New exhibition - In the Footsteps of the Priors

A thousand years and more of worship in and around Send and Ripley.

Christianity in Surrey took root in the mid-late 7th century with the founding of Chertsey Abbey. It had been present during Roman times but by the time of the arrival of the Saxons most of the country had reverted to paganism.

As Christianity spread, isolated Anglo-Saxon settlements, supported by a handful of major monasteries, evolved into a patchwork of parish churches serving their immediate localities. After the Reformation most of these became the bedrock of the new Church of England but a variety of nonconformist groups also flourished. In our two villages we had St Mary the Virgin in Send – the parish church of Send and Ripley until the 20th century – and the 12th century chapel which was to become the Church of St Mary Magdalen, Ripley. As well as these we have a Congregational Church at Cartbridge – saved from planned demolition in 1974 – and chapels for the Methodists and the Ebenezer Strict Baptists, plus, of course, our Augustinian Priory.

Come and learn more about their history, admire our model of Newark Priory and find out the origins of its name and what became of it in 1539. Hear some atmospheric plainsong. And, thanks to Guildford Museum, see some of the finds from the site of the priory ruins.