St Mary’s Church on Chidham peninsula is in the Chichester Harbour Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and visitors are always welcome.
St Mary’s Church is a place of peace, simplicity, beauty and history. A Grade II* listed building it was built in 1210 during the reign of King John (1199 – 1215), with the Lady Chapel on the North side built slightly later. In 1261 the newly appointed Bishop of Exeter gained important Manor status for Chidham when it became a separate Parish from Bosham Manor, gaining its very first priest, Andrew Prous.
Did you know?
St Mary’s church has several features that can date it, despite there being no written records. Building a church was an expensive process and only those with money could afford it, so they naturally wanted to show off new trends in church design. St Mary’s has many fashionable arched lancet windows, the latest vogue in the 13th century and amazingly well appointed given there were just 120 people living there at the time!
Chidham Church suffered badly at the beginning of the sixteenth century, following Henry VIII’s break with the Catholic Church in Rome. Henry criticised the usefulness of the monasteries and the Church in England and he stopped all pilgrims from visiting St. Cuthman’s shrine, a popular site at St Mary’s Church. This resulted in a big loss of revenue for the village from the reduction in offerings made to the image of St. Cuthman.
The nearby Priory of Pynham, in what is now Hambrook, was also suppressed by Cardinal Wolsey, who seized the property and Priors Lease. When Wolsey fell from power it was then confiscated by Henry VIII. The Manor changed hands several times, passing to William Barnard and so became known as Barnard’s Manor. It now only survives as a farm and the name has reverted to Priors Leaze, with a spelling change.
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There are many roads around the Parish that hint at its long history including Priors Leaze Lane (a manor farm) and Drift Lane (a droving track for animals from Chidham and the South Downs heading to Chichester livestock market.
In the 20th Century a mission room, later the church of St Wilfrid, was built at Hambrook between the Main Road (A259) and Nutbourne rail station. St Wilfrid’s is served by the free resident travel Bourne Bus for trips to Chichester, Emsworth and Havant every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
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There is evidence Saxon Saint Cuthman was born in Chidham in 681. That date would place him in the right time and area to be preached to by Saint Wilfrid, the Apostle of Sussex (680–685), and would probably make Wilfrid the man who converted and baptised Cuthman. The Apostle’s name also lives on in the Parish at the St Wilfrid’s Church Hall in Nutbourne.
The church features a stained glass window by artist Mel Howse installed in 2010 and dedicated to the local saints St Cuthman and St Wilfrid. The church features many festivals throughout the year. Come and visit!
Based at the Vicarage, Cot Lane, Chidham, the Reverend Andrew Birks is Priest in Charge for the Parishes of Chidham, Funtington West Stoke and Sennicotts.
- For more information on St Mary’s church and its history – click here
- For free travel to Chichester and Emsworth on the Bourne Bus – click here