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Church of St Thomas à Becket, Fairfield

15th-century church buildings in EnglandGrade I listed churches in KentRebuilt churches in the United KingdomUse British English from August 2025
St Thomas à Becket Church, Fairfield geograph.org.uk 5570170
St Thomas à Becket Church, Fairfield geograph.org.uk 5570170

The Church of St Thomas à Becket is a parish church near the village of Fairfield, Kent, England. Standing in open marshland and accessible only by footpath, it is noted for its remote setting and has been a frequent subject for photographers, writers, and artists. The church was built in the 15th century on the site of an earlier church. It was renovated in the 17th century in accordance with the Laudian plan promoted by Archbishop William Laud, which adapted medieval interiors for Protestant worship. In the 18th century, the exterior walls were rebuilt in brick. By the 19th century, fewer than 24 dwellings remained in Fairfield parish, and by 1934, the parish was dissolved. In the early 20th century, the church underwent a major renovation. Many of the timbers were replaced and the exterior was clad with new brickwork. It is a Grade I listed building.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Church of St Thomas à Becket, Fairfield (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Church of St Thomas à Becket, Fairfield
Snargate Road,

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 51.0416 ° E 0.80184 °
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Snargate Road

Snargate Road
TN26 2BT
England, United Kingdom
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St Thomas à Becket Church, Fairfield geograph.org.uk 5570170
St Thomas à Becket Church, Fairfield geograph.org.uk 5570170
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Nearby Places

Canterbury Oast Trust

Canterbury Oast Trust (COT) is a registered charity in England providing accommodation, care and training for people with learning disabilities in Kent and East Sussex.Its public site is the South of England Rare Breeds Centre at Woodchurch, near Ashford, Kent, which was set up to provide skills and training to people with learning disabilities. It is a working farm, and also operates as a tourist attraction. It chiefly comprises a farm, animal sanctuary, restaurant, plant nursery and art centre all providing occupational opportunities for people with learning difficulties. Other sites are: Woodland management and woodcrafts businesses at Poulton Wood near Aldington, Kent A college for people with learning difficulties, Harrington College.The South of England Rare Breeds Centre has displays of various farm animals, a children's petting barn, children's and toddlers play areas, discovery and wildlife gardens, walk through aviary and butterfly tunnel, woodland walks and the Granary Restaurant. Buildings from a Georgian farm (Yonsea Farm) are being re-located to the site as a preservation project. The Centre offers National Curriculum-based activities for visiting school groups. It is one of sixteen Rare Breeds Survival Trust approved farm parks, and features a variety of rare breeds. Sheep breeds include Manx Loaghtan, Jacobs, Lincoln Longwool, Wensleydales and Portlands; Pig breeds include Berkshires, British Lops, Gloucestershire Old Spots, Middle Whites and Tamworths; cattle include British Whites, Gloucesters and Beef Shorthorns; and there are also Bagot goats. Also located at the Centre is The Falcons Centre conference facility, which as well as providing for corporate meetings, is licensed for civil marriage ceremonies and caters for events such as banquets and dances. From 2008 the Centre will be the home of the annual Bilsington Craft Fair (28/29 June in 2008).Poulton Wood is a 10.2-hectare (25-acre) coppiced woodland and Local Nature Reserve renowned for its bluebells. It has free public access. It adjoins Homelands, a listed building dating from the 17th century in Aldington which is used by the Canterbury Oast Trust as a residential building. The wood includes Ash, Hornbeam and Oak trees. Poulton Wood Works is run by the Trust to manage the woodland, and also produces craft products, wooden furniture and offers a local tree felling service.

Snargate
Snargate

Snargate is a village near New Romney in Kent, England. Snargate was home to artist Harold Gilman, sometimes called the English Van Gogh. He was a British Impressionist and a member of the Camden Town Group. He grew up at Snargate Rectory, where his father was rector. Harold was born in 1876, and lived at the Rectory till his thirties, when he brought his bride Grace to live there, for the first two years of their marriage, 1902–04. His father continued to live there till his death in 1917. Harold Gilman only lived two years longer, dying in 1919 as one of the numerous victims of the so-called Spanish Influenza outbreak at the end of the First World War. The painting "Interior" of about 1908 (Private Collection) is supposed to have been painted inside the Rectory. Source: "The Painters of Camden Town", by F Farmar (Christie's 1988), page 59. Snargate has a well known pub, The Red Lion, which originates from the early 16th century and has been run by the current family since 1911 and, except for the odd lick of paint, has not been redecorated since 1890. This is a tiny pub with an antique marble bar top and bare wooden floor. The draught beers, principally from independent Kentish brewers, are served directly from the cask. The walls are decorated with World War II era memorabilia. The pub, run by Doris Jemison until her death in April 2016 and now by her daughter Kate, has won a number of awards including CAMRA's Ashford Folkestone and Romney Marsh Branch Pub of the Year, the Kent CAMRA Pub of the Year, and the South East Regional Pub of the Year. It is a Grade II listed public house, and is on the Campaign for Real Ale's National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.