Information for record number MWA4169:
Site of Holywell Priory at Coton Farm (Caves Inn)

Summary The site of Holywell Priory, a monastery dating to the Medieval period. The existence of the monastery is suggested by documentary evidence. It was situated 1km south west of Shawell.
What Is It?  
Type: Monastery, Priory
Period: Medieval (1066 AD - 1539 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Newton and Biggin
District: Rugby, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 53 79
(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: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

 
Source Number  

1 Notitia Monastica places the Austin cell of 'Holywell upon Watling Street' and describes it as a cell/chantry of Black Canons belonging to the Abbey of Rowcester in Staffordshire. Holywell Priory is another name for Cave's Inn. The name seems to have been retained for a field and later house on the site, but no trace of the cell or chapel has been discovered. Finds from the area have been mainly Roman but have included a morse (an ecclesiastical cope fastening).
2 Founded 1240-70. Dissolved 1325.
3 Work in the vicinity of the Priory site by Rugby Archaeological Society. No features were recorded, just 'vast amounts of medieval pottery'.
 
Sources

Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Med Religious Houses
Author/originator: Knowles and Hadcock
Date: 1953
Page Number: 138
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: OS Card 25NE6
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1968
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Serial
Title: WMA (West Midlands Archaeology) Vol 49
Author/originator: CBA West Midlands
Date: 2006
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 39
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source OS Card Ordnance Survey Record Card. Before the 1970s the Ordnance Survey (OS) were responsible for recording archaeological monuments during mapping exercises. This helped the Ordnance Survey to decide which monuments to publish on maps. During these exercises the details of the monuments were written down on record cards. Copies of some of the cards are kept at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. The responsibility for recording archaeological monuments later passed to the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments. back
source WMA West Midlands Archaeology. This publication contains a short description for each of the sites where archaeological work has taken place in the previous year. It covers Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire. Some of these descriptions include photographs, plans and drawings of the sites and/or the finds that have been discovered. The publication is produced by the Council For British Archaeology (CBA) West Midlands and is published annually. Copies are held at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. 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 Roman About 43 AD to 409 AD (the 1st century AD to the 5th century AD)

The Roman period comes after the Iron Age and before the Saxon period.

The Roman period in Britain began in 43 AD when a Roman commander called Aulus Plautius invaded the south coast, near Kent. There were a series of skirmishes with the native Britons, who were defeated. In the months that followed, more Roman troops arrived and slowly moved westwards and northwards.
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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.
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monument INN * A public house for the lodging and entertainment of travellers, etc. back
monument HOUSE * A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known. back
monument RELIGIOUS HOUSE * Use only for a monastic house of unknown status, religious order and uncertain authenticity. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument CAVE * A subterranean feature entered from a hillside, cliff face, etc. A cave may have been used for occupation, storage, burial, refuse, or as a hide-away. Index with site type or objects where known. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument PRIORY * A monastery governed by a prior or prioress. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, FRIARY, MONASTERY or NUNNERY. back
monument ABBEY * A religious house governed by an abbot or abbess. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, MONASTERY or NUNNERY. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument CELL * A monastic enclave dependent on a mother house. back
monument CHAPEL * A freestanding building, or a room or recess serving as a place of Christian worship in a church or other building. Use more specific type where known. back
monument MONASTERY * Houses specifically of monks, canons or religious men but not friars. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record