St. Mary's Priory and Cathedral
Encyclopedia
St Mary's Priory and Cathedral was a religious institution in Coventry
, England, founded in the 12th century by transformation of the former monastery of St Mary, and destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
in the early 16th century. It was located on a site north of Holy Trinity
and the former St Michael's
parish churches in the centre of the city, on a site bordered by Priory Row to the south, Trinity Street to the west, and the River Sherbourne
to the north. Excavated remains from the west end of the cathedral are open to the public.
and his army of Danes were laying waste to many towns and villages in Warwickshire in a bid to take control of England, and on reaching the settlement of Coventry they destroyed the Saxon nunnery. Leofric, Earl of Mercia
and his wife Lady Godiva
rebuilt on the remains of the nunnery to found a Benedictine
monastery
in 1043 dedicated to St. Mary for an abbot and 24 monks.
Bishop Robert de Limesey
transferred his see
to Coventry c. 1095, and in 1102 papal authorisation for this move also turned the monastery of St. Mary into a priory and cathedral. The subsequent rebuilding and expansion of St. Mary's was completed about 125 years later.
When the monastery was founded Leofric gave the northern half of his estates in Coventry to the monks to support them. This was known as the "Prior
's-half", and the other was called the "Earl's-half" which would later pass to the Earls of Chester
, and explains the early division of Coventry into two parts (until the Royal "Charter of Incorporation" was granted in 1345). In 1250, Roger de Mold (referred to in older documents as "Roger de Montalt"), the earl at the time who had gained his position by marriage, sold his wife's rights and estates in the southern side of Coventry to the Prior, and for the next 95 years the town was controlled by a single "land lord". However, disputes arose between the monastic tenants and those previously of the Earl, and the Prior never gained complete control over Coventry.
in shape, 425 feet (130 metres) long and 145 feet (44 metres) wide at the west front. It was constructed in two stages, up to 1143 and from c. 1150 to c. 1250. The cathedral had a central tower and two towers at the western end, the remains of which are still visible. It is believed there were three spires
similar to, though pre-dating, those at Lichfield Cathedral
.
In 1143 Robert Marmion
fortified the partially built cathedral in an attempt to gain control of Coventry Castle
. Part of his alterations include a trench around the church.
During Henry VIII
's Dissolution of the Monasteries
in the 16th century, the king offered the cathedral buildings to the people of Coventry, however they were unable to raise sufficient funding, and the king ordered the buildings destroyed. Masonry
and other items were removed and used for other purposes, leaving only parts of the cathedral standing. It was the only English cathedral to be destroyed during the Reformation
,.
The north-west tower survived the destruction and was used as a house until 1714, when a charity school was founded there, Coventry's Blue Coat School
.
Coventry remained without a Cathedral until 1918, when St. Michael's parish church (built in the 14th and 15th centuries, and so originally standing simultaneously with St. Mary's) was elevated to this status. St. Michael's was severely damaged during the Coventry Blitz
on 14 November 1940 by the German
Luftwaffe
, and replaced after the war by the current St. Michael's Cathedral
.
An excavation in the 1960s discovered the original doorway to the chapter house.
In the late 1990s Coventry City Council decided to redevelop part of the cathedral site as a public park as part of its Pheonix Initiative, and invited the Channel 4
programme Time Team
to perform an archaeological dig on the site.
The dig took place in April 1999 and consisted of four main trenches
. One in the site of the chapter house
, one to reach the original floor, four metres below the current ground level, and two to identify the locations of the two crossing piers which would have borne the weight of the tower and roof.
The archaeologists digging in the chapter house were unable to locate the doorway that had been photographed during the 1960s excavations, and it was not until the third day of their three-day dig that they decided it must have been taken by the earlier team. This delay meant that it was not until the end of the final day that a stone-lined grave was discovered at the bottom of the trench. Several members of the team extended their dig into a fourth day to investigate this find more fully.
Work on the fourth day revealed remains of a body in the grave just inside the chapter house door. Forensic examination carried out by the programme suggested that the person died in late-middle age and was overweight
and diabetic. They concluded it was likely the man had been a prior
.
Time Team revisited the excavation site for a programme in March 2001 to explore some of the discoveries made since their earlier episode. Coventry Archaeology had continued a dig on the priory, while Northampton Archaeology carried out digs on the cathedral. One of the featured findings was a layer of clay
around the entrance which still carried markings from the wheels of carts believed to have been removing stone after the building was demolished.
Another discovery in December 2000 was the 14th century 'Apocalypse
Mural'. During removal of debris from an undercroft, a small piece of masonry bearing a painted gold crown was discovered, and this discovery was followed several days later by a larger item. A piece of sandstone measuring 43 cm by 50cm with a painted area covering 20cm by 30cm showing four heads, three of which are wearing crowns.
Remains are visible from both ends of the cathedral building revealing a length of 425 feet.
Following the excavations parts of the remains are open to the public as the 'Priory Garden' which can be walked through or above on wooden walkways. The site of the cloisters has also become a park with a visitor centre containing some of the artefacts excavated.
