Mediaeval Stone Building, Coventry

Last updated

Mediaeval Stone Building
Medieval Stone Building - Jan 2013 photo 1.JPG
The three remaining walls of the Mediaeval Stone Building
West Midlands UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within the West Midlands
General information
StatusGrade II* listed
AddressMuch Park Street
Town or city Coventry
Country United Kingdom
Coordinates 52°24′20″N1°30′19″W / 52.405525°N 1.50525°W / 52.405525; -1.50525
Completed13th or 14th century
Owner Coventry City Council

The Mediaeval Stone Building is an unidentified mediaeval ruin on Much Park Street, Coventry, in the West Midlands of England. The ruin is a Grade II* listed building. The building is believed to have been built in the late 13th or early 14th century and was uncovered by a German bomb during the Coventry Blitz. The building was originally rectangular, and is made from red sandstone and one of the walls contains a single pointed arched window in one wall. The shell of the cellar remains—one of several similar cellars in Coventry city centre including those at 21–22 High Street, Coventry and 38–39 Bayley Lane—as do three of the four walls from the ground floor. However, the vault has been lost. [1] [2]

The building's original purpose is unknown. There is speculation that it may have been associated with the monastery at Whitefriars further along Much Park Street or an independent merchant's house. The site of the building was excavated in 1971, and archaeologists discovered pottery from the 13th and 14th centuries. [3]

Related Research Articles

Coventry City in the West Midlands, England

Coventry is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The conurbation consists of the Coventry and Bedworth Urban Area, the 20th largest in the country; the city is governed by Coventry City Council.

Warwick Castle Medieval motte-and-bailey castle in Warwickshire, England

Warwick Castle is a medieval castle developed from a wooden fort, originally built by William the Conqueror during 1068. Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England, situated on a meander of the River Avon. The original wooden motte-and-bailey castle was rebuilt in stone during the 12th century. During the Hundred Years War, the facade opposite the town was refortified, resulting in one of the most recognisable examples of 14th-century military architecture. It was used as a stronghold until the early 17th century, when it was granted to Sir Fulke Greville by James I in 1604. Greville converted it to a country house, and it was owned by the Greville family until 1978, when it was bought by the Tussauds Group.

Warwick County town of Warwickshire, England

Warwick is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire, England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is 9 miles (14 km) south of Coventry, and 19 miles (31 km) south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whitnash. It has ancient origins and an array of historic buildings, notably from the Medieval, Stuart and Georgian eras. It was a major fortified settlement from the early Middle Ages, the most notable relic of this period being Warwick Castle, a major tourist attraction. Much was destroyed in the Great Fire of Warwick in 1694 and then rebuilt with fine 18th century buildings, such as the Collegiate Church of St Mary and the Shire Hall.

Coventry Cathedral Cathedral in West Midlands, England

The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The current bishop is Christopher Cocksworth and the current dean is John Witcombe.

History of Warwickshire Aspect of history

This is about the history of the county Warwickshire situated in the English Midlands. Historically, bounded to the north-west by Staffordshire, by Leicestershire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the east, Worcestershire to the west, Oxfordshire to the south and Gloucestershire to the south-west. Areas historically part of Warwickshire include Coventry, Solihull, Sutton Coldfield and much of central Birmingham including Aston and Edgbaston. These became part of the metropolitan county of West Midlands following local government re-organisation in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972.

History of Coventry Aspect of history

This article is about the history of Coventry, a city in the West Midlands, England.

Coventry Blitz German bombing raids on the English city in World War II

The Coventry Blitz or Coventration of the city was a series of bombing raids that took place on the British city of Coventry. The city was bombed many times during the Second World War by the German Air Force (Luftwaffe). The most devastating of these attacks occurred on the evening of 14 November 1940 and continued into the morning of 15 November.

St Helens Church, Hangleton Church

St Helen's Church, an Anglican church in the Hangleton area of Hove, is the oldest surviving building in the English city of Brighton and Hove. It is the ancient parish church of Hangleton, an isolated South Downs village that was abandoned by the Middle Ages and was open farmland until the Interwar Period, when extensive residential development took place.

Greyfriars, Coventry Spire in Coventry, United Kingdom

Greyfriars was a medieval monastic house in Coventry, England. The original monastic buildings were lost in the reformation, the spire standing on the site today was most recently part of a 19th century church that was destroyed in an air raid in the Second World War.

Whitefriars, Coventry Friary in Coventry, England

The buildings known as Whitefriars are the surviving fragments of a Carmelite friary founded in 1342 in Coventry, England. All that remains are the eastern cloister walk, a postern gateway in Much Park Street and the foundations of the friary church. It was initially home to a friary until the Dissolution of the Monasteries. During the 16th century it was owned by John Hales and served as King Henry VIII School, Coventry, before the school moved to St John's Hospital, Coventry. It was home to a workhouse during the 19th century. The buildings are currently used by Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry.

