THE MEDIEVAL TOWN.
Continuous settlementbegan, perhaps in the 6th century, where a natural
weir provided a crossing-point on the Avon, though
evidence of Neolithic settlement is now (1966) being
unearthed in the town. (fn. 26) The site was possibly on the
south side of the river, on one of the terraces of sand
and gravel that occur along the Avon and which
offered easily cultivable land. (fn. 27) The settlement may
have become a flourishing one, for two Anglo-Saxon
cemeteries have been found nearby: one, about a mile
above Warwick and on the north side of the Avon,
has produced ornaments including a striking silver
necklet; the other, about a mile south-west of
Warwick and again on the north bank, has yielded
numerous weapons and ornaments. (fn. 28)
When Ethelfleda, sister of Edward the Elder,
established the burh at Warwick in 914, it was on a
hill-top site overlooking the early riverside settlement.
Much of the land along the Avon lies at about 150
feet and only in the north of Warwick are there
continuous tracts above 200 feet, exceeding 350 feet
within the area later occupied by Wedgnock Park.
Nearer the Avon, however, several small, isolated,
knolls reach over 200 feet, and one of these, lying
close to the river, was chosen as the site of the burh.
This is an outlier of the Keuper Sandstone outcrop
which stretches north from Warwick; it provided a
defensible area, and it was also a good source of
building stone and well water. The burh was one of
ten built for the defence of Mercia against the
Danes; (fn. 29) it commanded both the river valley and the
crossing, and it was strategically well placed to
control the Fosse Way. Probably during the early
10th century Warwick acquired an administrative
importance, too, with the establishment of a shire
centred on the town. (fn. 30)
The area surrounded by Ethelfleda's fortfications
may have corresponded to that within the medieval
walls, and it almost certainly included the site of the
later castle. The castle was built in 1068 when
William the Conqueror was obliged to move north
against the uprising in Yorkshire. (fn. 31) In the process
four houses were destroyed, (fn. 32) and the mother
church of Warwick, All Saints, was also enclosed
within the castle precincts. The motte of the castle
has become known as Ethelfleda's Mound, though
it is unmistakably part of the Norman work. The
subsequent building history of the castle is given
elsewhere. (fn. 33)
Figure 14:
Communications c.1966
The fortification of Warwick was completed with
the building of a town wall, possibly placed near
Ethelfleda's ramparts. Preliminary excavations in
1965 (fn. 34) revealed an earth rampart inside the line of
the town wall, and a ditch in places 25 feet wide and
9 feet deep cut into the sandstone. The wall was
built on the top of the rock face. The date of this
work is not known. According to Rous, Turchil of
Arden, then owner of Warwick, on orders from
William the Conqueror, constructed a ditch around
the town and gated it, but did not build walls. (fn. 35)
Grants of murage and pavage to Guy de Beauchamp,
lord of Warwick, in 1305 (for seven years) and 1315
(for three years) (fn. 36) are likely to have been connected
with the upkeep of the wall. It is said that Richard
Beauchamp, who died in 1439, 'had purposed . . . to
have walled the town and assigned rents to do it
with', (fn. 37) but his intention must certainly have been
renovation of the existing walls. George, Duke of
Clarence, is also said to have planned to wall the
town. (fn. 38)
Outside the walls ran 'the common ditch',
mentioned as early as the mid 13th century (fn. 39) and
again possibly following the course of a ditch constructed by Ethelfleda. There were three main gates
through the walls, on the north, east, and west sides
of the town. The North Gate is referred to in 1272 (fn. 40)
but had been demolished by the early 16th century. (fn. 41)
The East Gate, probably reconstructed in the early
15th century, when the chapel of St. Peter was built
above it, (fn. 42) has a wide arch spanning the original
roadway and a smaller arch for pedestrians to the
north of it. The gate was again altered and re-faced
in the late 18th century; it was probably at this time
that the diversion of the roadway to the south was
constructed. (fn. 43) In 1576 St. Peter's chapel, having
been described as 'ruinous and ready to fall', (fn. 44) was
acquired by the corporation. In 1788 the chapel was
rebuilt in the Gothic style by Francis Hiorn. (fn. 45) A
view from the west before this date (fn. 46) suggests that
the main lines of the 15th-century chapel were
followed at the rebuilding, but that various embellishments such as tall pinnacles and crenellations
were added. The present building resembles a
miniature church, raised above the gate on a
platform with an embattled parapet. The small west
tower is surmounted by angle pinnacles and a
wooden turret. The turret on the former tower was
larger and had been given, together with a clock, by
Fulke Weale by will of 1729. (fn. 47) The present windows
contain forking and intersecting tracery and the east
end has a stepped gable flanked by pinnacles. The
main part of the building is divided into two stories;
in the early 19th century there were two schoolrooms
on the lower floor and apartments for the master and
mistress above. (fn. 48) Another schoolroom to the north,
evidently rebuilt in the Gothic style in 1788, may
have formed a small transept to the original chapel. (fn. 49)
The buildings are now (1966) part of the Girls' High
School.
