Information for record number MWA1961:
Possible site of Church of St Helen

Summary There is documentary evidence to suggest that a Medieval church stood on the site of St Sepulchre's Priory before the 11th century. The site of the church is in Priory Park, Warwick.
What Is It?  
Type: Church
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Warwick
District: Warwick, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 28 65
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Scheduled Monument (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 The church of 'St Sepulchre and St Helen' was granted to St Mary's College in 1123, but no more is heard of St Helen's. It stood on the site later occupied by St Sepulchre's Priory (see PRN 1958), the erection of which began in 1109.
2 Revision of SAM.
3 It was suggested by Dugdale that the Priory was founded on the site of the churches of St Sepulchre and St Helen. This is puzzling; it is unclear why there would be a church or churches in this location away from the town or any known settlement, and it is unlikely that a church of St Sepulchre preceeded the founding of the Priory. The only reference to St Helen's church seems to be where it is listed next to St Sepulchre as one of Warwick's churches granted to St Mary's in 1123. There seems to be no necessary connection between the two. There is no further mention of the church of St Helen, although Speed's Map of 1610 shows a St Helens in Bridge End and in 1308 there was a chantry chapel in the Temple Manor here granted to the Templars.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Victoria County History, vol 8, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Pugh R B (ed)
Date: 1969
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 8
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Conservation Plan
Title: Warwick Priory: A Conservation Statement
Author/originator: Palmer N
Date: 1999
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Version 1.0
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Scheduling record
Title: St Sepulchre's Priory
Author/originator: EH
Date: 1999
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
back to top

Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
none Scheduled Monument Scheduled Ancient Monuments (SAMs) are those archaeological sites which are legally recognised as being of national importance. They can range in date from prehistoric times to the Cold War period. They can take many different forms, including disused buildings or sites surviving as earthworks or cropmarks.

SAMs are protected by law from unlicensed disturbance and metal detecting. Written consent from the Secretary of State must be obtained before any sort of work can begin, including archaeological work such as geophysical survey or archaeological excavation. There are nearly 200 SAMs in Warwickshire.
 		back
technique Documentary Evidence Documentary evidence is another name for written records. The first written records in Britain date back to the Roman period. Documentary evidence can take many different forms, including maps, charters, letters and written accounts. When archaeologists are researching a site, they often start by looking at documentary evidence to see if there are clues that will help them understand what they might find. Documentary evidence can help archaeologists understand sites that are discovered during an excavation, field survey or aerial survey. back
period Medieval 1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)

The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.

The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.

The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
more -> 		back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument SETTLEMENT * A small concentration of dwellings. back
monument PARK * An enclosed piece of land, generally large in area, used for hunting, the cultivation of trees, for grazing sheep and cattle or visual enjoyment. Use more specific type where known. back
monument PRIORY * A monastery governed by a prior or prioress. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, FRIARY, MONASTERY or NUNNERY. back
monument CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument BRIDGE * A structure of wood, stone, iron, brick or concrete, etc, with one or more intervals under it to span a river or other space. Use specific type where known. back
monument MANOR * An area of land consisting of the lord's demesne and of lands from whose holders he may exact certain fees, etc. back
monument COLLEGE * An establishment, often forming part of a university, for higher or tertiary education. back
monument CHANTRY CHAPEL * A chapel attached to, or inside, a church, endowed for the celebration of Masses for the soul of the founder. back
monument TOWN * An assemblage of public and private buildings, larger than a village and having more complete and independent local government. back
monument TEMPLE * Use for places of worship. For later landscape features use, eg. GARDEN TEMPLE. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record