Whorlton Castle Castle ruins in North Yorkshire, England

Whorlton Castle is a ruined medieval castle situated near the abandoned village of Whorlton in North Yorkshire, England. It was established in the early 12th century as a Norman motte-and-bailey associated with the nearby settlement. The castle is an unusual example of a motte-and-bailey that remained in use throughout the Middle Ages and into the early modern period.

Coventry city walls

Coventry's city walls are a sequence of defensive structures built around the city of Coventry in England.

Hay Hall, Birmingham

Hay Hall is a former 15th century hall located at Tyseley, in Birmingham, West Midlands, England. The extensive Hay Hall estate was situated between the Coventry and Warwick roads and included an area now known as Hay Mills, which was the site of a water mill. In the 16th century the timber-framed building was encased in brick. Originally a sub manor of the Este family, the building form comprised a central open hall with cross-wings at either end. There are no traces of the original moat in the area, with the modern surroundings currently developed as factories and works, known as Hay Hall Business Park. It was listed Grade II in 1952.

38–39 Bayley Lane

38–39 Bayley Lane is a former building, whose present-day site is accessible from the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in Coventry, England. All that remains is the medieval undercroft, a fourteenth-century cellar that initially belonged to a wealthy merchant, who was a clothier. The undercroft is built with sandstone with a stone-ribbed vault for added security and strength. It is a Grade I listed building.

Bayley Lane

Bayley Lane is a historic street in the centre of Coventry and is thought to follow the line of the outer ditch or bailey of the former Coventry Castle, founded by the Earls of Chester between 1088 and 1147.

Grade I listed buildings in Coventry

There are 19 Grade I listed buildings in the City of Coventry. In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a building or structure of special historical or architectural importance. These buildings are legally protected from demolition, as well as from any extensions or alterations that would adversely affect the building's character or destroy historic features. Listed buildings in England and Wales are divided into three categories—Grade II buildings are buildings of special interest; Grade II* buildings are Grade II buildings of particular interest; and Grade I buildings, which are those of "exceptional" interest. Only around four per cent of listed buildings are given Grade I status.

Caludon Castle Grade I listed castle in the United Kingdom

Caludon Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and Grade I listed building in Coventry, in the West Midlands of England. A second moated site 190 metres (620 ft) to the south is a Scheduled Ancient Monument in its own right. The castle is now a ruin, and all that remains is a large fragment of sandstone wall. What remains of the estate is now an urban park, owned and run by Coventry City Council, but much of it was sold and developed into housing estates in the early 20th century.

21–22 High Street, Coventry

The cellars of 21 and 22 High Street are listed buildings in the centre of Coventry, in the West Midlands of England. The cellar of No 21 is a Grade II listed building, while that of No 22 is Grade I listed, meaning that they are sites of "special architectural or historic interest". The cellars were formerly a single crypt, built in the 15th century (CE). They are constructed from sandstone, and measure approximately 17 x 20 feet and 56 x 27 feet. Both are supported by large octagonal columns and ribbed vaulting. They were listed in 1955 and 1975. The cellars may be some of the oldest remaining traces of domestic building work in Coventry, and several similar cellars exist elsewhere on High Street and other nearby streets, some dating back to the 14th century. The cellars are divided into two aisles, each containing four bays, which are divided by the octagonal columns.

Scheduled monuments in Coventry Wikimedia list article

There are ten scheduled monuments in Coventry. In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a "nationally important" archaeological site or historic building that has been given protection against unauthorised change by being placed on a list by the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport; English Heritage takes the leading role in identifying such sites. Monuments are defined in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 and the National Heritage Act 1983. Scheduled monuments—sometimes referred to as scheduled ancient monuments—can also be protected through listed building procedures, and English Heritage considers listed building status to be a better way of protecting buildings and standing structures. A scheduled monument that is later determined to "no longer merit scheduling" can be descheduled.

Grade II* listed buildings in Coventry

There are 24 Grade II* listed buildings in the City of Coventry. In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a building or structure of special historical or architectural importance. These buildings are legally protected from demolition, as well as from any extensions or alterations that would adversely affect the building's character or destroy historic features. Listed buildings are divided into three categories—Grade I buildings are buildings of "exceptional" interest, Grade II buildings are buildings of special interest, and Grade II* buildings are Grade II buildings that are of particular interest. Coventry is an ancient city and a metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. The city's history dates back to at least the 11th century (CE), and it was a thriving centre of commerce in mediaeval times.

References

  1. Historic England. "Medieval Stone Building (1342921)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  2. Stephens, W.B. (Editor) (1969). "The City of Coventry: Buildings: Domestic buildings". A History of the County of Warwick: Volume 8: The City of Coventry and Borough of Warwick. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 15 October 2012.{{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  3. Plaque on building.