The West Gate appears to have been reconstructed
in the late 14th century together with the Chapel of
St. James above it. (fn. 50) Both were extended westwards
early in the following century when a tower was added
to the chapel, its base being pierced by the main
entrance arch to the gate. The central part of the
gateway passage has a pointed and ribbed barrel
vault of the 14th century; at their base the walls are
cut through the solid rock. On the north side there
are traces of an earlier wall and vault, perhaps part
of a narrower passage. The parapet walk along the
top of the town wall had originally skirted the east
end of the chapel. After the wall was breached and
the roadway diverted to the south of the gate, the
walks along the south and east sides of the chapel
appear to have fallen into disuse. They were rebuilt
when the chapel was restored in 1863-5. A short
extension was then made to the gateway passage at
its east end to support the new path above it.
Most of the wall had already been demolished by
the early 16th century: Leland saw remains of the
wall only near the West and East Gates. (fn. 51) More,
apparently, had been left in 1424-5 when a garden
was described as being under the wall of the town
opposite Lethenhull Gate. (fn. 52) The town ditch
survived, at least in part, throughout the 15th
century, (fn. 53) and Wallditch was still regarded as a
watercourse in 1664. (fn. 54) The only remaining stretches
of the town wall adjoin the north sides of the two
gates, (fn. 55) but the approximate position of the rest is
suggested by the lay-out of streets which encircle
the old town. Outside the line of the wall and the
ditch run the streets now called Bowling Green
Street, Theatre Street, Joyce Pool, Chapel Street,
Gerrard Street, and Mill Street. Inside the line of
the wall run Market Street, Barrack Street, and the
Butts. In the neighbourhood of the castle modern
changes have obscured the pattern, but formerly
both Brittain Lane and Back Hills seem to have run
inside the line of the wall. (fn. 56)
There is no mention of a town gate on the south.
Leland said that 'the strength of the bridge . . .
stands for the south gate', (fn. 57) and the survey of the
bridge in 1774 noted that one of the piers was larger
than the rest, suggesting the existence of some kind
of barrier. (fn. 58) There is no trace of this in Hollar's plan
of the town in 1654, but by that time there was
certainly a gate at the end of Crosse Street. (fn. 59)
It is not known when 'the great bridge' was built
but it is probably referred to as early as 1208. (fn. 60) In
1373 half of the bridge was 'in ruins and almost
broken to the ground', and it was stated that it had
customarily been repaired only by charitable
means. (fn. 61) Grants of pontage were made to a group of
burgesses in 1374, 1377, and 1380, (fn. 62) and the upkeep
of the bridge may have become the responsibility of
the Guild of the Holy Trinity and St. Mary in
1383. (fn. 63) The Guild of Warwick was still responsible
for it in 1545. (fn. 64) The bridge was rebuilt upstream in
the 18th century and the old bridge was swept away
by flood waters in 1795; (fn. 65) remains of the medieval
structure include three arches in the centre of the
river, and fragments on both banks, more extensive
on the south where the bridge seems to have ended
in a causeway.
The medieval street plan was much influenced by
the line of the walls, as already mentioned. Two
roughly circular lines of streets ran inside and outside
the walls round the greater part of the town, broken
principally on the south by the castle. Within the
walls the chief feature, the 'beauty and glory of the
town' as Leland put it, (fn. 66) was the crossing of two
main lines of streets: one, consisting of High Street
(or High Pavement) and Jury Street, ran from East
Gate to West Gate; the other, formed by Castle
Street, Church Street, and Northgate Street, intersected the first in the centre of the town. At this
central point stood 'a right goodly cross', (fn. 67) and
nearby - until moved to East Gate in the 15th
century - was St. Peter's Church. Over West Gate
was St. James's Chapel, and next to it the Guildhall. (fn. 68)
In the north-west quarter of the town was the
High Market, with the Court House, (fn. 69) Booth Hall,
and a market cross. Branches of the market were
held in various streets and buildings round about
it including the Moot Hall in Horse Cheaping. (fn. 70)
Also in the market place was St. John's Church,
which by the late 15th century was used for the
grammar school. (fn. 71) The north-east quarter contained
St. Mary's Church and the buildings of the college,
and in the south-east quarter was one of the largest
open spaces within the walls - the castle vineyard.
