Faversham Stone Chapel- Our Lady Elvington

 

Casually resting in ruin in the middle of a field is Faversham Stone Chapel. Otherwise known as Our Lady of Elwarton/Elvington, the chapel sits on a Romano-British mausoleum which is what makes it special as it is supposedly the only chapel in England to incorporate the remains of an ancient shrine or mausoleum into its chapel. The site location itself is thought to have been the Roman settlement of Durolevum which predates the more modern Faversham.

Back in Roman times Durolevum was a well populated area, which differs from the rural landscape we see now. There's evidence of a fort on Judd Hill so there was likely an army camp here, plus many artefacts dating from the Roman period confirms a settlement here. If that wasn't enough, there is a recorded Roman cemetery housing remains of 387 individuals not too far from the church, and in 2012 archaeologists discovered a huge Roman theatre in Faversham, so long story short there is no doubt in anyone's mind that this area had a lot of Roman activity. 

We mention this in order to set the scene for the mausoleum. The original structure would have been windowless with a vaulted roof, monolithic door, and roughly square in shape. When the mausoleum fell into disrepair it looks like a timber built Saxon church took over the site. This was then overtaken by a flint church that was built on the remains of the Roman mausoleum in the medieval era. The new church made use of the existing Roman walls and used what was left of the building as the chancel of the church. By 1511 the church was reported to be in disrepair and abandoned altogether by the 1600s. From then until now it has been left to fall into a complete ruin. You can still see remnants of the Roman doors as well as a little of the remaining walls from various eras. The site is easy enough to get to if you don't mind crossing a ploughed field, but it is certainly interesting.

We reckon it is haunted, and of course having nearly 400 sets of remains nearby probably contributes to that, but we didn't know it at the time. When you get to the site everything is quiet which is weird considering there is a main road at the end of the field and traffic is constant. But there is no sounds of birds, no sound of traffic, just a gripping silence that made the hairs stand up on our arms. It was strange, and Yogi did not want to be here. None the less we spend 20 mins tops exploring the small ruins and it was worth it even if we did feel a bit odd.

Haunted: 6/10

Worth the visit: 7/10

Giftshop: n/a

Ghost count: 0

Dog friendly: Yes

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