Summary

Medieval chapel 90m north east of Lyscombe Farm.

Source: Historic England

Details

This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 17 December 2015. The record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

The monument includes a medieval chapel situated in a valley on the eastern bank of a tributary to the River Piddle or Trent. The chapel survives as a small rectangular roofless stone built structure standing to eaves height, the chancel dating back to the 12th century and the nave almost entirely rebuilt in the 15th or 16th centuries. There are several original features including the single light east window, a narrow round headed window on the north wall and a chancel arch with mouldings although some modifications were made during the 13th century. Floor beams and a stone stair were inserted in the chancel in the 16th century. The nave is a 15th or 16th century reconstruction and many of the features including the windows in this part of the building date to this phase. The chapel was converted to a dwelling in the 17th century. Lyscombe is mentioned in documents of 1311 and was once a manor belonging to Milton Abbey and had 13 tenants. Following the Dissolution it was passed by Henry VIII to Sir John Tregonwell in 1540. Chance finds of coarse medieval pottery have been made in the vicinity. The chapel is Listed Grade II*.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

A medieval chapel is a building, usually rectangular, containing a range of furnishings and fittings appropriate for Christian worship in the pre-Reformation period. Chapels were designed for congregational worship and were generally divided into two main parts: the nave, which provided accommodation for the laity, and the chancel, which was the main domain of the priest and contained the principal altar. Around 4000 parochial chapels were built between the 12th and 17th centuries as subsidiary places of worship built for the convenience of parishioners who lived at a distance from the main parish church. Some chapels were built as private places of worship by manorial lords or ecclesiastical houses and lie near or within manor houses, castles or other high-status residences. Many such chapels disappeared after the dissolution of their supporting communities in the 1540s. Chapels, like parish churches, have always been major features of the landscape.

Despite subsequent re-use as a dwelling and subsequent abandonment the medieval chapel 90m north east of Lyscombe Farm survives comparatively well and will retain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to its construction, development, longevity, social and religious significance, subsequent adaptive re-use and overall landscape context.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
PastScape Monument No:-202088

Source: Historic England