The chief houses in the town stood mostly on the
two main lines of streets already mentioned. There,
for example, were almost all the burgages, to judge
from a rental of those belonging to the castle manor
in 1482: 10 in High Pavement, 8 in Castle Street, 3
in Jury Street, one in Northgate Street, and one
in Brittain Lane, near the castle. Many of the earls'
messuages were in the same streets: 8 each in High
Pavement and Northgate Street, 7 in Jury Street,
and 4 in Castle Street in 1482; 7 others were in the
High Market, Horse Cheaping, and Wallditch
Street. Cottages were scattered throughout the
town, but of 27 belonging to the manor in 1482 a
many as 13 were in Castle Street. (fn. 72)
At least one of the chief houses was associated
with a particular officer of the manor - the
Steward's Place in Northgate Street. In 1482 the
bailiff also lived in that street (fn. 73) but after 1504 he had
use of the Booth Hall in the High Market. (fn. 74) Other
houses in Northgate Street were at different times in
the 15th century the residences of canons of St.
Mary's College: Treasurer's Place and a stone-built
house called Miles Place, for example. The college
had other substantial houses in the same street,
among them Stonehall and two called Lemynton,
and nearby in Horse Cheaping it owned Berkeswell
Place. (fn. 75)
In High Pavement in 1482 there was a burgage
called Sotemays, where the 14th-century M.P., John
Sotemay, had lived, (fn. 76) and two houses called the Swan
and the Bear; (fn. 77) the latter was then described as a
vacant plot, and the ground of a burgage called the
Bear is mentioned in 1545. (fn. 78) St. Mary's College had
houses in High Pavement called the Cheker and the
Crown. (fn. 79) A house or tavern, called Edmonde's
Place, next to the cross at the centre of the town went
with the keepership of the castle in the early 16th
century. (fn. 80) Other named houses were 'londonhede', (fn. 81)
'le Sterre', (fn. 82) and Bennett's Place, belonging to the
M.P. and grazier Bennet Lee. (fn. 83) A house in Castle
Street was on a site where the 'mewe' had formerly
stood. (fn. 84)
Among the more modest property in 1482 was one
cottage in the High Market, near the pillory, known
as the 'pevette'. In High Pavement were a forge (fn. 85)
and a garden adjoining the earls' Charter Stable, and
barns are mentioned in various parts of the town.
Among the open spaces were several gardens, and in
Brittain Lane there was a quarry and a piece of waste
land called the Old Pinfold. Behind the college were
St. Mary's Butts. There are, too, signs of decay at
this date. Four gardens had each formerly been a
cottage, three barns had replaced five cottages, a
vacant plot had been three cottages, another plot had
formerly been a house, and a cottage had been built
on a plot where the Staple Place had once stood. (fn. 86)
St. Mary's Church dominated the town from near
the highest point within the walls, and round it lay
the canons' houses, the college of vicars choral, and
the choir school which formed 'an area like a
cathedral precinct in the heart of the town'. (fn. 87) Little
is known about the buildings of the college before
their reconstruction between 1455 and 1464, though
by 1336 there was a hall and residential accommodation. (fn. 88) The construction of the Beauchamp Chapel
between 1442 and 1462 necessitated the removal of
the Dean's house which had stood on the site, and
also a rearrangement of the churchyard boundaries.
