Chiddingstone

The medieval Church of St. Mary.

St. Mary the Virgin, Chiddingstone is a large parish church which enhances the look of the village, and is perhaps the fourth built on that site.[7] In the churchyard is a stone gazebo dating from 1736 built by Henry Streatfeild; leading down into the Streatfeild family vault beneath which has a through flow of air provided by vents in two false altar tombs, one adjacent to the gazebo and the other some 30 feet north.

The church was almost destroyed by a lightning fire in 1624.[8] In recent years it has had new heating, lighting and sound systems installed. In addition to this, a chapel, at the base of the tower, has been constructed in 1979 with adjoining lavatory added in 2007.

The natural sandstone Chiding Stone

A popular theory is that the village takes its name from a large sandstone rock formation, situated on its outskirts, named the Chiding Stone.[9] Chidingstone was a previous spelling used for the village.[10] The National Trust consider it more likely the name is derived from the homestead of Cidda's family, "Chidding tun". It was recorded as "Cidingstane" in the 12th century. The stone may have been used as a place to remonstrate overbearing local wives, a Druidical ritual site, or an Anglo-Saxon boundary marker.[6]

The village was used as a setting in the 1985 Merchant Ivory film A Room with a View, in the scene where Lucy and Cecil take a walk after their engagement party.[11] The High Street is seen from the end nearest to the Castle Inn.

Michael Winner used Chiddingstone in his production of The Wicked Lady. Terry Jones and the Monty Python team filmed here for Wind in the Willows - Mr Toad's Wild Ride.[11] Elizabeth R, starring Glenda Jackson was largely made here,[11] as was Gerald Scarfe's Life of Hogarth.