Discover Eastry: History and walking routes

Eastry brings together a listed parish church, archaeological traces and walking routes through and around the village. Eastry also sits at the end of a chalk ridge. For trip planning, the focus is therefore on local history and specific walking routes in the area. Its historical connections range from the Roman road link to a cautiously interpreted Anglo-Saxon past.

Church and early local history

The Church of St Mary the Virgin is a Grade I listed parish church. Its origins date back to the 12th century, while most of its fabric dates from the 13th century. The information about its origins and fabric highlights different periods of construction: work began in the 12th century, while most of the structure belongs to the following century. The church therefore cannot be reduced to a single phase of construction.

The early history of the area also encompasses several different connections. The settlement of Eastry lay right beside the main Roman road from Richborough to Dover. Four early Anglo-Saxon cemetery sites have been discovered around the present-day village. In addition, place-name evidence suggests that an Anglo-Saxon royal centre once existed in the Eastry area: a villa regalis in the eastern part of the Kingdom of Kent. This remains an interpretation based on place-name evidence.

Monastic residence and lime-burning industry

Eastry Court was an important monastic residence used by monks and the prior’s guests. The residence thus adds a different medieval context to the parish church: here, the focus is on the use of a home in a monastic setting. Eastry Chalk Mine relates to a later industrial context. It was excavated on several levels beneath the house “Beckets”, while the lime-burning business run by the Foord family operated from 1811 to 1914. Eastry therefore brings together different historical themes: monastic use and a local industry.

Walking routes and play area

Eastry Picnic Site is close to public footpaths that run through and around Eastry. The White Cliffs Country Trail includes a loop from Sandwich through Eastry to Northbourne and is a short distance from the picnic site. These details offer different points of reference: for the picnic site, the relevant routes are those through and around the village; for the trail, it is the named loop and its three named places. You can use this to decide which route appeals to you most when planning your visit.

A report from March 2023 describes new play equipment in the play area at Gun Park for children of different ages and abilities. The improvements included paths connecting the equipment and making access easier for wheelchairs and pushchairs. The facilities may have changed since then. If the play area is important for your visit, check its current status in advance.

For the wider travel overview: Kent.