Margate is a coastal town about 16 miles NE of Canterbury, and the church lies of St John (also known as St John in Thanet), lies at the centre of the town. The building features a continuously aisled nave and chancel of nine bays, a NE treasury, a NW tower, and two porches. it was restored in 1875. Remains of Romanesque sculpture can be found in some of the piers.

Margate is briefly mentioned in Domesday Book in 1086 as part of the hundred of Thanet. The church was a dependant chapel of Minster in Thanet until 1275.

The fact that the arches are mostly pointed and that Gothic material is present suggests that the arcades may date to the very late 12thc.