SussexOLDHEATHFIELDNAllSaints(nickrowlandCC-BY-ND2.0)1 NickRowland

All Saints

Heathfield son, Revd Robert Hunt, vicar of All Saints church, sailed to America in 1606 and founded Jamestown.

Old Heathfield, Sussex

Opening times

Open 9am to 5pm.

Address

School Hill
Old Heathfield
Sussex
TN21 9AG

The church is 14th century with an earlier tower, much restored in the 19th century. The Star pub next door was built by the stonemasons as their shelter while building the church.

There is a 14th century piscina and 16th century squint (both in the south chancel). The pulpit is 18th century and the Royal Arms are of George III. There are several tomb slabs in the nave floor. The north aisle first window by L Lee, 1962, depicts Revd Robert Hunt conducting the first know Anglican Holy Communion service in the New World in May 1607. Beside the window is a list of names and occupations of all those who sailed with him in the Susan Constant and the names of all those who stayed (105) and founded Jamestown. Revd Robert Hunt was vicar of Old Heathfield 1602-1606 probably living at Manor Farm, whose earlier name was Parsonage Farm, with his wife and family. He was charged with immorality with Thomasina Plumer (a servant). He was acquitted of both charges but the Archbishop of Canterbury suggested he travel to Virginia as a chaplain. The voyage took 144 days. He remained alive through summer and winter of 1607 but died of illness in Spring 1609 having lost all his belongings in a fire just prior to his death. Diaries of the time record his death with sadness and describe him as a godly conscientious man.

The North aisle west window by Lowndes and Drury is in memory of Lt Col WCC Ash and the face of St. Michael might well be his face. The window was designed by EC Ash (either his wife or his daughter, they both had the same initials) in 1917. The window is in the colours of the suffragette movement. The church contains monuments to local families and in the large churchyard there are twenty WWI graves. A public footpath leads through the graveyard across a field to the source of the river Cuck.

  • Spectacular stained glass

  • Fascinating churchyard

  • Famous connections

  • Wifi

  • Walkers & cyclists welcome

  • Steps to enter the church or churchyard

  • Parking within 250m

  • Non-accessible toilets in church

  • Café within 500m

  • Four services a month plus Christmas and Easter. Bell ringing, concerts, plays, pensioners teas, children's activities and a programme of monthly talks.

  • Church of England

  • Gateway Grant, £5,000, 2020

  • Our Gateway Grants fund churches developing building projects and also urgent maintenance and repair projects to help keep churches open.

Contact information

Other nearby churches

St Mary the Virgin

Warbleton, Sussex

Nestled in a picturesque village in Sussex, Warbleton parish church is an ideal venue for those who like to explore off the beaten track.

St Mark the Evangelist

Hadlow Down, Sussex

St Mark’s Hadlow Down was consecrated in 1836, and rebuilt just before the First World War.

Chiddingly Parish Church

Chiddingly, Sussex

Chiddingly church is a lovely building dating from the late 11th or early 12th century.