In 1454 Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, gave to
the college a small piece of land, formerly belonging
to a prebend of St. Mary's, and also a narrow strip of
waste ground. The first gift was expressly for the
enlargement both of the house and gardens of the
dean and vicars choral and of the churchyard; the
second was to enlarge the churchyard. (fn. 89) Earl
Richard's executors built new houses for the dean
and vicars between 1455 and 1464, and also reconstructed the boundary wall which still remains. (fn. 90)
The fifteenth-century college was a two-storied,
timber-framed building constructed around a
quadrangle, with passages on the ground and first
floors on the inner sides, in the form of a two-storied
cloister. Only two sides of the quadrangle, much
altered, remained by c. 1830. (fn. 91) Inside, some of the
rooms had later carved panelling. (fn. 92) At the entrance
to the college gardens, close by the brewhouse, was
an octagonal building, called the 'Tower', which had
a 'very ornamental' alcove under it, and wainscotting, under which paintings of red rose trees were
discovered. This building was demolished c. 1780. (fn. 93)
The college building itself passed into private hands
after its dissolution in 1540, and was owned by the
Wagstaffes of Tachbrook until 1699. (fn. 94) The corporation purchased it in that year for £260 for use
as a grammar school, and it remained so used until
new buildings were opened for Warwick School at
Myton in 1879. The buildings were then sold and
demolished, 'an act which met with general condemnation'. (fn. 95)
The suburbs lay close outside the three gates and
beyond the bridge over the Avon. The western
suburb stood around West Street, Walkers Lane,
and Queenwell Street (or Friar Lane) where the
Dominican friary was situated. St. Lawrence's
Church was in West Street. Outside North Gate the
suburb was centred on Saltisford, with more houses
in Hogford. It was by Saltisford that a salt-way from
Droitwich reached Warwick. (fn. 96) St. Michael's Church
and Hospital were in Saltisford, and St. Sepulchre's
Priory was close to North Gate. The eastern suburb
consisted of Smith Street, leading out to Coten End,
together with St. Nicholas's Street, Mill Street,
Gaol Hall Lane, Poke Lane, and Dog Lane. The
chief buildings here were St. Nicholas's Church, the
county gaol, and St. John's Hospital. South of the
Avon was the suburb of Bridge End, where Mill
Street, Cross Street, and Warytree Street met. One
substantial house here was Brome Place, (fn. 97) and close
by was the house of the Templars.
The rental of property belonging to the castle
manor in 1482 suggests that most of the suburban
houses stood along the main roads outside the gates
- West Street, Saltisford, and Smith Street - and
at Bridge End, in each of which there were fifteen or
twenty properties; the other streets together contained another twenty. Everywhere cottages predominated over houses. There were numerous barns,
gardens, and crofts, and such larger open spaces as
the Old Vineyard of the castle. And in the suburbs
as in the town itself many signs of decay were
evident. Tofts, barns, gardens, and vacant plots had
all formerly been houses and cottages: more than
30 dwellings had been replaced by fewer than ten. (fn. 98)
Little is known of the buildings of the religious
houses in the suburbs. St. Sepulchre's Priory was
founded in the early 12th century, and the church
and churchyard were consecrated by Simon, Bishop
of Worcester (1125-51). (fn. 99) Further work was presumably in progress in 1266, when timber was
granted to the priory. (fn. 1) The Dominican friary was
founded in the mid 13th century and building was
in progress in 1263 when timber was granted for it. (fn. 2)
More timber was given in 1265 and, for the roof of
the choir, in 1267, (fn. 3) and the church was probably
dedicated in 1268. (fn. 4) Other work was in progress in
1291 and 1295, when yet more timber was granted. (fn. 5)
The site was several times enlarged during the 14th
century: in 1317 the friars were pardoned for
acquiring without licence an adjoining plot of 160 by
100 feet; (fn. 6) in 1344 they were pardoned for similarly
adding 10 acres to the site; (fn. 7) and in 1361 they were
licensed to acquire land of 300 by 100 feet. (fn. 8)
St. Michael's Hospital was founded in the early
12th century. (fn. 9) Timber was granted for building
work in 1266. (fn. 10) The chapel was probably rebuilt in
the 15th century, after it had ceased to be a parish
church, and part of it remains. (fn. 11) The master's house,
a two-story half-timbered building of the 15th
century, still stands behind the chapel. St. John's
Hospital was founded in the later 12th century (fn. 12) but
nothing is known of its medieval buildings. A third
hospital, St. Lawrence's Leper Hospital, mentioned
in 1255-6, (fn. 13) may have been connected with St.
