Information for record number MWA8562:
Medieval Holy Trinity Churchyard, Old Town, Stratford

Summary The Medieval churchyard of Holy Trinity Church was investigated in 2014-15 and a number of inhumations of a Medieval to Victorian date have been identified.
What Is It?  
Type: Churchyard, Inhumation
Period: Medieval - Industrial (1066 AD - 1901 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Stratford upon Avon
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 20 54
(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 Well kept churchyard with avenues of lime aligned on N and W doors. Specimen planting, including a cedar from Mount Ararat donated in the 1870s, yews and other conifers. Recommended for inclusion on Local List of parks/gardens.
2 In 2014 Worcestershire Archaeology undertook an evaluation which revealed a number inhumations. 27 inhumations were identified and 17 of these were excavated and analysed along with 1000 fragments of disarticulated bones. A number of grave cuts were also recorded and there were between seven and eight layers of burials. Three of the burials were thought to predate the construction of the church's southern buttresses and as such have been dated to pre 1312-22AD. A number of the upper burials contained traces of wood coffins and metal coffin furniture and as such are thought to be of a Victorian date.
3 In 2015 Worcestershire Archaeology undertook an excavation to the south of the church. 304 inhumations were excavated alongside 28, 889 disarticulated bone fragments. The investigations revealed a number of phases. A Saxon doughnut shaped loom weight was recovered may relate to the 9th century minster, prior to the church's construction circa 1210. 11 burials had been truncated by the church, a further 34 skeletons are thought to be of a an early medieval date, yet pre-dating the church. 133 burials were dated to between 1322 and 1550AD and are thought to have been buried without a coffin. These burials included three pairs of human remains and included a juvenile with an older child, two older children and a probable female with a neonate. From circa 1550-1750 there were 56 burials of which 10 had simple coffins. A single vault was excavated which dated to this period, the vault was a brick construction and appears to have whitewashed walls. The final phases was from 1750 AD to the present and comprised a further 71 burials in elaborate coffins. A few burials in this phase were stacked and it is thought that they would have been related.
 
Sources
Source No: 3
Source Type: Archaeological Report
Title: Archaeological investigation at Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon
Author/originator: Mann A & Weston G
Date: 2016
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report Ref 2329
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Warwickshire Register Review Data Tables (Stratford on Avon)
Author/originator: Lovie, Jonathan
Date: 1997
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Evaluation Report
Title: Archaeological evaluation on the south side of Holy Trinity Church, Old Town, Stratford-upon-Avon
Author/originator: Vaughan T
Date: 2014
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Report Ref 2143
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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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 LAYER * An archaeological unit of soil in a horizontal plane which may seal features or be cut through by other features. back
monument MINSTER * A complex of buildings, often within an enclosure, housing a pre-Benedictine Reform secular religious community. Now commonly used to describe the main church within such a complex, which over time attained higher status. back
monument COFFIN * A chest made of stone, wood or lead, used to enclose a dead body. back
monument INHUMATION * An interment of unburnt, articulated human remains. Use specific type where known. 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 GRAVE * A place of burial. Use more specific type where known. back
monument VAULT * An underground room or building with an arched roof, often used as a burial chamber. Use wider site type where known. back
monument CHURCH * A building used for public Christian worship. Use more specific type where known. back
monument INDUSTRIAL * This is the top term for the class. See INDUSTRIAL Class List for narrow terms. back
monument WELL * A shaft or pit dug in the ground over a supply of spring-water. back
monument WOOD * A tract of land with trees, sometimes acting as a boundary or barrier, usually smaller and less wild than a forest. back
monument CHURCHYARD * An area of ground belonging to a church, often used as a burial ground. back
monument BURIAL * An interment of human or animal remains. Use specific type where known. If component use with wider site type. Use FUNERARY SITE for optimum retrieval in searches. back
monument GARDEN * An enclosed piece of ground devoted to the cultivation of flowers, fruit or vegetables and/or recreational purposes. Use more specific type where known. back
monument HUMAN REMAINS * The unarticulated remains of the body of a human being. If articulated use inhumation. back
monument WALL * An enclosing structure composed of bricks, stones or similar materials, laid in courses. Use specific type where known. back
monument TOWN * An assemblage of public and private buildings, larger than a village and having more complete and independent local government. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record