Details

The monument includes the known extent of earthwork, standing and buried
remains of the claustral buildings and parts of the wider precinct of the
Priory of St Sepulchre, as well as the ruined remains of the post-Dissolution
mansion built on the site. The priory is sited on the knoll of a hill lying
near the centre of Warwick and to the north of the Norman castle and its river
crossing. Located on one of the dominant landscape features of the
surrounding countryside, it would have had an imposing aspect, being more
visible than either the castle or the town's collegiate church.
The Priory of St Sepulchre was founded by Henry de Newburgh in about 1109 on
the site of an earlier, possibly pre-Norman, church dedicated to St Helen. A
record of 1123 referring to the Church of St Sepulchre and St Helen is the
last known record of this early church. The main complex of conventual
buildings was erected during the 12th century, with the priory church being
consecrated between 1125 and 1151. The priory was suppressed in 1536, and the
buildings rapidly fell into ruins. Following the Dissolution the remains were
incorporated into a mansion with associated gardens, built by Thomas Hawkins
in 1556. This house was largely dismantled and in 1925, moved to Virginia. The
1925 Ordnance Survey map shows the mansion and gardens before demolition. The
land became used as public amenity and parkland with formal gardens in the
19th century and remains a public park.
In 1971 excavations in advance of the construction of the Public Record
Office, revealed part of the nave, the south aisle and the chancel of the
church and parts of the claustral ranges including the square chapter house,
located on the crest of the hill. Those foundations lying immediately to the
west of the record office were left exposed and take the form of red sandstone
foundations of one or two courses defining a two-celled structure and an
adjacent wall. Additional remains such as the pillar and fragments of the arch
of the monastic nave survive attached to the south east angle of Priory
Bungalow. These exposed remains are included in the scheduling. A cist
containing three inhumation burials was located at the east end of the nave of
the monastic church. The excavations also discovered the remains of two large
lime kilns, one circular and one square, located beneath and pre-dating the
monastic remains which are believed to have been associated with the
construction of the castle or the town walls.
The precinct boundary, in the form of an interrupted substantial double
earthen bank and ditch measuring 10m wide by 1m to 2m high, defined the inner
court of the monastery encircling the crown of the hill, and survives to the
south and south east of the priory buildings. Other fragments of the bank and
evidence of terracing of the hill top survive to the north and west of the
site of the church. The remains of a second outer bank terraced into the
slopes of the hill to the east, and a third bank and ditch at the foot of the
hill also to the east, are believed to indicate the course of the wider
precinct boundary incorporated in places among traces of possible later
plantings and landscaping of the parkland. Where it survives, the wider
precinct can be expected to preserve evidence for ancillary buildings such as
barns and storehouses, as well as gardens and industrial areas.
To the north east of the priory was the priory mill which remained in use
during the 17th century when there were two mills, Priory Mill and Frog Mill,
under the same roof. It survived until the late 19th century when it acted as
a saw mill. The 1925 Ordnance Survey map shows the mill buildings as a long
single range lying across the stream with a courtyard of outbuildings to the
south west. The mill was fed by a stream which also filled fishponds; it
entered the precinct from the north west and flowed beneath the buildings of
the mill acting as a leat for industrial purposes. Extant remains of the
water management system of the monastery survive as a stream culverted under
the railway line and the adjacent foundations of the mill lying to the north
east of the inner court.
The remains of a quarry which may have been used in the construction of the
priory buildings lies to the north east of the priory. It measures
approximately 80m long by 30m wide and is up to 7m deep. Excavations in the
quarry in 1867 and later excavations in 1876 to the south side of Priory Hill
discovered evidence of cremation burials placed in cavities in the rock face,
including urns, which were dated as Romano-British.
The County Record Office, Priory Bungalow, the Grade II* Listed Priory House
which includes parts of the Tudor mansion, the Grade II Listed walls of 16th
to 17th century date north east of Priory House, and the modern surfaces and
furniture of a children's playground in the area of the quarry are all
excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath all these features
is included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

From the time of St Augustine's mission to re-establish Christianity in AD 597
to the reign of Henry VIII, monasticism formed an important facet of both
religious and secular life in the British Isles. Settlements of religious
communities, including monasteries, were built to house communities of monks,
canons (priests), and sometimes lay-brothers, living a common life of
religious observance under some form of systematic discipline. It is estimated
from documentary evidence that over 700 monasteries were founded in England.
These ranged in size from major communities with several hundred members to
tiny establishments with a handful of brethren. They belonged to a wide
variety of different religious orders, each with its own philosophy. As a
result, they vary considerably in the detail of their appearance and layout,
although all possess the basic elements of church, domestic accommodation for
the community, and work buildings. Monasteries were inextricably woven into
the fabric of medieval society, acting not only as centres of worship,
learning, and charity, but also, because of the vast landholdings of some
orders, as centres of immense wealth and political influence. They were
established in all parts of England, some in towns and others in the remotest
of areas. Many monasteries acted as the foci of wide networks including parish
churches, almshouses, hospitals, farming estates and tenant villages. Some 225
of these religious houses belonged to the order of St Augustine. The
Augustinians were not monks in the strict sense, but rather communities of
canons - or priests - living under the rule of St Augustine. In England they
came to be known as `black canons' because of their dark coloured robes and to
distinguish them from the Cistercians who wore light clothing. From the 12th
century onwards, they undertook much valuable work in the parishes, running
almshouses, schools and hospitals as well as maintaining and preaching in
parish churches. It was from the churches that they derived much of their
revenue. The Augustinians made a major contribution to many facets of medieval
life and all of their monasteries which exhibit significant surviving
archaeological remains are worthy of protection.

Excavations at the site of St Sepulchre's Priory have demonstrated that the
buried remains survive well. They will illustrate the different phases of
growth and alteration of the monastic buildings and include information about
changing fashions and technologies. The preservation of human remains around
the monastic church will allow consideration of the lifestyles and living
conditions of the occupants of the monastery as well as its patrons, who may
have been buried in the church and cemetery. An understanding of the age range
and life span of the canons, their diet and state of health and their burial
practices and ritual activities may also be gained from the burials. The
remains of the church and claustral buildings and artefactual evidence will
illustrate the range of social and trade contacts of the house, providing
evidence of its relative status and wealth, its main activities, and
involvement with the town of Warwick.
The survival of parts of the precinct and mills in a waterlogged condition
may preserve environmental deposits which will include information about the
natural environment surrounding the site during the medieval period. In
addition, mill buildings survived from the medieval period until the early
20th century and will preserve remains which demonstrate the technological
changes and advances in the industry including evidence of their changing use.
The 1971 excavations also demonstrated a number of surviving remains pre-
dating monastic use of the area. These earlier remains, including lime kilns,
are believed to relate to the early Norman period and will provide information
about the early origins of Warwick. It is also believed that the buried
remains of an earlier church from the late Saxon period survive on the site
and will include evidence about both the construction and use of the building
as well as evidence for early religious development of the region, including
insights into ritual practices before the coming of the Augustinian priory.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Page, W, The Victoria History of the County of Warwickshire, (1908), 97-9
WJF, , 'WMANS' in Interim Report of Excavations at Warwick Priory, , Vol. 14, (1971), 31
Other
Warwickshire SMR, Various Notes,

Source: Historic England