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, England, founded in the 12th century by transformation of the former monastery of St Mary, and destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
in the early 16th century. It was located on a site north of Holy Trinity
Holy Trinity Church, Coventry
Holy Trinity Church, Coventry is a parish church in the Church of England located in Coventry City Centre, West Midlands, England.Above the chancel arch is probably the most impressive Doom wall-painting now remaining in an English church.-History:...
and the former St Michael's
Coventry Cathedral
Coventry Cathedral, also known as St Michael's Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry, in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The current bishop is the Right Revd Christopher Cocksworth....
parish churches in the centre of the city, on a site bordered by Priory Row to the south, Trinity Street to the west, and the River Sherbourne
River Sherbourne
The River Sherbourne is a river that flows under the centre of the city of Coventry, West Midlands, England.The source of the river is in the fields of Hawkes End in the Parish of Allesley. From where it flows south continuing through the city centre, where it is mainly culverted, and through the...
to the north. Excavated remains from the west end of the cathedral are open to the public.
Origins
The first chronicled event in the history of Coventry took place in 1016 when King CanuteCanute the Great
Cnut the Great , also known as Canute, was a king of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden. Though after the death of his heirs within a decade of his own and the Norman conquest of England in 1066, his legacy was largely lost to history, historian Norman F...
and his army of Danes were laying waste to many towns and villages in Warwickshire in a bid to take control of England, and on reaching the settlement of Coventry they destroyed the Saxon nunnery. Leofric, Earl of Mercia
Leofric, Earl of Mercia
Leofric was the Earl of Mercia and founded monasteries at Coventry and Much Wenlock. Leofric is remembered as the husband of Lady Godiva.-Life and political influence:...
and his wife Lady Godiva
Lady Godiva
Godiva , often referred to as Lady Godiva , was an Anglo-Saxon noblewoman who, according to legend, rode naked through the streets of Coventry in order to gain a remission of the oppressive taxation imposed by her husband on his tenants...
rebuilt on the remains of the nunnery to found a Benedictine
Order of Saint Benedict
The Order of Saint Benedict is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict. Within the order, each individual community maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests...
monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
in 1043 dedicated to St. Mary for an abbot and 24 monks.
Bishop Robert de Limesey
Robert de Limesey
Robert de Limesey was a medieval Bishop of Chester. He moved the see from Chester to Coventry in 1102....
transferred his see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
to Coventry c. 1095, and in 1102 papal authorisation for this move also turned the monastery of St. Mary into a priory and cathedral. The subsequent rebuilding and expansion of St. Mary's was completed about 125 years later.
When the monastery was founded Leofric gave the northern half of his estates in Coventry to the monks to support them. This was known as the "Prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
's-half", and the other was called the "Earl's-half" which would later pass to the Earls of Chester
Earl of Chester
The Earldom of Chester was one of the most powerful earldoms in medieval England. Since 1301 the title has generally been granted to heirs-apparent to the English throne, and from the late 14th century it has been given only in conjunction with that of Prince of Wales.- Honour of Chester :The...
, and explains the early division of Coventry into two parts (until the Royal "Charter of Incorporation" was granted in 1345). In 1250, Roger de Mold (referred to in older documents as "Roger de Montalt"), the earl at the time who had gained his position by marriage, sold his wife's rights and estates in the southern side of Coventry to the Prior, and for the next 95 years the town was controlled by a single "land lord". However, disputes arose between the monastic tenants and those previously of the Earl, and the Prior never gained complete control over Coventry.
Architecture
The main cathedral building was cruciformCruciform
Cruciform means having the shape of a cross or Christian cross.- Cruciform architectural plan :This is a common description of Christian churches. In Early Christian, Byzantine and other Eastern Orthodox forms of church architecture this is more likely to mean a tetraconch plan, a Greek cross,...
in shape, 425 feet (130 metres) long and 145 feet (44 metres) wide at the west front. It was constructed in two stages, up to 1143 and from c. 1150 to c. 1250. The cathedral had a central tower and two towers at the western end, the remains of which are still visible. It is believed there were three spires
Spires
Spires may refer to:* SPIRES, a database for publications in High-Energy Physics* Speyer , a city in Germany* The Spires, a commercial conference centre, operated out of Church House, Belfast by the Presbyterian Church in Ireland...
similar to, though pre-dating, those at Lichfield Cathedral
Lichfield Cathedral
Lichfield Cathedral is situated in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England. It is the only medieval English cathedral with three spires. The Diocese of Lichfield covers all of Staffordshire, much of Shropshire and part of the Black Country and West Midlands...
.
