" Lady Marney Tomb
On the north side of the chancel, behind the altar rail and set in a plain recess is the memorial brass and tombstone of the twice widowed Bridget, Lady Marney, fourth daughter of Sir William Waldegrave from near Wormingford. She was married first to Thomas Fynderne (q.v. page 7) and on his death in 1523 to John, Lord Marney of Layer Marney who himself died in 1525. "

" When her second marriage terminated so abruptly, she returned to Little Horkesley where she remained till her death in 1549. The memorial brass has been placed in the same position in the new church as in the old. Lady Marney's first husband is on her left, her second (being of higher social standing) on her right. In her will, she gave instructions that her memorial should not be decorated with her own coat of arms but only with the armorial bearings of her two husbands. This injunction was ignored and all three figures include coats of arms. It is thus ironic justice that the damage wreaked by the bomb in 1940 completely destroyed the coat armour that she abjured. "

" Both husbands are in their surcoats of their arms. Lord Marney has on his surcoat and both sleeves the Marney coat (a lion rampant guardant) quartering two other coats of Sergeaux and Venables. His head is bare and rests upon a tilting helmet garnished with crest and mantling; on either side of a chapeau (sable) a wing (argent). Thomas Fynderne also wears his surcoat over a panoply of plate armour. Upon his surcoat and sleeves are his arms, (argent) a chevron, between three cross-crosslets fitched (sable). His crest, an ox yoke is attached to his tilting helmet. "

" Lady Marney's mantle, fastened across her chest by long tasselled bands, once had on it the arms of Waldegrave, party per pale (argent and gules) quartering the coat of Montchensy, barry of ten (argent and azure), but these did not survive. Above the figures are two shields. That on the dexter side: quarterly 1 and 4 Marney; 2 Sergeaux; 3 Venables impaling quarterly 1 and 4 Waldegrave; 2 and 3 Montchensy, for the second husband. That on the sinister side, with a mullet for difference, impaling quarterly 1 and 4, Waldegrave; 2 and 3 Montchensey, for the first husband. "

" The inscription above the brasses is complete and reads:
'Here under lyeth Dame Brygete Marney, late the wyffe of John Lorde Marnay and sometyme wyffe to Mr. Thomas ffyndorne Esquyer, and decessyd the xxxth day of September in the yere of our lorde God m.cccccxlix.' "

" The destruction of the church and the subsequent removal of brasses from their shattered matrices led to the discovery that the Marney brass was partly palimpsest, i.e. engraved on the reverse side as well as the face. The two male figures have the palimpsest design which on re-assembly proved to be fragments of a shrouded woman, more ornate than the Leventhorp brass and considerably larger since when complete it would have measured about five feet long. The work dates from about 1490 which is an early example of its kind. "

" In 2003 Major Gerald Charrington of Layer Marney Towers commissioned a replica of the brass for the chapel at Layer Marney Towers. This work was undertaken by Michael Ward of the Monumental Brass Society. It was done with the permission of the PCC and, in return, a further copy was made for our church.
This very attractive replica is now sited above the original brass. "