Warnham
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| The tiny village of Warnham, two miles from Shelley's
birthplace at Field Place, is the site of Warnham Parish
Church, where Shelley was christened and where he later
rode every day for lessons with Reverend Edwards, the church
vicar. The exterior of the church, with its medieval tower,
remains much as Shelley would have seen it. |
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| The inside, however, has undergone the extensive late-Victorian
renewal typical of English churches, including the replacement
of all original stained glass. |
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| There
are a number
of memorials
to the Shelley
family, including
Percy Shelley’s
birth and
christening
records,
and the
font in which
he was baptized
on September
7, 1792.
The church
is frequently
locked,
but the key
is available
from the
Post Office
next door,
which also
has a leaflet
describing
Shelley’s
connections
to Warnham. |
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| Nearby
is Warnham
Mill Pond,
a man-made
lake created
to accommodate
the Sussex
iron industry
in the early-seventeenth
century.
In Shelley’s
time, it
was the home
of the fabled
Great Turtle,
who would
allegedly
emerge in
the evenings
and roam
the surrounding
woods. |
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| Today, the pond is protected by the Warnham Nature Reserve—and
a flock of very territorial swans—and features a "Shelley
Garden" of plants mentioned in his poetry. The reserve is
open to visitors from dawn to dusk year-round; however,
the Nature Reserve building is open only from April to September,
10 AM to 6 PM, Thursdays through Sundays. |
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