History
The abbey church of St Mary's was consecrated in 1043, and Earl Leofric was buried there in 1057.In 1143 Robert Marmion
Robert Marmion
Robert Marmion was an English nobleman and itinerant justice. He was reputed to have been the King's Champion. He was descended from the lords of Fontenay le Marmion in Normandy, who are said to have been hereditary champions of the Dukes of Normandy.-Ancestry:The first definite record of the...
fortified the partially built cathedral in an attempt to gain control of Coventry Castle
Coventry Castle
Coventry Castle was a motte and bailey castle in the city of Coventry, England .It was built in the 11th century by Ranulf Meschines, Earl of Chester, probably out of wood initially...
. Part of his alterations include a trench around the church.
During Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
's Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
in the 16th century, the king offered the cathedral buildings to the people of Coventry, however they were unable to raise sufficient funding, and the king ordered the buildings destroyed. Masonry
Masonry
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar; the term masonry can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are brick, stone, marble, granite, travertine, limestone; concrete block, glass block, stucco, and...
and other items were removed and used for other purposes, leaving only parts of the cathedral standing. It was the only English cathedral to be destroyed during the Reformation
Reformation
- Movements :* Protestant Reformation, an attempt by Martin Luther to reform the Roman Catholic Church that resulted in a schism, and grew into a wider movement...
,.
The north-west tower survived the destruction and was used as a house until 1714, when a charity school was founded there, Coventry's Blue Coat School
Coventry Blue Coat Church of England School
The Coventry Blue Coat Church of England School and Music College is a comprehensive school in Coventry, England located in the Lower Stoke area of the city. It is a Cross Of Nails school, with links to a school in Bethlehem...
.
Coventry remained without a Cathedral until 1918, when St. Michael's parish church (built in the 14th and 15th centuries, and so originally standing simultaneously with St. Mary's) was elevated to this status. St. Michael's was severely damaged during the Coventry Blitz
Coventry Blitz
The Coventry blitz was a series of bombing raids that took place in the English city of Coventry. The city was bombed many times during the Second World War by the German Air Force...
on 14 November 1940 by the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
, and replaced after the war by the current St. Michael's Cathedral
Coventry Cathedral
Coventry Cathedral, also known as St Michael's Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry, in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The current bishop is the Right Revd Christopher Cocksworth....
.
Rediscovery and excavations
In 1856 the Blue Coat School was rebuilt on the same site, and during the construction the remains of the cathedral's west wall were discovered, including the foot of the south-west tower and its spiral staircase. The school building remains on the site, but the school itself moved to a new location in the 1960s.An excavation in the 1960s discovered the original doorway to the chapter house.
In the late 1990s Coventry City Council decided to redevelop part of the cathedral site as a public park as part of its Pheonix Initiative, and invited the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
programme Time Team
Time Team
Time Team is a British television series which has been aired on Channel 4 since 1994. Created by television producer Tim Taylor and presented by actor Tony Robinson, each episode features a team of specialists carrying out an archaeological dig over a period of three days, with Robinson explaining...
to perform an archaeological dig on the site.
The dig took place in April 1999 and consisted of four main trenches
Trench
A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground. Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide , and by being narrow compared to their length ....
. One in the site of the chapter house
Chapter house
A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room attached to a cathedral or collegiate church in which meetings are held. They can also be found in medieval monasteries....
, one to reach the original floor, four metres below the current ground level, and two to identify the locations of the two crossing piers which would have borne the weight of the tower and roof.
The archaeologists digging in the chapter house were unable to locate the doorway that had been photographed during the 1960s excavations, and it was not until the third day of their three-day dig that they decided it must have been taken by the earlier team. This delay meant that it was not until the end of the final day that a stone-lined grave was discovered at the bottom of the trench. Several members of the team extended their dig into a fourth day to investigate this find more fully.
Work on the fourth day revealed remains of a body in the grave just inside the chapter house door. Forensic examination carried out by the programme suggested that the person died in late-middle age and was overweight
Overweight
Overweight is generally defined as having more body fat than is optimally healthy. Being overweight is a common condition, especially where food supplies are plentiful and lifestyles are sedentary...
and diabetic. They concluded it was likely the man had been a prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
.
Time Team revisited the excavation site for a programme in March 2001 to explore some of the discoveries made since their earlier episode. Coventry Archaeology had continued a dig on the priory, while Northampton Archaeology carried out digs on the cathedral. One of the featured findings was a layer of clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
around the entrance which still carried markings from the wheels of carts believed to have been removing stone after the building was demolished.
Another discovery in December 2000 was the 14th century 'Apocalypse
Apocalypse
An Apocalypse is a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of mankind in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e. the veil to be lifted. The Apocalypse of John is the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament...
Mural'. During removal of debris from an undercroft, a small piece of masonry bearing a painted gold crown was discovered, and this discovery was followed several days later by a larger item. A piece of sandstone measuring 43 cm by 50cm with a painted area covering 20cm by 30cm showing four heads, three of which are wearing crowns.
Remains are visible from both ends of the cathedral building revealing a length of 425 feet.
Following the excavations parts of the remains are open to the public as the 'Priory Garden' which can be walked through or above on wooden walkways. The site of the cloisters has also become a park with a visitor centre containing some of the artefacts excavated.