St Mary the Virgin Church, Thurnham

St Mary the Virgin is a small parish church in the village of Thurnham, Kent. Work began in the 12th century and continued with changes up to the early 17th century. It is built mainly of flint with a plain tiled roof and has a west tower, nave, chancel and a chapel at the east end of the north side. The church shows different periods of building. The west tower has two stages with a battlemented parapet and buttresses. The nave and chancel date from the 12th or 13th century, while the east end is 14th century. The chapel was added around 1603 and has a hipped roof behind a battlemented parapet. Inside, the nave is separated from the chapel by a 15th-century arch. Inside, the nave roof has crown posts and the chancel roof has collar purlins. The reredos is heavily carved and was made in Oberammergau. The octagonal font may be from the 14th century. The chapel is dedicated to Sir Henry Cutt and contains memorials to several people, including Lady Barbara Cutt who died in 1618. The churchyard has a number of Grade II listed monuments.