Lawrence's Church in West Street. It was perhaps
this hospital that was mentioned in 1287-8 when a
piece of ground was described as lying between the
towers (turri) of the castle and the river one way, and
between the hermitage and the town ditch the other
way. (fn. 14) Another grant of about the same period
described certain ground as lying 'under the
castle . . . between the chapel of St. Elene and
the ditch of the town'. (fn. 15) 'St. Hellens' was the name
given by Speed in 1610 to a chapel standing across
the river in Bridge End, on the site of the Templars'
house, but he may have confused this with the
former hermitage chapel. The chapel is the only
part of the Templars' house of which there is record:
it is mentioned as early as 1309-10 (fn. 16) and still existed
in 1540-1 after the dissolution of the Hospitallers. (fn. 17)
Extensive open country lay beyond the built-up
suburbs. (fn. 18) The West Street suburb petered out
before Goysel, or Gose, Brook was reached. (fn. 19)
Beyond the stream, the Hampton on the Hill road
led to Clay Pits Common. On the Stratford road was
the small Hikmans Green. (fn. 20) Further west was Gog,
or Hampton, Brook which the Hampton on the Hill
road crossed by Gog Bridge. (fn. 21) Here the brook
formed the borough boundary, but further south
Warwick stretched on through the open fields of
Longbridge as far as Horse Brook, which joins the
Avon some two miles distant from West Gate. The
bridges over this stream gave the hamlet of Longbridge its name; it is first mentioned as early as
1123. (fn. 22) In the early 16th century tenants of St.
Mary's College were being ordered to keep the
bridge in repair. (fn. 23) Fields in this part of Warwick
took their names from a depopulated hamlet
sometimes called 'La Lee next Warwick'; this,
however, was probably over the river in Barford or
Bishop's Tachbrook parish. (fn. 24)
The Saltisford suburb stretched along the Birmingham road as far as the ford through Goysel Brook.
Also leading out from North Gate was Wedgnock
Lane which went north into the park; Wedgnock Park
is described elsewhere. (fn. 25) In this area, though not yet
identified, was ground called Stokehill, (fn. 26) but there is
no evidence to suggest that there was ever a hamlet
there. (fn. 27) One depopulated village, Rykmersbury, did
lie in Wedgnock Park but beyond the borough
boundary, in Beausale parish. (fn. 28) Directly north of
Warwick, and perhaps partly in Leek Wootton
parish, was Woodloes (or Woodlow); there may at
an early date have been at least one hamlet here (fn. 29) but
by the later Middle Ages the estate apparently had
few tenants. (fn. 30)
The Smith Street suburb reached as far as St.
John's Brook, which flowed from Wedgnock Park
and fed the fishponds of St. Sepulchre's Priory on its
way to the Avon. Immediately beyond the brook was
Coten End, a settlement known in the early Middle
Ages as Cotes. (fn. 31) There appears, too, to have been a
hamlet called Hardwick in this part of Warwick.
The open fields of Coten End and Hardwick
occupied much of the ground to the east and northeast of the town. (fn. 32) Beyond them, in the extreme
north-east and close to the road to Coventry, were
the caves and chapel of Guy's Cliffe, overlooking the
Avon. (fn. 33) The road to Leamington crossed the Avon
by Emscote Bridge, which is first mentioned in
1262. (fn. 34)
South of the Avon, beyond the Bridge End suburb,
were the extensive open fields of Myton. (fn. 35) The three
streets of the suburb continued as roads leading to
and beyond the borough boundary. To the south the
Banbury road crossed Tach Brook by a small stone
bridge (fn. 36) near the Templars' water-mill. To the
south-east Warytree Street led, as its name suggests, (fn. 37)
to Warwick's gallows. Beyond was the ground known
as Heathcote; (fn. 38) there is no evidence that there were
ever more than a few houses at this place. (fn. 39) To the
east of Bridge End the Leamington road passed
through, or close to, the later-depopulated village of
Myton. There was a recorded population of 39 here
in 1086; (fn. 40) there were still nine tofts belonging to the
earl's manor in 1482, (fn. 41) but it was at about this time
that Rous included Myton in his list of depopulated
villages. (fn. 42) The Leamington road crossed two streams
in Myton, one of which may have been that called
Cley Brook in 1540, presumably crossed by the Cley
Bridge mentioned in 1507. (fn. 43)
The buildings of Lord Leicester's Hospital stand
on the north side of High Street immediately inside
the West Gate; they include the chapel of St. James
above the gate itself. (fn. 44) The hospital buildings are set
above the level of High Street and are separated from
it by a sloping forecourt and a retaining wall. The
forecourt, which is spanned by a stone archway, rises
from near the junction of High Street and Brook
Street. Here several ancient timber-framed houses
were acquired by the hospital between 1934 and
1955. (fn. 45) The whole complex of buildings, as seen
from High Street, forms one of the most well-known
and picturesque groups in the town.
