St Mary the Virgin, Bletchingley.

The church of St Mary the Virgin stands on a raised mound as if to dominate the surrounding cottages. The earliest part of this large and attractive building is the sturdy tower, which dates to 1090, but much of the remainder is 15th century Perpendicular Gothic. The two storey south porch dates to 1460. Above the entrance is a chamber where the inhabitants stored their harness when the Spanish Armada threatened in 1588.

In the south wall is a lancet window and quatrefoil opening sometimes called a Hermit's Squint. This quatrefoil once connected to a hermit cell where a man named Brother Roger dwelt in the 13th century. The squint was probably not built to allow Brother Roger a view of the altar, but rather so that pilgrims could converse with the hermit and ask his advice.

On the wall by the font is a very peculiar item; a small model of a boat in a glass case. This was donated by refugees from the Pacific island of Tristan de Cunha who stayed in Bletchingley in 1961-2 when the island was under threat from a volcanic eruption.

The pulpit is Jacobean, the gift of Robert Holman of Pendell, and the Pendell arms are carved on it with the date 1630. The hourglass stand and bracket are also Jacobean, one of very few left in Surrey.

Near the pulpit is a portrait of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who served as a curate of Bletchingley from 1965-1967.