Bishopsbourne
| Bishopsbourne | |
 Bishopsbourne church |
|
  Bishopsbourne Bishopsbourne shown within Kent | |
| OS grid reference | TR189526 |
|---|---|
| District | Canterbury |
| Shire county | Kent |
| Region | South East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CANTERBURY |
| Postcode district | CT4 |
| Dialling code | 01227 |
| Police | Kent |
| Fire | Kent |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | Canterbury |
Bishopsbourne is a small village in Kent, England. It lies in the Nailbourne valley some 4 miles (6 km) from Canterbury and about 15 miles (24 km) from Dover. It has a public house, The Mermaid, built in 1861, and a church, St Mary's, with 14th-century wall paintings. Author Joseph Conrad lived here and his house, "Oswalds", still stands. The author Jocelyn Brooke lived in a house called "Forge House", just opposite the village hall, which is called "Conrad Hall" in Conrad's honour. Bishopsbourne was on the Elham Valley Railway until traffic stopped in 1947, the original railway station is now a private residence.
In 1844 an excavation at nearby Bourne Park revealed Iron Age remains. Mozart visited Bourne Park House in 1765.
Richard Hooker was the Rector from 1595 to 1600. Hooker played a significant part in the development of Anglicanism, championing a 'middle way' between Puritanism and Catholicism. His 8-volume work 'The Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity' was partly written in the Rectory at Bishopsbourne. After his death, he was buried in the Chancel of the church, and a memorial to him was provided by William Cowper.
Photographic pioneer Joseph Bancroft Reade was rector from 1863 until his death in 1870, and is buried at St Mary's.
Bishopsbourne’s Bourne Paddock was a pioneering venue for “Great” cricket. The third earliest match of all time that is now recognised by Cricinfo statisticians as First-Class was played there between England and Hampshire on 19th and 20th August 1772. [citation needed]
The first time ever that centuries were scored by two batsmen in the same innings in First-Class Cricket was by Tom Walker and Thomas Taylor for White Conduit Club against Kent on Bourne Paddock. The match was played from 8th to 12th August 1786, and is one of the earliest five-day matches on record. [citation needed] The last First-Class match on the Paddock was played in 1790.
On 30 August 1940, a Spitfire piloted by Sgt J I Johnson was shot down and crashed near Bishopsbourne. The pilot was killed.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bishopsbourne. |
- The Mermaid
- St Mary's - wall paintings
- Bishopsbourne Church
- Elham Valley Railway
- Bucket Catalogue for Bishopsbourne, Bourne Park
- Site with details about Bishopsbourne and images of the village