Before the 16th century the buildings now
occupied by the hospital were the property of the
combined guilds of St. George the Martyr and of
the Holy Trinity and St. Mary. Their amalgamation
took place early in the 15th century but the earliest
of the buildings may have been erected soon after
1383 when the chapel of St. James above the West
Gate was assigned to the priests of St. George's
Guild. (fn. 46) The remainder appear to have been built,
or in some cases rebuilt, before the end of the 15th
century. They were originally entirely of timberframed construction and are set round the four sides
of a rectangular courtyard which is entered from the
forecourt by a gatehouse in the south range. The
Guildhall, presumably used for meetings of the
guild, is on the upper floor of this range. The west
range consists of a long single-storied hall. It was
later known as King James's Banqueting Hall,
traditionally because James I was entertained there
by Fulke Greville in 1617. (fn. 47) On the north side of the
court is the present Master's House, a much-altered
building of medieval origin with gardens behind it.
The east range has a two-storied cloister facing the
the King's School. Also mentioned in corporation
accounts of this period were two houses under the
Guildhall, which were let to tenants, and the guildhall kitchen. (fn. 52) In 1571 the buildings, including the
chapel, were handed over to Robert Dudley, Earl of
Leicester, who was proposing to found a hospital in
Warwick. They were then adapted for the accommodation of the master and twelve poor brethren of
the new foundation. (fn. 53) Alterations appear to have
taken place in the 18th century, notably to the
Master's House. A view of c. 1800 from High Street
courtyard and contains a third hall, perhaps used by
the chaplains or priests of the guilds, on its upper
floor. The architectural evidence suggests that this
range may have survived from before 1400.
Figure 15:
Lord Leicester's hospital
After the dissolution of the guild in 1546 the
burgesses of Warwick held the property for 25
years. (fn. 48) The Guildhall became their 'Burghall' and
it is believed that the Banqueting Hall was used as
the grammar school. (fn. 49) From at least 1548-9 until at
least 1553-4 'the dove house at the late guildhall'
was let to the schoolmaster. (fn. 50) A reference in 1549-50
to 'the King's Hall in the guildhall' (fn. 51) suggests that
the Banqueting Hall had by then received part of its
later name, perhaps because of its association with
shows that the front had then been faced with plaster
and that the original windows had been blocked or
replaced. (fn. 54) In the early 19th century the brethren
were living on the upper floors of both the south and
east ranges which were divided by partitions. (fn. 55) A
drastic restoration which had been in progress for at
least seven years was completed in 1851. (fn. 56) The work
included the rebuilding of several timber walls in
brick and the application externally of much
imitation half-timbering and plaster decoration. In
the early 1950s the Guildhall was restored to its
original from under the direction of P. B. Chatwin. (fn. 57)
Soon after the government of the hospital had been
reorganised in 1956 an extensive restoration of the
remaining timber-framed buildings was put in hand.
This work, which was completed in 1966, was carried
out by Sapcote and Sons Ltd. under the direction of
D. A. James. Many of the insertions and additions of
later centuries were removed, exposing the medieval
construction for the first time. The recently acquired
properties to the east of the hospital were converted
into dwellings for the brethren and three houses in
Brook Street were demolished to provide a car park.
In 1966 the so-called Chaplains' Hall in the east
range was opened as the regimental museum of the
Queen's Own Hussars.
The building which forms the eastern end of the
south range and which contains the Guildhall on its
upper floor is of four bays and of close-studded
timbering throughout. (fn. 58) At first floor level it is
jettied towards the forecourt, the overhang having
originally been coved and plastered. Two small gables
on this front are 19th-century additions. The ground
floor seems always to have been divided into four
rooms, probably with two doorways opening onto
the forecourt. The Guildhall above is about 54 ft.
long and 20 ft. wide. The three eastern bays of the
open roof are divided by arch-braced collar-beam
trusses. Placed centrally on the collars are large bosses
carved with niches, one of which was moved to the
roof of the Banqueting Hall in the 19th century but
has since been replaced. The roof has single moulded
purlins and curved windbraces, the spandrels
between them containing the remains of foliage and
tracery carving of late medieval character. The upper
part of the hall's most westerly bay is partitioned off
to form a room at a higher level, the floor-space of
the hall itself being continued beneath it; access to
the room is by a stair in the north-west corner. A
restored window in the partition overlooks the main
hall; traces of wall painting were found on the panels
below it. Entrance to the Guildhall is by a doorway
in the north wall leading from the upper gallery of
the east range. There are indications that there was
formerly a screen across the hall immediately to the
east of the doorway. A smaller door in the west wall
communicates with the first-floor room of the
Gatehouse. The windows are mostly modern, but
one with four traceried lights high up in the south
wall has been restored in accordance with remains
found in situ. Traces were also found of two former
oriel windows, one in the easternmost bay of the
north wall and one on the south front; these may
have been later insertions. The Guildhall range
probably dates from very late in the 15th century
and is therefore the last of the medieval buildings
erected in the quadrangle. There is evidence,
however, that it replaced an earlier two-storied
structure in the same position.
