Last updated on August 23rd, 2023 at 11:18 am
The Venerable Bede tells us that, in 597 AD (1425 years ago in 2022), St Augustine landed on the Isle of Thanet, in Kent, with some forty companions. Their purpose was to spread the news of eternal joy in heaven and an everlasting kingdom with the living and true God. In those days, the most powerful king in Britain – the Bretwalda – was Ethelbert of Kent, whose domains extended to the River Humber, the border between the north and south Angles. Ethelbert was an Anglo-Saxon pagan, but his wife, Queen Bertha, was a Frankish princess and a Christian. The King had given her a building, which Bede describes as an old church on the east side of Canterbury, the chief city of the realm. Bede says it had been built in Roman times, in honour of St Martin of Tours. Tours was where the princess had been brought up and, with her confessor Bishop Leodheard, she came to St Martin’s each day to pray. And it was St Martin’s that became Augustine’s prime place of worship too, until he founded nearby St Augustine’s Abbey and the adjacent Canterbury Cathedral. Augustine and his successors went on to reintroduce Christianity to southern England from this very spot, and the Roman Catholic faith ultimately dominated the entire British Isles until the Reformation in the 16th century. Today, St Martin’s, Canterbury Cathedral and the ruins of St Augustine’s Abbey are all part of a World Heritage Site.
There are two delightful modern statues of King Ethelbert and Queen Bertha on Lady Wootton’s Green off Canterbury’s Broad Street. Tradition has it that Ethelbert was baptised in St Martin’s, in the font that is still there, and that Bertha was buried under the step to the church – which I assume means the doorway.
St Martin’s, Canterbury, is generally accepted as the oldest ecclesiastical building in Britain still used as a church. It could have been a renovated Roman building – whether it was a church is uncertain. The chancel does contain Roman materials, including the brick remains of a Roman tomb. Perhaps it was a mausoleum. There are also two blocked doorways, one of which may date to Queen Bertha’s time and the other later Saxon. The Saxons did not, as a rule, build in stone during this period – but that does not mean they did not re-use Roman masonry. The site of the church is on a slight hill where a natural spring rises, flowing into a drain in the road, North Holmes Road, outside. Maybe Queen Bertha’s Chapel began life as a temple dedicated to a local water deity; we shall probably never know.
The church was enlarged in the 7th century, extended in the 11th century and the tower was added in the 14th century. I doubt that Bertha or Augustine would recognise it now. Evidence of an old arch and Saxon windows can be seen in the west wall of the nave, which also includes Roman materials. There is also a leper’s window, low down on the north side of this wall. The entrance door is 13th century. Just inside the door is the extraordinary font. This is made of three elaborately carved stone tiers; the two lower tiers are Saxon work and the upper tier and lead lining are Norman.
Exhibited midway along the north wall of the nave is a replica of a 14th century Chrismatory. The original, found hidden in the nave roof in 1849, is in Canterbury Cathedral. The Chrismatory is a small brass box, about 6” (15 cm) long, which contains three pewter pots for the three kinds of consecrated oil used in the sacraments at Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Unction. For the benefit of fellow non-believers, ‘Holy Unction’ means anointing the dead or those close to death with oil. The three oils had to be kept separate, according to Archbishop Alfric (died 1005), “Ye ought to have three flasks ready for the three oils, for we dare not put them together in one oil vessel, because each of them is hallowed apart for a particular service”. Pre-Reformation Chrismatories are rare in Britain – there are only two in England, apparently.
In the church porch is a memorial to John Finch (1584-1660). Finch was a Canturbury MP and is buried near the altar. As Speaker of the House of Commons, he was famously physically held in his chair on 10 March 1629 by three fellow MPs – Sir John Eliot, Denzil Holles and Benjamin Valentine – while the Commons passed a number of motions against the King, Charles I. The Speaker has to be in the chair for motions to be passed. The King dissolved Parliament the same day and it did not meet again for 11 years. All part of the build up to the terrible Civil War of the 17th century.
St Martin’s Church is not open everyday – which the ABAB team discovered the hard way – and is manned by volunteers. On the (second) day of our visit, the volunteer was a lovely lady, an ex-teacher, whose husband was Captain of the Bells at the Cathedral. This interested Mrs Britain, who is something of a campanologist.
