St Mary The Virgin, St Mary in the Marsh
We wont pretend that our sole motivation for visiting this chocolate-box-church wasn't to pay our respects to Edith Nesbit, but there's a whole post dedicated to her so we don't really need to go too much into that. But as is our nature, we stayed for the church and learnt of its history to share with you too!
Alone bar for a pub and a handful of houses, the church stands proud within the marshes. Home to authors and other folk, this churchyard has the largest collection of wooden grave markers we have seen to date. Granted, all of it including the building has seen better days, but it adds to the charm of the quiet area.
The earliest assumed church on this site was a small Saxon wooden church known as Siwold's Circe. 1133 brought the Norman's and the wooden church was replaced with one of Kentish Ragstone, it was then renamed in order to cover any Pagan association with the church. The Norman replacement lives on in the tower and the west wall of the nave of the existing site and further improvements were brought via extensions in the 13th and 15th century until it was pretty much an amalgamation of eras that we see today.
Only the porch was open for our visit so we couldn't see inside which was a shame, but we did find the original grave marker handmade by Edith Nesbit's second husband behind the door. We think it was a stroke of genius that they preserved this and put it on display and would have done the couple proud. The one which marks her grave today is a clever replica which is slightly clearer to see but also wooden.
The church boasts a small churchyard, very uneven and with markers that have seen better days, but like we said earlier, it adds to the charm. In its own way it honours its dead by standing resolute and crumbling beside them. This is an eerie site not helped by the silent surroundings that swallow any noise. The deadly marshland which is deceiving and probably less deadly nowadays, creeps in and makes you feel unwelcome, but the church provides a beacon of light which we hope will remain.
The church itself provides guided tours and via there website there is also an audio tour which we are looking forward to listening to. But we really think this is a site that deserves preserving and has solidified our intention to become Friends of Kent Churches in the new year. That will be our resolution for 2026.
Haunted? Stupid question really. Isolated, eerie, and only the kind community keeping it from a ruinous state, this church and its dead hold secrets we can only hope to uncover. We just hope the souls that roam here are kindly as there are some sharp corners and a unpleasant dyke to come a cropper on when travelling around here in the dark! We did see a cat playing in the dry ditch however which made us smile. But even if you just want to pay your respects to the author of The Railway Children, we'd recommend coming to this church to see it in all its glory.
DISCLAIMER: Now for the official bit. This blog does not receive any paid promotions from the places mentioned above. We have not been approached to promote or act as spokespersons for any attraction mentioned within this post and this is simply a post intended to act as a day in the life of a couple on a cute date. All photos included are taken by ourselves and as such the rights for these images our ours, no links, brands, or companies mentioned otherwise belong or are associated with Phantom Adventures UK. We are responsible only for this blog. Opinions are our own and not influenced by any third party source..
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