St Peter & St Paul Checkendon

This church is one of the Langtree Ministery which I have been visiting and I was  pleased to see how nice a church it was. I usually check the door is open and have a quick look inside if it is before getting my camera gear and this occasion was no different but I noticed the entrance door was Norman and inside had some wall paintings so I am going to do this blog in two parts with the internal views next week. St Peter & St Paul has it's own Wikipedia page so if you want to read a more in depth  history click the link above.
Some history from Wickipedia page on Checkendon
" The Church of England parish church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul is a 12th-century Norman building. All but one of the windows were replaced later in the Middle Ages with Decorated Gothic and Perpendicular Gothic ones, and the Perpendicular Gothic west tower is also a later addition. The building is Grade I listed. The church has an early 13th-century wall painting of Christ in Majesty above a procession of Apostles. The murals were faithfully repainted when they were rediscovered, but more recently this has been considered over-restoration. The bell tower has a ring of eight bells. Four were cast by Lester and Pack in 1765, two were cast in 1879 by Mears and Stainbank and two more cast by Mears and Stainbank were added in 1967. The turret clock is by Tucker of London, dated 1853. Saints Peter & Paul parish is now a member of The Langtree Team Ministry: a Church of England benefice that includes also the parishes of Ipsden, North Stoke, Stoke Row, Whitchurch-on-Thames and Woodcote. War artist Eric Kennington (1888–1960), who was churchwarden, is buried here."

Always nice to see a Lych gate leading to a churchyard.
FIrst view of the church shows it has an Apse on the Chancel

South side of the church

East end with Apse

Going around to the North side

and a north side view of the church

Above the bell tower and to the right a view of the East end and the Apse

On the right is a blocked North door to the church, quite common I have found. On the left is the porch on the South side which was built in the 15th Century hides the doorway below

The arch over the entrance door

Above the entrance door leading to St Peter & St Paul, you will have to wait till next week to see inside

The churchyard on the South side of the church beside the path

and around the West end near the tower

The War Graves of S.Bowles and W.A.B. Temple found in the churchyard

Couple of older headstones

The grave of Sir Nigel Broackes and his wife

Snowdrops & Ivy

These two war graves caught my eye, Stephen George Pullen and William George Pullen are no doubt related and I wonder if they were Father & Son

After reading up on the church I found that the war artist Eric Kennington was buried in the churchyard and had to go back a couple of times before I found his grave which I hand noticed and walked past twice. The memorial window dedicated to him is to the right

The back of the headstone is deadicated to his wife Katherine

Eric Henri Kennington

How long before this tomb in the corner has sunk and is forgotten

Broken cross off the base

Looking over at the east end of the churchyard

On the north side of the churchyard you can find an area that holds many Polish graves

Chest tomb on it's own

Fenced Chest Tomb

This time of year snowdrops abound in Churchyards

looking back to the church from the end of the churchyard

I will leave you for this week with a view of  the church from in the churchyard

Do have a wonderful weekend