tower, formerly with nave to east. Nave added to west in early-to-mid
C12, and rebuilt or altered in C13. Former nave rebuilt, as chancel, in
C13. North aisle to nave C13, possibly rebuilt in C14. North chapel to
tower, now continuous with aisle, C13. C14 north porch. Nave: west
gable end rebuilt circa 1859 with smell chimney stack, lancet, and pointed-
arched west doorway. South elevation: two buttresses and three C19
lancets. Tower: 4 stages, with clasping buttresses. Stumps of C11 nave
walls to east. Plain stone-coped and slightly cambered parapet. Two
broad C19 lancets to each face of belfry. Blank arcading to base of
south side of second stage. One blocked round-headed window to base of
east side of third stage. Two conjoined restored lancets to south side
of bottom stage. Chancel: two south buttresses and vestigial north
buttress. Three restored lancets to each face, those to east with bulls-
eye window above. Rainwater head dated 1872. North chapel and north aisle:
gabled. Two tall, narrow east lancets. Five north lancets of uneven size.
One C19 west lancet. North porch: Stone, with vestigial plinth. Small
rectangular hollow-chamfered window to each side. C19 moulded bargeboards.
Partly renewed pointed-arched hollow-chamfered north doorway. Narrow
pointed-arched inner doorway with slightly rounded jambs. Boarded inner
door studded AGCW Interior: Structure: two-bay C13 arcade to nave of
1708
lightly-chamfered pointed arches springing from chamfered imposts.
Rectangular plain-chamfered piers with bar stops. Tower arches to west
and east with enriched early-to-mid C12 imposts. East arch round-headed.
West arch chamfered and pointed, rebuilt above imposts in C13. North tower
arch similar to north arcade of nave. Blank arcading above west tower arch
at base of second stage, visible from nave, and one blocked round-headed
window above north tower arch. Broad,chamfered pointed-arched recess to
each side of east tower arch, on west side of wall. Roof: continuous
crown-post roof to north aisle and chapel with moulded octagonal crown-
posts, hollow-chamfered tie-beams and pendant posts, and short solid-
spandrel braces. Ashlar-pieces. C19 roof to nave and chancel. Fittings:
plain-chamfered pointed-arched stoup with bar stop towards east end of
south wall of chancel. Rectangular late C12 or early C13 font with shallow
panelled bowl bearing defaced figures;, set on C20 shafts. Continuous
stone benches to north and south walls of chancel. Monuments: low C17
stone chest tomb against south wall of chancel, with chamfered base and lid,
chest carved with arcaded panels in low relief; defaced back panel with
triangular head. Cusped C14 tomb recess in north wall of north aisle.
(J. Newman, B.O.E. Series, West Kent and the Weald, 1980. G.M. Livett,
Lympne Church, Archaeologia Cantiana Vol. XLIII, 1931).

Listing NGR: TR1192934655

External Links

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