were the Dunks family, who lived there from about 1500–1750. Sir Thomas Dunk, a wealthy clothier, who died in 1718, bequeathed enough money to build almshouses for six 'decayed housekeepers' (three men and three women) and a village school, plus enough money to buy lands to generate a steady income. In 1875, the Victoria Lecture Hall was built by Henry Maynard "for the good of the village". It now houses Kino, a digital cinema. Churches Hawkhurst has several churches. The parish church of St Laurence stands at the south end of the village known as The Moor, which is the older part of Hawkhurst. It falls within the Diocese of Canterbury, and has as patron the Dean and Chapter of Christ Church, Oxford. It is likely that a church has stood on this site since 1100, or even earlier. After the Battle of Hastings William I gave the Manor of Wye, with rights over a large part of the parish, to the Abbot of Battle. The first mention of the church is in the charter of 1285, and its first rector was Richard de Clyne in 1291. The Chancel and North Chapel are the oldest parts of the church. The Great East Window was built about 1350 and has been described as one of the finest pieces of architecture in the country. Most of the rest of the church dates from around 1450, when the nave was lengthened and raised, the aisles, porches and tower added, and it took on its present appearance. The room over the North porch was used by Battle Abbey officials for rent collecting, and used to be called "The Treasury". In 1574, communion rails were introduced at a cost of 53 shillings, to keep communicants from the altar, the first parish church in England to have done so. In 1944 a German flying bomb fell in the churchyard, causing considerable damage, and the church was put out of action until 1957. Part of the flying bomb can be seen on the south side at the back of the church. There is a Roman Catholic church in the High Street, dedicated to St Barnabas, but, apart from Sunday, services are now held at the sister church in Goudhurst. An active Baptist Church is in Cranbrook Road, built partly on the site of the original Rootes cycle factory. A Methodist church on Highgate Hill is now being