The Gatehouse, which adjoins the Guildhall at its
west end, is of one bay and three stories, the top
story being jettied and gabled, both at the front and
back. External decorative features date from the mid
19th century. The gateway passage on the ground
floor has a depressed arch at each end and its side
walls contain blocked original doorways. The
framing of the east wall is integral with the Gatehouse on the ground floor but forms part of the
Guildhall on the floor above, suggesting that the
Gatehouse was already in existence when the
Guildhall was built. To the west of the gateway is a
two-storied structure of one bay with a medieval
cellar cut in the solid rock below and an early stone
chimney against its north wall.
The Banqueting Hall is part of a very long structure occupying the west side of the quadrangle,
overlapping the Master's House to the north and the
gatehouse range to the south. At both ends the
building was two-storied but the central portion,
nearly 60 ft. long, formed a single-storied hall which
was open to the roof. The recent restoration has
revealed much of the original construction at the
two ends. Across the north end was a screens passage
with its further wall pierced by doorways leading to
two ground floor service rooms, probably with an
approach to an external kitchen between them.
There was an entrance to the hall at the east end of
the screens passage; a door-frame with pierced
spandrels which was in existence c. 1800, although
not in situ, may have belonged here. (fn. 59) Above the
service rooms and passage were one or more upper
chambers, open to the roof. There is a suggestion
that the former pigeon house may have been in this
position. (fn. 60) The whole two-storied block, including
an early stone chimney against its east wall, was later
incorporated in the Master's House. At the south, or
upper, end of the hall evidence was found of a coved
canopy which covered the original dais; this has now
been reinstated. The two-storied structure behind
the end partition of the hall projects beyond the
south range and forms part of the western termination of the forecourt. The upper room has an external
door which may have led to the north entrance of
the chapel, while the ground floor had doorways to
the hall itself and to the south range. The central
open section of the Banqueting Hall is of four and a
half bays. The roof has three purlins on each slope
and its main bays are divided by arch-braced tiebeam trusses; between them intermediate trusses
have smaller braces to their tie beams. The spandrels
above the braces were originally filled with pierced
tracery of which only two examples survive. The
wall posts of the intermediate trusses form the
mullions of three windows in the east wall. The
framing of this wall rests on a stone base which has
evidently been raised at various periods as the lower
timbers decayed. A post-medieval doorway through
the masonry near its east end has now been walled
up. The wall-framing incorporates curved braces to
its upper panels and may originally have had similar
braces below. The whole west wall was rebuilt in
brick in the 19th century but during the recent
restoration was reconstructed as a copy of the east
wall.
The Master's House has been so much altered
that the function and extent of the original building
are obscure. Framing exposed in the north wall
appears to be similar to that of the Banqueting Hall.
Several internal partitions, however, may be of 16thcentury date, and the same is true of the former
south wall towards the courtyard. This wall, which
was still in existence in the early 19th century, was of
close studding with a single rail at first floor level and
no jetty. Sash windows had been inserted and there
were heraldic panels between them. (fn. 61) The present
brick front, dating from the mid 19th century, is
faced with imitation timbering and has three added
gables. Decorative plasterwork includes two large
crests, the Porcupine of the Sidneys and the Bear
and Ragged Staff of the Dudleys.
The east range is two-storied and has four bays,
that at the north end being longer than the others.
Facing the courtyard the main roof extends over the
upper gallery which projects forward over the lower
one by about 2 ft.; the west wall of the building
behind the galleries is similarly jettied. Both galleries
have timber arcaded fronts, the bays of which
correspond to the divisions of the main roof. The
framing of the west wall differs from that of the other
hospital buildings, notably in the use of large
quadrant braces in the lower panels of both stories.
The original windows to the upper floor have been
blocked but several on the ground floor are still used.
