November brought a mix of short weather windows, local walks, and a few longer trips around the High Weald and South Downs. Most of the month was dominated by grey skies and fast-moving fronts, so every break in the weather turned into an opportunity to get out with the camera. From minimalist coastal scenes at Broomhill Sands, to long-exposure evenings on the Romney Marsh, to a series of drive-by shoots across the High Weald, the month produced a varied set of images and a lot of useful scouting for future locations. The final days brought clearer conditions on the cliffs at Birling Gap, rounding off the month with a couple of clean views across the Seven Sisters.
Romney Marsh once held dozens of small medieval parishes scattered across the wetland. Many disappeared as the land flooded, drained or shifted, leaving only fragments of stone, earthworks or a solitary church in the fields.
Before diving into each site, here is the full map of all locations:
Here is the long-form video that explores all four churches together:
This post breaks down each location separately, with individual map links and photos.
All Saints Church, Hope
One of the earliest medieval parishes on the Marsh, Hope was built in the 12th century and abandoned by the 1500s as the coastline shifted and the land became grazing marsh. Only fragments of walling survive beside the B2075, now surrounded by a modern sculpture park that occupies the old churchyard.
Midley was founded in the 14th century on what was then an island of higher ground in the Marsh. Flooding and silting forced the parish to be abandoned by the 1500s, and the church was gradually robbed for stone. Today only the lone west arch stands in the field — one of the most striking remains on Romney Marsh.
the ruins of midley church on romney marsh kent south east England UK
Eastbridge was a later medieval parish that stood between Ivychurch and Newchurch. It declined rapidly in the 16th century as water management changed and the local population moved away. The remains sit behind a cottage off Chapel Lane, half-hidden in scrub with a short footpath cut through the bushes to reach the site.
The ruins of Eastbridge church on the Romney Marsh Kent south east England UK
Map: Eastbridge Church Ruins (Chapel Lane) View on Google Maps
St Thomas à Becket, Fairfield
Fairfield is the complete contrast — a 13th-century church that survived while the other parishes vanished. Rebuilt in brick in the 1790s to replace the failing timber structure, it still stands alone in the fields and remains consecrated today. The drainage channels and wide open skies make it one of the most photogenic churches in Kent.
Rolling evening clouds over St Thomas A Becket Church on Romney Marsh Kent south east England UK
Hope, Midley and Eastbridge all tell the same story: marshland, shifting water and the long decline of settlement across Romney Marsh. Fairfield tells the opposite — a parish that endured.
Together they form one of the most atmospheric and historically rich landscapes in the South East.
Related Posts
Broomhill Sands – East Sussex Coast Long beach and shingle on the Romney Marsh edge.
Brookland Church – Timber Tower of Romney Marsh One of the Marsh’s most distinctive standing churches.
St George’s Ivychurch – The Cathedral of the Marsh A vast medieval church dominating the landscape.
Denge Sound Mirrors – Early Acoustic Defence Historic concrete listening structures on the edge of the Marsh.
April 2022 was a mostly dry month, very little rain. Come April and spring is well under way. Had a good few scouts through woodland on the high and low weald in East Sussex looking for that bluebell shot. Some new viewpoints discovered over the south downs near Lewes, Rapeseed sunsets, Kent beaches, a trip to France and a few disasters. What follows is the best landscape and travel photography during April 2022.
Into November living and working in East Sussex and I was back into the swing of things. It was good to be earning money again and able to get out at the weekends to new locations around east Sussex and into Kent. Still, inside I yearned for my freedom once again to roam as I please. Continue reading November Landscape Photography East Sussex Kent→
