Discover Brookland: Bell Tower, Church Art and Paths through the Countryside

Brookland combines impressive church art with a distinctive landscape of narrow paths, embankments and regularly laid-out agricultural fields. Anyone looking for a holiday apartment or holiday house will find a place where cultural and historical discoveries can be combined with walks through the surrounding area. St Augustine’s Church, with its freestanding wooden bell tower, is particularly characteristic of the village.

St Augustine’s Church and the Brookland Bell Tower

The wooden bell tower of St Augustine’s Church was built as an open structure in the second half of the 13th century. In the 15th century, it was raised to 18 metres and clad with shingles. The oldest bell in the Brookland Bell Tower is more than 400 years old. In connection with Kipling’s time, the expression “Brookland Bells” in “Brookland Road” referred to the five bells of St Augustine’s Church.

The church itself also contains several historical details. The Church of St Augustine in Brookland is a Grade I listed building. Inside is a cylindrical lead font dating from around 1200, decorated with zodiac signs and depictions of the labours of the months. A wall painting in Brookland Church depicts the martyrdom of St Thomas à Becket and has been dated to the early 14th century. St Augustine’s Church also offers a self-guided tour. This allows you to explore the church at your own pace and focus specifically on its architectural and artistic features.

Paths through Fields, Hedgerows and Embankments

Long, narrow and regularly laid-out fields shape the agricultural landscape around Brookland. A corresponding road system complements this clear structure. Mixed hawthorn and willow hedges line narrow paths that run along the crests of the embankments. This landscape is well suited to planning a trip in which not every day has to follow the same pattern: an in-depth visit to the church can be followed by a peaceful walk through the fields and hedgerows.

The “Rambling across Romney Marsh” walk leads to three footpaths near the inn in Brookland. The middle path runs towards Woolpack Bridge. When choosing accommodation, you can therefore consider whether cultural discoveries around St Augustine’s Church or walks and experiences in the landscape should be the main focus of your stay. Choosing a holiday apartment or holiday house thus becomes part of well-considered travel planning, without limiting the holiday to a single experience.

Historic Places and Local Cuisine

The Woolpack Inn is a former 16th-century lighthouse keeper’s house and is now an inn. At The Royal Oak in Brookland, local, fresh and foraged ingredients are used on the menu. Alongside the bell tower, church interior and landscape, historic buildings and regional cuisine therefore provide further tangible points of interest for a stay.

Brookland was also the first station on the branch line of the Lydd Railway Company to New Romney; train services began there on 7 December 1881. This historical trace adds another perspective on the development of the village. If you would like to compare destinations before booking, you can also discover Sandhurst, Wrotham, Sandwich, Tonbridge, Whitfield, Aldington, Broad Street and Ringwould. Brookland’s main appeal lies in the combination of its listed church, remarkable bell tower, rural paths and regional character.

For the wider travel overview: Kent.