St Peter and St Paul Church, Lingfield

It's been another glorious day and top of the To Do list was a walk around our nearest village, Lingfield.

There has been a church here for nearly 1,0oo years, the original one served the needs of the community for 200 years and was rebuilt in the mid 14th century by the Cobhams, an important Kentish family, as their family's final resting place. The present tower and chancel date from this time.

From the records: The First Lord Cobham (1295 - 1361) served Edward III, both as a soldier and diplomat. He fought at Crécy (1346) and was one of the first Knights of the Garter.

In the next century his grandson, Sir Reginald de Cobham (1382 - 1446) rebuilt the nave and added the north aisle so as to provide the family with an even grander place for family burials. The church remained in the gift of the Cobhams until the dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1540s when Henry VIII gave it to Sir Thomas Carwarden, one of his Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber. Sir Thomas is buried in nearby Bletchingley church (another blip, another day)