Royal Arms of King George III painted on wooden panel located at the west end of the church, to the right of the bell tower arch.
"George III was the third Hanoverian king of Great Britain. During his reign, Britain lost its American colonies but emerged as a leading power in Europe. He suffered from recurrent fits of madness and after 1810, his son acted as regent.
George III was born on 4 June 1738 in London, son of Frederick, Prince of Wales and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. He became heir to the throne when his father died in 1751, succeeding his grandfather George II in 1760. He was the first Hanoverian monarch to use English as his first language. In 1761, George married Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and they enjoyed a happy marriage, with 15 children.
George chose his mentor the Earl of Bute as his first chief minister. He was a poor choice, isolating George from senior politicians. Effective government became almost impossible, and George was increasingly vilified. The instability following Bute's resignation in 1763 did little to solve the crown's financial difficulties, made worse by the Seven Years' War. In 1770, George appointed Lord North as his first minister. Although an effective administrator, North's government was dominated by disagreements with the American colonists over British attempts to levy taxes on them. War began in 1775 and was prolonged in 1779, at the king's insistence, to prevent copycat protests elsewhere. The British defeat in 1781 prompted North to resign.
In 1783, North and the prominent Whig politician Fox formed a coalition government. Their plans to reform the East India Company gave George the chance to regain popularity. He forced the bill's defeat in Parliament, and the two resigned. In their place George appointed William Pitt the Younger. The combination of Pitt's skill and war with France in 1793 strengthened George's position, but disagreements over emancipation of the Catholics - Pitt was in favour and George vehemently opposed - led to Pitt's resignation in 1801.
The American war, its political aftermath and family quarrels put great strain on George. After serious bouts of illness in 1788 - 1789 and 1801, thought now to be caused by porphyria, he became permanently deranged in 1810. The Prince of Wales (later George IV) became regent.
George remained ill until his death at Windsor Castle on 29 January 1820. In 1801, under the Act of Union Great Britain and Ireland were united into a single nation - the United Kingdom. George was thus the first king of the new nation."
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"The first church in the village of bobbing would most likely have been a chapel built in the 1100s for the Savage family who also built the medieval Bobbing Court of which the ruins are only just down the round from the church. It is likely this was a family chapel, many of the later members of the family are buried in the church. Early evidence for Bobbing church comes from a record of a tithe being paid to the prioress of Minster Priory in Sheppey in 1186.
The oldest part of the church standing today is believed to be the north isle, in which the organ, toilet and hospitality area is now situated. It is thought that this was built between 1216 and 1230 as part of the building and re-building of many churches and cathedrals commissioned by King Henry III. In 1234 King Henry III gave the church and its tithes over to the Priory at Minster.
The main part of the church as it stands now was likely to have been added in the 14th Century. The south wall of the original church was converted into pillars and arches and it is thought all of the windows were replaced at this time.
Titus Oates was made priest of Bobbing Church in 1673. He did not remain in his post very long as he resigned after just six months for dishonesty and drunkenness. He moved to a church in Hastings but was later imprisoned before escaping and becoming a chaplain upon a ship. Bobbing Church records state that "Our minister is gone to sea". Titus Oates would later, in 1678, produce a conspiracy theory that the pope wanted to kill King Charles II and abolish the protestant church. He was arrested and imprisoned for perjury.
In 1863 the Victorian architect undertook work on the church that was described a non-essential however the work conducted is not well documented. The work known to be conducted was the addition of the red and black tiling throughout, repairs to the pillars and uncovering of a carving of a French monk commissioning a deacon which had been hidden for many years before. Other additions were the current pews, the wooden reredos behind the altar table and other general repairs were carried out at this time."
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