But what’s all this about Rupert the Bear? Well, the creator of Rupert Bear, Mary Tourtel, is buried in the graveyard at St Martin’s. Rupert and his pals having brought me considerable pleasure as a child, I wanted to pay my respects. Rupert Bear appeared as a comic strip in the Daily Express when it used to be a reasonably serious newspaper (rumour has it that he still does) and every Christmas produced a Rupert Bear Annual. You will find Rupert in the idyllic fictional village of Nutwood, where he lives happily with his mum and dad, getting into all manner of scrapes and adventures with his anthropomorphic animal chums.
Mary Tourtel (nee Caldwell, 1874-1948) was an accomplished professional illustrator whose husband, Herbert Bird Tourtel (1874-1931), worked for the Daily Express as Assistant Editor. The Express needed something to rival ‘Teddy Tail of the Daily Mail’ (a mouse), and so Herbert suggested Mary might give it some thought. She came up with Rupert Bear, who first appeared as ‘Little Lost Bear’ in the Express on Monday 8 November 1920. Herbert wrote the early stories, usually in verse. Mary continued drawing and writing the Rupert stories until 1935, when failing eyesight forced her to give up and hand the job to Alfred Bestall (1892-1986). Rupert went on to achieve great things, even (I am told) the dizzy heights of television shows and appearance in not one, but two, Paul McCartney videos. He is still with us; the 2022 Rupert Bear Annual is available from Amazon at £5.85 – even cheaper than one of A Bit About Britain’s books. Sadly, my collection of Rupert annuals disappeared long ago, leaving only happy memories. The picture of Rupert is by Ian Burt via Flickr.
Anyway, when asked the tricky question at the next pub quiz, “What does the oldest parish church still in use in England have in common with a children’s cartoon character?” – you now know the answer.
Herbert and Mary lie at rest together overlooking St Martin’s and the City of Canterbury beyond. They had no children and their grave is slightly unkempt and weed infested. In life, they loved to travel together, often by aeroplane, and lived for a while in Florence after Herbert’s early retirement. He died aged just 57 in a sanatorium in Germany. Mary lived a semi nomadic life for a time, but died in her home town of Canterbury of a brain tumor aged 74. And there they are.
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Trees largely block the view there must have once been from the area around Mary and Herbert’s grave. Before the Reformation, the great Abbey of St Augustine could have been seen from here and, just beyond, the towering triumph of Canterbury’s Cathedral. Whether you believe or not, this is the spot from which a great religion took seed, flowered and spread through the whole British Isles. It is special, because it helped make us who we are. I like the fact that it is shared with the creator of Rupert.
To visit St Martin’s, check out the opening times on its website here.
For more details on St Martin’s and Canterbury’s other historic buildings, visit the excellent website set up by the late Stephen Bax.
There is more about Mary Tourtel on the Lambiek website.
HI Mike, this is a great post about my favourite city and my favourite bear. Rupert was always my favourite annual and I have a vintage collection of them plus quite a few modern annuals I bought for my own boys. Canterbury Cathedral is a favourite place of mine and I’ve visited four times. We were lucky enough to be there where a handwritten Second edition book of Shakespeare’s plays was on display. I have also visited St Augustine’s ruined Abbey. I have not visited St Martin’s, we must have missed it during our touring.
Thanks, Robbie. The Cathedral is amazing – in the process of being cleaned when we last visited, so covered in scaffolding unfortunately – but it’s going to be stunning when they’re finished. St Martin’s is about a 10 minute walk from St Augustine’s Abbey.
I don’t know Rupert the Bear but I wish I did. He looks absolutely charming! Canterbury has never been on my path when traveling England but I think I would very much like to visit St. Martin’s. It’s lovely and so very old!
There’s lots to see in that little corner of England, Jeanie…
A lovely simple church…with such a history.
The Express never darkened our door, but I knew of Rupert through other kids who had the\ albums.
My parents got the Express when it was a broadsheet; I believe it’s pretty much a comic now.
I love the more simple beauty of that church with the timbered ceiling and the stained glass windows. So lovely!
Yes, it’s very simple. I’m guessing it was more highly decorated before the Reformation.
Great post Mike, thank you. I used to love my yearly Rupert Bear Annual!!! 🙂
That’s lovely, Hannah, thank you!
Love that Rupert Bear is entwined with the Anglicans. I assume that a leper’s window allowed them to follow the service from a safe distance?
Yes, that’s right – sometimes called a ‘squint’.
I enjoyed learning the link to Rupert Bear 🙂
I thought it was rather nice. 🙂
Rupert seems to be a nice bear. I haven’t heard of him, just the Paddington bear and Winnie the Pooh;)
As a kid, Rupert was bigger to me than Paddington – I still haven’t read that!
