We had our morning breakfast at The Society Rooms in Maidstone. It was our second time there, and the friendly staff was glad to see us again! The pub gets its name from the efforts of William Shipley, founder of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce in 1753, which awarded prizes for discoveries and inventions. He also founded the Maidstone Society for Promoting Useful Knowledge. Shipley died in 1803, and he is buried in the church yard of All Saints Church in Maidstone.
A bright, sunny morning at breakfast!
We left Maidstone and headed out on the trail toward today's destination of Lenham. We couldn’t have had more perfect weather – partly sunny and in the 60’s. We passed a pub, “Chiltern Hundreds”, which is the first reference that we have seen to the traditional division of an English county. In Saxon times, land was divided according to the amount that would be adequate to feed 100 families. The Chiltern Hundreds was actually composed of three combined “hundreds”: Stoke, Desborough, and Burnham.
The Chiltern Hundreds Pub
Our first stop along today's route was the church of St. Martin of Tours in Detling. When we arrived at the church, it was locked, but a woman who just happened to come to the church to arrange flowers let us in. The Holy Spirit works in mysterious ways! St. Martin's was constructed in the 12th century, with 13th and 15th century additions. Near the altar was an ornately carved four-sided oak lectern that dates from around 1340. It unfortunately is missing its top finial, which perhaps featured a carving of a saint.
From left: (1) St. Martin of Tours Church, Detling. (2) Inside St. Martin's Church. (3) Medieval lectern.
Continuing on for about another mile, we stopped at St. Mary the Virgin Church in Thurnham, which again, was unfortunately closed. Nevertheless, its stone exterior was so beautiful against the piercing blue sky.
St. Mary the Virgin Church, Thurnham.
We then had an incredible three-mile hike through gentle rolling pastures. We all
decided it was the best hike of our pilgrimage – tranquil, beautiful, and serene. We came across an intriguing Oast House, a building used for drying hops as an initial stage in the beer brewing process.
You can recognize an Oast House by its particular Kentish vernacular architecture: at the top of the house sits a cone-shaped weathervane/hot air vent structure which allows the hot air produced by the kiln in the lower level of the house to escape upward into the atmosphere.
Today, hops are usually dried industrially rather than in a kiln, so many Oast Houses have been converted to desirable dwellings.
An Oast House.
Our stop for lunch was at The Dirty Habit in Hollingbourne, a welcoming pub with delicious and beautifully plated food. The Dirty Habit is an 11th century monk’s ale and cider house used by pilgrims on their way to Canterbury. We all decided that it was the best food that we've eaten on the pilgrimage so far. Lisa had scallops, Leslieann and Frans had fish and chips, and Harry had a burger. The highlight was sharing a bottle of Chapel Down, a delightful English sparkling wine.
(1) Left: In front of the pub, wearing our own "dirty habits"! (2) Right: Inside this quintessential English country pub.
Scallops and fish and chips.
On an exposed beam in the pub, we found this appropriate inscription:
I'd say we're a happy band of pilgrims! The hymn O Happy Band of Pilgrims is an 1862 translation by John Mason Neale (the same Anglican priest who wrote Good King Wenceslaus -- See Going to Guildford, September 8 blog).
The original hymn was written in 850 by the Sicilian monk St. Joseph the Hymnographer. The tune is “St. Hilda” and was composed in 1793 by Justin Heinrich Knecht, a German composer and organist (1752-1817). Play the video at right to listen to the hymn.
While in Hollingbourne, we took a short walk to All Saints Church. We were pleasantly surprised to see a group of fourth and fifth grade students patiently waiting to sign the condolence book for Queen Elizabeth inside the church.
Outside All Saints Church in Hollingbourne.
School children in the church.
We had another Holy Spirit moment when Jill, a member of the church council, appeared and gave us an impromptu tour of the church.
Top row: (1) Left: Interior of church with massive baptismal font, early 14th century, and Tudor-era cover. (2) Right: Prayer plaque. Bottom row: (1) Left: Three-dimensional plaque on the wall. (2) Right: Side chapel with beautiful artwork.
Jill pointed out the Culpeper Chapel containing the sarcophagus of Lady Elizabeth Culpeper (d. 1638), the daughter of John Cheney of Guestling, Sussex. On the side of her tomb are the words ‘'Optima Fæmina, Optima Coniux, Optima Mater” (Best woman, best wife, best mother). At her feet lies the Cheney Family heraldic beast, the theow, an unusual toothy animal with cloven hoofs and a cow’s tail.
From left: (1) Lady Culpeper’s tomb, by 17th century sculptor Edward Marshall. (2) The theow. (3) We gave Jill a chaplet for kindly showing us around the church. Thank you, Jill!
Our final church stop was St. John the Baptist Church in Harrietsham. Construction of the church began in the late 11th century and continued in phases until the 15th century.
From left: (1) St. John the Baptist Church, Harrietsham. (2) Interior of St. John's. (3) Every church shows respect for the loss of their Queen.
One of our greatest sources of enjoyment today was the beautiful scenery and wide variety of plant life along the trail. Here are some highlights from our walk:
From left: (1) A surprising microclimate in Maidstone supporting palms and yucca plants. (2) Chestnut tree. (3) Large bay leaf tree.
(1) Left: Apple tees, a Kent specialty. (2) Right: Olive tree.
Footpath through a vineyard. You just can't beat this!
Luscious grapes.
Our varied paths (slideshow):
We finished our day’s walk by arriving at the Dog and Bear Hotel in Lenham, a historic lodging built in 1602, overlooking the village square. After walking 13.2 miles today, we were hungry and had a delicious dinner at The Chequers Fish Bar in the center square in Lenham. We all agreed that the natural scenery was the highlight of our day. We're growing more and more excited the closer we get to Canterbury!
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