St Mary's Church & Clock Tower Climb
About
A parish church dating to the twelfth century, holding a turret clock mechanism installed in 1561-62 by the Huguenot clockmaker Lewys Billiard, among the oldest still-working church turret clocks in the country, with the 'Quarter Boys' figures striking the quarter hours since around 1760. Climbing the tower gives a panoramic view over the old town's rooftops and out across the marsh to the current coastline.
Photos
Highlights
- ✓One of the oldest working church turret clock mechanisms in the country, installed 1561-62
- ✓The 'Quarter Boys' striking figures
- ✓A panoramic view over Rye's rooftops and the marsh
- ✓Free to enter the church itself
Tips
- →The church is free; only the tower climb is ticketed.
- →Tower access is weather-dependent and involves a narrow spiral staircase, not suitable for limited mobility.
- →Combine with Ypres Tower a few minutes' walk away for the two best views in Rye.
Best Season
More Attraction Activities
Ypres Tower & Rye Castle Museum
A 1249 defensive tower turned museum, with local archaeology and a smuggling-history exhibit. Uneven floors and low doorways; no lift.
Lamb House
Henry James's home from 1899 to 1916, later E.F. Benson's, and the real house behind 'Mallards' in the Mapp and Lucia novels.
Rye Heritage Centre: The Story of Rye
A scale model of 19th-century Rye with a 20-minute sound-and-light show telling 750 years of the town's story. A good first stop.