Around Tudeley

The bare simplicity of Tudeley’s little brick-and-stone church gives little hint from outside of the glories within. But as you enter All Saints, the vivid hues of the modern windows hit your retina like a blowtorch. This is Britain’s largest assembly of work by the Russian-born artist Marc Chagall (1887–1985), a remarkable find in a country village. Chagall’s stained glasswork can be seen in many other locations around the world, but Tudeley is said to be the only church to have all its windows executed by the artist. The antiquity of the church, dating back to Norman times or earlier, provides a striking foil to these 20th-century masterpieces. Choose a sunny day to see them at their best. There’s no charge to visit the church, but donations are welcome to help preserve the windows.

The windows were commissioned as a memorial to Sarah, the daughter of Sir Henry and Lady d’Avigdor-Goldsmid, who was killed in a tragic sailing accident in 1963 aged 21. The family lived at Somerhill, now a school, which you pass on the walk route. Initially, Chagall designed only the east window, but over the next decade the remaining 11 were installed, the final one in 1985, the year of his death. The predominant colours are blue and yellow, and the subjects were inspired by Psalm 8: ‘What is man that you are mindful of him...’

In her short life, Sarah Venetia d’Avigdor-Goldsmid showed a keen eye for modern art. She bought the first picture David Hockney ever sold at a student show, and had been greatly impressed by Chagall’s work, which she saw on tour at the Louvre.

Take the path to the far end of the churchyard, crossing a stile into a field. Walk ahead and cross another stile. At the end of the field, go through the kissing gate. Follow the path beside a fence, and cross a stile onto the lane.

Turn left, heading downhill past Bank Farm and bearing left under the railway line. Where the lane takes a sharp right-hand bend, keep ahead on a footpath opposite cottages. Carry on past orchards and fields to emerge on Hartlake Road. The Poacher pub lies a few paces up the road to your right.

Cross the road, follow the signed path into a field and walk up the edge past Hale Farm (oasthouses), crossing a stile at the end. Head over another field and cross a stile in the hedgeline to more fields and orchards. Cross a footbridge, where there’s an intersecting path, and keep ahead.

Continue following hedgelines and field margins past orchards to reach a gate into a tiny lane. Turn left here and in a few more paces turn left again into Postern Lane. Follow this left before turning right at Park View and passing an access road, signed ‘Upper Postern’.

Keep ahead along this surfaced single-track lane to go through a metal gate. Climb gently to a brick-walled bridge, this time crossing high above the railway line. When you reach the B2017, turn right and walk down it for about 300yds (274m) – take care here. When the road veers right by a central reservation, cross the road and take the marked footpath beside White Lodge.

In a few paces meet a road. Carry on up the steep hill, then turn left into the grounds of Somerhill School, taking the path to the left of the drive. Bear right at a sign ‘No Unauthorised Personnel beyond this point’ and follow the path beside a wall, gently downhill through woods. You are now on the Tunbridge Wells Circular Walk.

Keep going through the woods and a field, following the waymarked path. Cross a track leading to Park Farm and carry on, still heading downhill. Follow the footpath left as the drive turns right towards Oasthouse Cottages. Keeping a patch of woodland on your left, carry on to the end of the field. Duck through the trees, following the waymarked path over a couple of footbridges, then keep going over the field toward a gabled house (Crockhurst Farm Cottages).

The track to the left of the house leads out to Five Oak Green Road (B2017), but to avoid this busy road, take a permissive path left along the inner hedgeline. Follow the path up to the end of the field, parallel to the road, then go out onto the road, crossing to the church car park to return to the start.