St Mary and St Peter's Church, Wilmington

After the Norman Conquest in 1066, monks from Grestain Abbey, a Benedictine monastery in Normandy, took possession of the land around the village of Wilmington. They founded Wilmington Priory to administer their territory, and two or three monks lived there. It was never a large community, and no separate abbey church was ever built; the monks instead shared the chancel of village church. This was in existence by 1100 and served the farmers and villagers of Winelton, as it was known at the time. The church was connected to the priory by a cloister. In common with other alien priories in England, Wilmington Priory was suppressed by King Henry V in 1414 and fell into ruins. Thereafter, the…

St Mary and St Peter's Church was listed at Grade I on 30 August 1966. As of February 2001, it was one of 47 Grade I listed buildings, and 2,173 listed buildings of all grades, in the district of Wealden. The parish, which has a population of about 200, covers a rural area north of the South Downs. The A27 road runs west–east through the area. It forms part of the united benefice of Arlington, Berwick, Selmeston-with-Alciston and Wilmington, which covers the Anglican churches in those five downland villages. Services, using the Book of Common Prayer in alternate weeks, are offered on Sunday mornings, and on alternate Mondays there is an Evening Prayer service.