insideKENT Magazine Issue 82 - January 2019 | Page 39

ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
SPOTLIGHT ON
BEXLEY
THE WORLD IS CONSTANTLY CHANGING, AND KENT IS NO EXCEPTION.
WE’VE GAINED SOME TOWNS AND VILLAGES AND LOST OTHERS, AND THE LOVELY VILLAGE
OF BEXLEY IS ONE OF THOSE CHANGES. BEXLEY'S HISTORY BEGAN IN KENT, AND ALTHOUGH
IT'S NO LONGER TECHNICALLY INSIDE THE GARDEN OF ENGLAND, WE THINK ITS HEART AND
SOUL LIES IN OUR BEAUTIFUL COUNTY. THIS MONTH, INSIDEKENT HAS TAKEN A FOND LOOK
AT BEXLEY AND EXACTLY WHAT IT HAS TO OFFER.
HALL PLACE
History in Brief
Bexley Village – also kno wn as Old Be xley – was
first established in the Middle Ages in the spot where
two useful trade routes converged. One route ran
between Dartford and Eltham (east to west), and the
other ran north to south from Crayford to Orpington.
This, plus the fact that the River Cray ran right past
the settlement, mean that Bexley was the ideal spot
for traders to rest up on their way to and from their
markets in the area.
In Saxon times, a church was built in Bexley, but
this sadly did not surviv e. However, in the 13th
century a new church was built using the foundations
of the original. This church – St Mary The Virgin
– is still there today, and it is a beautiful and peaceful
place to visit, especially since its restoration in 1882.
Bexley only became ‘Old’ in the mid-19th century
when Be xley New T own (no w better kno wn as
Bexleyheath) was built. Old Bexley and Bexley New
Town were two entirely distinct areas, and the names
they were given were meant to stop any confusion.
There is another religious link with Bexley Village;
the manor of Be xley was once o wned b y the
Archbishop of Canterbury, until it was sold to Oxford
University in 1536.
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