St Edmund's Chapel
Encyclopedia
St Edmund's Chapel is a church in Dover, England, dedicated to St Edmund
. It was completed in 1262 as a wayside chapel
or chapel of rest for the cemetery for the poor beside the Maison Dieu, just outside the enclosed part of the medieval town, a short distance above Biggin Gate, and for pilgrims setting off for Thomas Becket
's shrine at Canterbury Cathedral
. This cemetery had been established by the monks of Dover Priory
.
The building is about 28 feet in length, by 14 feet broad with walls of rubble masonry two feet thick, with Caen stone
quoins
and dressing
s.
It was first consecrated on Refreshment Sunday
30 March 1253 by Bishop Richard of Chichester
, who preached his last sermon on that occasion, saying that he had always longed before his last day to "consecrate one church at least in honour of Blessed Edmund."Next morning during Mass, he fell to the ground, and was carried to bed in the Maison Dieu, where he died on 3 April. His internal organs were then removed in this chapel in preparation for the journey to Chichester Cathedral
, where he wished to be buried, and placed in the chapel altar. Because of this and its dedication, it became a place of pilgrimage in its own right.
At the Dissolution of the Monasteries
, the chapel, Priory and Maison Dieu were all dissolved in 1544. The rest of its history is sketchy - immediately after the dissolution, it was probably still associated with the fortunes of the Maison Dieu and became part of a victualling store for the Navy, and later became a store-house for the shops which came to be built in Biggin Street.
In the middle of the nineteenth century it was converted into a two-floor building, and became a dwelling-house and forge. In 1943 artillery shells from the cross channel guns destroyed the two shops hiding the chapel on the Priory Road side, leaving the chapel itself untouched. Attempts to make it an Scheduled Ancient Monument
in 1963 failed and it was scheduled for demolition, but on attracting interest from a local Catholic priest it was privately purchased two years later. From 1967 it underwent a one-year restoration project, using original medieval techniques (although at least 75 percent of the building seen today is original), and reconsecrated in 1968http://cka.moon-demon.co.uk/KAR012/KAR012_Dover.htm. During the restoration there was a 4 day archaeological investigation conducted by Brian Philphttp://cka.moon-demon.co.uk/KAR021/KAR021_chapel.htm. It is now an ecumenical chapel, and was for a time open to the public. It now rarely opens. It is maintained by The St Edmund of Abingdon Memorial Trust.
Though it is used for a Saturday morning Eucharist, a Christian Unity vigil, candle-lit services for the Feast Days of St Edmund and St Richard, it now opens to the public less frequently.
Edmund Rich
Edmund Rich was a 13th century Archbishop of Canterbury in England...
. It was completed in 1262 as a wayside chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
or chapel of rest for the cemetery for the poor beside the Maison Dieu, just outside the enclosed part of the medieval town, a short distance above Biggin Gate, and for pilgrims setting off for Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion...
's shrine at Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
. This cemetery had been established by the monks of Dover Priory
Dover Priory
The Priory of St. Mary the Virgin and St. Martin of the New Work, or Newark, commonly called Dover Priory, was a priory at Dover in southeast England...
.
The building is about 28 feet in length, by 14 feet broad with walls of rubble masonry two feet thick, with Caen stone
Caen stone
Caen stone or Pierre de Caen, is a light creamy-yellow Jurassic limestone quarried in northwestern France near the city of Caen.The limestone is a fine grained oolitic limestone formed in shallow water lagoons in the Bathonian Age about 167 million years ago...
quoins
Quoin (architecture)
Quoins are the cornerstones of brick or stone walls. Quoins may be either structural or decorative. Architects and builders use quoins to give the impression of strength and firmness to the outline of a building...
and dressing
Dressing
Dressing may refer to:* Dressing , a medical covering for a wound, usually made of cloth* Ore dressing* Salad dressing, a type of sauce which is generally poured on a salad, or spread on the bread of a sandwich...
s.
It was first consecrated on Refreshment Sunday
Refreshment Sunday
The Refreshment Sundays or Rose Sundays are Sundays within the two major fasts observed in Western Christianity, Lent and Advent. On these days, the fast was allowed to be relaxed, hence the name "Refreshment Sunday"...
30 March 1253 by Bishop Richard of Chichester
Richard of Chichester
Richard of Chichester is a saint who was Bishop of Chichester...
, who preached his last sermon on that occasion, saying that he had always longed before his last day to "consecrate one church at least in honour of Blessed Edmund."Next morning during Mass, he fell to the ground, and was carried to bed in the Maison Dieu, where he died on 3 April. His internal organs were then removed in this chapel in preparation for the journey to Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, otherwise called Chichester Cathedral, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in Sussex, England...
, where he wished to be buried, and placed in the chapel altar. Because of this and its dedication, it became a place of pilgrimage in its own right.
At 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...
, the chapel, Priory and Maison Dieu were all dissolved in 1544. The rest of its history is sketchy - immediately after the dissolution, it was probably still associated with the fortunes of the Maison Dieu and became part of a victualling store for the Navy, and later became a store-house for the shops which came to be built in Biggin Street.
In the middle of the nineteenth century it was converted into a two-floor building, and became a dwelling-house and forge. In 1943 artillery shells from the cross channel guns destroyed the two shops hiding the chapel on the Priory Road side, leaving the chapel itself untouched. Attempts to make it an Scheduled Ancient Monument
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorized change. The various pieces of legislation used for legally protecting heritage assets from damage and destruction are grouped under the term...
in 1963 failed and it was scheduled for demolition, but on attracting interest from a local Catholic priest it was privately purchased two years later. From 1967 it underwent a one-year restoration project, using original medieval techniques (although at least 75 percent of the building seen today is original), and reconsecrated in 1968http://cka.moon-demon.co.uk/KAR012/KAR012_Dover.htm. During the restoration there was a 4 day archaeological investigation conducted by Brian Philphttp://cka.moon-demon.co.uk/KAR021/KAR021_chapel.htm. It is now an ecumenical chapel, and was for a time open to the public. It now rarely opens. It is maintained by The St Edmund of Abingdon Memorial Trust.
Though it is used for a Saturday morning Eucharist, a Christian Unity vigil, candle-lit services for the Feast Days of St Edmund and St Richard, it now opens to the public less frequently.