It is astonishing how in Rye, being an historic and welcoming town, it is possible to meet new and interesting people. At the the Farmers Market in Rye Community centre, locals’ and visitors’ share stories over coffee and recently in a conversation with a visitor from London, Alix Cybirdy, a publisher, we learnt about a new book she was publishing, 1066 Medieval Norman Churches in Watercolour by Denis Dunstone, sequel to his acclaimed A Church Near You.
This book, illustrated with rich, beautiful and soft watercolours is a special edition This insightful concise prose invites readers to explore the medieval Norman churches, that formed the architectural back bone of William the Conqueror’s empire on both sides of the channel. St Nicholas in New Romney is the nearest church to Rye which reveals the influences.
Denis was a Cambridge Law graduate, former Navy Officer and author of popular self-published topographical church sketch books, covering England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. He eventually turned his interest to Normandy, after realising that the story of British churches was incomplete without their Norman counterparts. The churches of Normandy reveal the continental influence of so many features we now take for granted in England, like the “saddleback tower, the cruciform plan with the central tower and pave aisles.” Denis notes:”Painting allows me to emphasise the structural and stylistic details that matter most, photographs cannot always do the same.”
The book due for publication on 1 November, can be bought from the publisher Cybirdy Publishing, Amazon and elected bookshops. Cybirdy Publishing specialise in beautiful illustrated special editions and literary works that blend tradition with originality, with a particular interest in bridging English, American and French culture and history.
There will be a French translation published on 2 February 2027 and an ebook on 11 November 2026.
Image Credits: Denis Dunstone .