St. Michael and All Angels Church in the hamlet of Bedham, near Petworth in West Sussex. It acts as a strong arbitration for the region’s wealthy cultural antecedents. Built in 1880, this unique structure served dual purposes as both a school and a church, catering to the local community for decades before its eventual abandonment.
It was a simple one-room building, that served as a school for the first 45 years of its life span. It became a church only once a month on a Sunday. This powerful dual space changed the game for education throughout the week. On weekends, Noble’s donation-centered ministry transformed it into a retreat for worshippers, desks shoved to one side and a temporary altar established on the other.
The church closed in 1959 and has since devolved into a roofless ruin. Weathered as they are, the remnants of St. Michael and All Angels Church still portray elegant pointed arched windows and doorways. These factors contribute to reviving its once lively history. A two-storey east wall, which originally supported a bell arch, still rises, battling the elements of time. Further, traces of a fireplace remain inside the building, making it one of the oldest known structures with an identifiable fireplace on the continent.
Hidden away in a relatively busy pocket of rural West Sussex, getting to the site isn’t straightforward. Local historian Miles Costello explains that the distance of the place added to its appeal beyond its beauty.
“The isolation was the attraction of the place,” – Mr Costello
As Costello explains, winter months are especially challenging because they’re often accompanied by heavy snow that makes the roads surrounding the town impassable. This dramatically increases the church’s isolation.
“With snow in winter this road really does become impassable,” – Mr Costello
Even in its wrecked form, most people are still enthusiastic about the feeling of St Michael and All Angels Church. Through a sense of geography, personal history and poetic reflection, Costello recalls the long-lasting feeling of calm that still surrounds that site.
“There is still a certain spirituality about the place,” – Mr Costello
The ruin has become a major tourist attraction and the most important historical site in all of West Sussex captivating historians and visitors in equal measure. The remnants of this once-bustling community hub evoke curiosity about its past, encouraging reflection on the role it played in the lives of those who once frequented it.