Well I never knew Rupert came from there. I have a few annuals from the 1970s. My Auntie has an almost complete set dating back.
You never know what you might find out poking around in old churches. Interesting about needing to keep the 3 oils separate.
I find it almost impossible to pass an old church without going in – but this one had been on the ‘to visit’ list for ages.
I learned a lot from this post. If I ever get to Canterbury I will be looking up the church. Thank you!
That’s great – hope you make it!
The old church is a beauty.
It certainly is – so much history there.
This has whetted my appetite for another visit to Canterbury. I hadn’t been there for years until last September when I visited an old friend who now lives there and had ‘found’ me on Facebook the year before.
Rupert Bear! I would have loved to have had an annual of my own but I only ever saw those belonging to other children. My elder daughter watched the cartoon series on TV which seemed to be fairly faithful to the original.
I never saw the cartoon, but the books were great. I’m rather disappointed that my small collection disappeared!
Hi Mike – I certainly hadn’t heard of the church, nor of Mary Tourtel – but I see she trained under ‘Cow Cooper’ – I wrote about his talent for painting cattle in and around Canterbursy … I’ll definitely look the church out next time I’m in Canterbury.
There is now a Rupert display case in the Beaney House of Art and Knowledge, alongside the Clangers … this is the Museum celebrating Cooper’s art.
What a fun post to read and learn about … cheers Hilary
Glad you enjoyed it, Hilary!
Thoroughly enjoyed this one Mike. I didn’t get to see the inside of St. Martin’s either, and neither did I see Mary Tourtel’s grave. I did however find the place where she was born in Palace Street. Those of us of a certain age will have fond memories of Rupert Bear, and there’s still hope for the world if the Rupert Annual is still being published. That snippet of information made my day.
Indeed – we have to hang onto things like Rupert to maintain sanity.
Fascinating history and good to be reminded of both Rupert and Teddy
Thank you, Derrick; we seem to like our bears!
St Martin’s Church looks like a wonderful place to visit.
It is fascinating, Jim.
Ah, the Rupert annual. My favourite bit was the page you went over with a wet paintbrush and a colourful picture appeared.
The church is lovely. I’ve been in others that have taken advantage of bits of Roman walls. Very sensible.
Oh – I’d forgotten that page! It was great – thanks for the reminder, April.
How beautiful. Rupert too, of course!
It’s nice to see how many people appreciate Rupert!
Knowing that Rupert’s creators are ‘right there’ in that spot is incredibly important. It’s just wonderful!
Thanks, Jennie; I think so too!
You’re welcome, Mike!
This would be such a great place to see. Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks. It is fascinatiing – and of course fits well with a visit to the cathedral and ruined abbey.
Wonderful and informative post. I too read Rupert as a child. I love the idea that his creator is buried at such an important and historical place.
Thank you – I love places that have multiple stories associated with them.
An excellent account of a very clever and famous bear, and the history, architecture, and photographs are pretty good too!
Why, thank you, kind sir.
I was wondering what Rupert Bear had to do with the post, interesting stuff
I think some people found Rupert more interesting than the church!
Wow Mike you are right in our current backyard with this one. St Martins is around 5 miles from our home and like you we have also visited that amazing little church, read its history and seen the grave in question. Nearby, at Reculver, the easily recognisable towers are remnants of an ancient clifftop church built on the site of a Roman settlement. Not only is it glorious photo territory, but the adjacent pub is called…the King Ethelbert. I also have an amusing Rupert story but that would make this comment far too long, if that’s not happened already. Ah, the interconnectedness of all things, as Douglas Adams once mused.
Ah – Reculver was on the list for the last visit (as you would probably expect), but we simply ran out of time.
An interesting story about the creator(s) of Rupert Bear. I loved him when I was a child and got the annual as a Christmas present every year for several years. I didn’t know they were still going – I wonder if they’ve changed much over the years or if they are the same as I remember them.
Good question – I expect it looks similar – though Rupert changed from Mary’s original design anyway. For one thing, she created a brown bear, but it was cheaper to print if he became white.
Wow, so many beautiful photos and great information, Mike! I love the history of the British Isles, so amazing. ❤️❤️
Thanks, John!
Thanks Mike. Another one of my favourite towns.
Excellent!
What a special place for so many reasons. I didn´t know of Rupert bear as I lived in Canada but hubby still had a couple of his books from when he was a child in York. I thought they were delightful. I named the bookstore cat in my Amanda in England book, Rupert. I have yet to visit Canterbury.
I think you’d like Canterbury, Darlene – though it looked a little tatty round the edges when I last visited.