A History of St. Mary’s Church, Brook

(quoted from a 4-page pamphlet purchased at St. Mary’s Church in Brook)

The earliest mention of Brook Manor concerns a deacon, Karlman by name, who presented it to the Saxon Cathedral at Canterbury (Christ Church). After the conquest, in A.D. 1076, Archbishop Lanfranc, when redistributing ecclesiastical property, apportioned Brook to Christ Church Monastery. Its Prior appointed a Bailiff to administer the Manor and for centuries a bailiff lived close by, at Court Lodge. [The] Doomsday Book mentions a church here but gives no details. At the dissolution, the Dean and Chapter took over the administration. Since 1962, the patronage has been vested in the Archbishop of Canterbury