The Tithe Barn,

Sturry Sturry is a village on the Great Stour river situated northeast of Canterbury in Kent. Its large civil parish incorporates several hamlets and, until April 2019, the former mining village of Hersden. Geography Sturry lies at the old Roman j ...

, Kent, England is a barn dating from the early 16th century. The barn was built as the

tithe barn A tithe barn was a type of barn used in much of northern Europe in the Middle Ages for storing rents and tithes. Farmers were required to give one-tenth of their produce to the established church. Tithe barns were usually associated with the ...

for the grange of

St Augustine's Abbey St Augustine's Abbey (founded as the Monastery of Ss Peter and Paul and changed after its founder St Augustine of Canterbury's death) was a Benedictine monastery in Canterbury, Kent, England. The abbey was founded in 598 and functioned as a mon ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

. At the Dissolution of the monasteries, the grange came into the ownership of

Thomas Smythe Sir Thomas Smythe (or Smith, c. 1558 – 4 September 1625) was an English merchant, politician and colonial administrator. He was the first governor of the East India Company and treasurer of the Virginia Company from 1609 to 1620 until envelo ...

who converted some of the buildings into a country house, Sturry Court. The barn continued in use for agricultural storage. In the early 20th century, Sturry Court was the country home of

Alfred Milner Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner, (23 March 1854 – 13 May 1925) was a British politician, statesman and colonial administrator who played a very important role in the formulation of British foreign and domestic policy between the mid-189 ...

who renamed it Milner Court. On his death in 1925, his widow, Violet, gifted the estate to

The King's School, Canterbury The King's School is a public school in Canterbury, Kent, England. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference and the Eton Group. It is Britain's oldest public school and is considered to be the oldest continuously op ...

which operated a preparatory school on the site. The school was opened by

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English journalist, novelist, poet, and short-story writer. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much ...

, a friend of the Milners, in 1929. The site is now the Junior School for The King's School and the tithe barn has been restored and repurposed as a performing arts centre. "Sturry's most memorable building", the tithe barn is a Grade I listed structure.

History

The Abbey of St Augustine was founded in

in 598. As was common, the abbey established a number of granges on its lands, which operated as agricultural estates generating revenues and produce for the abbey. The resulting produce, and the

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Modern tithes are normally voluntary and paid in money, cash, cheques or v ...

s (taxes) collected by the abbey, were stored in

s. The tithe barn at Sturry is a late manifestation of this economic system, dating from the early 16th century. Within some forty years of its construction, the Dissolution of the monasteries brought an end to the religious houses and the granges which had supported them. That at Sturry was bought by

who built a country house on the site, which he named Sturry Court. In the early 20th century, Sturry Court, renamed Milner Court, was the country home of

Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner, (23 March 1854 – 13 May 1925) was a British statesman and colonial administrator who played a very important role in the formulation of British foreign and domestic policy between the mid-1890s and earl ...

. Milner served as

High Commissioner for Southern Africa The British office of high commissioner for Southern Africa was responsible for governing British possessions in Southern Africa, latterly the protectorates of Basutoland (now Lesotho), the Bechuanaland Protectorate (now Botswana) and Swaziland ...

, was a

cabinet minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ' prime minister', ' p ...

in several British governments during and after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and was a notable proponent of British imperialism. On his death in 1925, his widow, Violet, gave the Sturry estate to

which developed a preparatory school on the site. It was opened by

, a friend of the Milners, in 1929. The site is now the Junior School for The King's School and the tithe barn has been restored and repurposed as a performing arts centre and assembly hall.

Architecture

John Newman, in his 2013 revised edition, ''Kent: North East and East'', in the Pevsner Buildings of England series, calls the tithe barn, "Sturry's most memorable building". The barn is constructed of red brick with its tiled roof supported by ten king posts. It is in length. The tithe barn is a Grade I listed structure.

Notes

References

Sources

* * {{cite book , last = Page , first = William , chapter = The Abbey of St Augustine , title = The History of Kent , volume = 2 , series =

Victoria County History The Victoria History of the Counties of England, commonly known as the Victoria County History (VCH), is an English history project which began in 1899 with the aim of creating an encyclopaedic history of each of the historic counties of Englan ...

, year = 1926 , location = London , publisher = St Catherine’s Press , url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/kent/vol2/pp126-133 , oclc = 222576181 Buildings and structures completed in the 16th century Grade I listed barns in Kent Tithe barns in Europe