Details

The monument includes the standing and buried remains of St Nicholas's Chapel,
a chapel of medieval and later date situated immediately north west of Manor
House.

The standing remains of the chapel, which are Listed Grade II, consist of a
fragment of the northern wall of the nave up to 4m in length and 2.5m in
height. The wall is of coursed rubble and dressed stone construction and
includes a doorway with moulded imposts, a single chamfered arch and hood
mould which can be dated architecturally to the late 13th century. The
original extent of the chapel is marked by a rectangular flat-topped platform
up to 3m in height which covers an area measuring approximately 27m east to
west and 13m north to south.

Documentary sources suggest that the chapel was built before 1162 by the
Maunsell family, lords of the manor. In 1210 Robert Maunsell is recorded as
claiming the proceeds from the chapel, but in 1220 it came under the control
of the mother church at Church Langton. During the 16th and early 17th
centuries there was a resident chaplain at Tur Langton, but the practice had
lapsed by the 18th century. The chapel is depicted in some detail in an
engraving dated to 1792 which shows it to have had a nave, a chancel, south
porch and a west bell-cote with a space for two bells. St Nicholas's was
partly demolished in 1866 and replaced by a new church 500m to the east.

All fences are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath these
features is included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

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. Other chapels were built as private places of worship by manorial
lords and lie near or within manor houses, castles or other high-status
residences. Chantry chapels were built and maintained by endowment and were
established for the singing of masses for the soul of the founder. Some
chapels possessed burial grounds. Unlike parish churches, the majority of
which remain in ecclesiastical use, chapels were often abandoned as their
communities and supporting finances declined or disappeared. Many chantry
chapels disappeared after the dissolution of their supporting communities in
the 1540s.
Chapels, like parish churches, have always been major features of the
landscape. A significant number of surviving examples are identified as being
nationally important. The sites of abandoned chapels, where positively
identified, are particularly worthy of statutory protection as they were often
left largely undisturbed and thus retain important information about the
nature and date of their use up to their abandonment.

The remains of the St Nicholas's Chapel survive as a series of earthworks,
standing and buried remains. The site has been subject to little disturbance
with the result that the preservation of archaeological deposits is likely to
be good. These are likely to consist of the foundations of the chapel and
debris relating to its construction and use which can provide information as
to its date, modification and eventual abandonment. As a result of the
survival of historical documentation relating to the site the remains are very
well understood and offer an important insight into the status and changing
fortunes of the associated manorial settlement in the medieval and immediate
post-medieval periods.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Nichols, J, The History and Antiquities of the County of Leicestershire, (1800)
Page, W , The Victoria History of the County of Leicester, (1964)
Other
E.H., Listed Building Report SP 79 SW 7/112, (1966)

Source: Historic England