May 2009 by David J.
Nestling in an idyllic position under the South Downs and Ditchling Beacon, Westmeston is today a tiny village on the minor road from Hassocks to Lewes. Its church sits above the sharp bend in the road at the centre of the village, amidst a lovely churchyard which is maintained partly as a wildlife reserve, and with fine views of the Downs. The Nave is Norman, and the north doorway through which you enter is original. The chancel was added in the 13th century, and the south aisle and arcade date from the 14th century as does the bell turret and the wooden timbers of the porch, sitting on a 17th century brick base. The south chapel now the vestry was the final addition, in the 15th century. Unfortunately, the church suffered rather severely at the hands of the Victorians, the main feature of which is the rather large chancel arch. This replaced a smaller arch, either side and above which were discovered impressive wall paintings which were, unfortunately, not preserved. A print on the south wall shows what they looked like. It has, however, a few interesting furnishings: a rare Norman chalk-stone font, a handsome Jacobean pulpit and a Kempe window at the west end. There are some interesting memorials which poignantly recall the hardships of local life in the 1700s and early 1800s: one to the Rev. William Henry Campion, Rector of Westmeston and nearby Streat, who died in Milan 'after a long and painful illness' in 1821 at the age of 36; and even more tragically, that of Mary, the wife of William Hampton, Rector of Ovingdean, and his twin infant sons: Mary died in January 1729, aged 25 (presumably in or just after childbirth); Ed died in March aged 3 months and Charles died in May aged 5 months. You can almost feel his despair. By way of lighter relief, the brightly coloured east window, by the Belgian glass painter Capronnier, was witheringly described by Pevsner, in his Buildings of England, as being 'as terrible as only Continental mid 19th century glass can be'!