An external stair of Elizabethan date gives access to
the upper gallery from the south-east angle of the
courtyard; it evidently replaces an original stair in
the same position. Most of the east wall of the range
was rebuilt in brick in the 19th century, but a large
stone chimney near its centre probably dates from
1571. The south gable-end of the building appears
never to have been an external wall, but there are
indications that it originally adjoined a structure
which was replaced by the present Guildhall. The
framed gable-end to the north, now roofed over
with the Master's House, shows signs of former
external weathering. Internally the upper floor of the
range contains an open hall of three bays, the fourth
bay at the north end forming a separate room or
solar. The dividing partition was pierced by two
symmetrically-placed doorways, one having an ogee
head. It has been suggested that both hall and solar
were used by the chaplains of the guilds. The original
entrance to the hall was by a doorway at the south
end of its west wall which led to the upper gallery
directly opposite the external stair. Both this door,
now blocked, and the gallery arch beyond it have
flattened ogee heads. The present doorway from the
Guildhall is a later insertion. The roof of the east
range, now partly concealed by plaster, is of the
trussed rafter, crown-post, and collar-purlin type.
The crown-posts of the two open trusses above the
hall stand on cambered tie beams, below which are
large arched braces. At the junction of the braces at
the centre of the tie beams are small carved flowers
of four petals; there are similar flowers on the arches
of the lower external gallery. All the main timbers of
the roof trusses, as well as the wall plates, are
continuously moulded. Tracery in some of the
spandrels is, however, of later date and appears to
have been brought from the Banqueting Hall. The
ground floor of the range was originally entered by a
doorway at each end of the lower gallery and may
have consisted of a single room, later subdivided.
Part of it became the kitchen of the hospital which,
after about 1750, was also used as a dining room by
the brethren; before this date they had dined in the
Banqueting Hall. (fn. 62) The large stone fireplace has
plaster decoration of the mid 19th century including
a motto and the date '1571'. Whatever the original
function of the east range, it would appear from the
type of roof, from the character of the wall framing,
and from the ogival door-heads that it is the earliest
surviving building in the quadrangle and may
therefore date from before 1400.
At least seven other medieval timber-framed
buildings survive within the walled area of the town,
of which the largest and probably the oldest is No.
37 Jury Street. This consisted originally of a 14thcentury cross-wing of two bays, which still preserves
a central crown-post roof truss with straight fourway brackets. A contemporary hall-block may have
stood along the street front which was replaced in
the 15th century by the present two-bay structure.
This later hall range has a central arch-braced collarbeam truss with side purlins and curved windbraces. A further, coeval, bay to the east was
evidently two-storied. Timber-framed additions to
the rear are of the 17th century. The present street
front and internal alterations, including the stair-case
with painted ceiling, indicate that the alterations
made in 1856 were by some person with antiquarian
leanings not unaware of the significance of the
building.
No. 35 Jury Street (the 'Porridge Pot'), next door,
retains behind a brick and stone-dressed facade of
c. 1700 the remnants of a framed three-bay house of
medieval origin, the central bay of which may have
formed a single-storied hall. Additions to the rear
were made c. 1700, coeval with the refronting and
heightening of the house. Two houses in Castle
Street are of medieval date. No. 10, now Price's
House, one of the houses given by David Price in
1626 to provide income for his charity, (fn. 63) is no later
than 1500. It comprised a small, single-storied hall at
its north end spanned by an open truss and lit from
the street by a mullioned window, together with a
two-storied south end with entrance passage and
service room on the ground floor. Late-16thcentury wall painting was found in the southern
part. Opposite is Oken's House, now (1966) the
home of the Warwick Doll Museum, restored to
something like its probable appearance late in the
15th century. It is of two bays of two stories with a
central stack; the gable end has large incurved braces
and is jettied, a modern restoration. The house is
small, and two further framed bays to the south
may have formed part of it by the 17th century.
Originally these bays formed a small house comprising an open hall (now a garage), and a bay of
two stories. The framing encloses large wattle and
daub panels.
No. 9 New Street is a timber-framed building,
probably truncated by the construction of the large
17th-century house facing Swan Street; (fn. 64) it now
comprises two bays, with close-set studs to the
jettied first floor. It was probably built in the second
half of the 15th century and may originally have
been a 'wealden' house. (fn. 65) A variation on this type
is to be found on the corner of Brook Street and
High Street, now providing additional accommodation for Lord Leicester's Hospital. It had a central
open hall between storied ends, that at the east end
consisting of a jettied cross-wing. The western end,
also jettied, was roofed with the hall. Externally the
house is close studded; the hall front was originally
recessed until the hall was floored c. 1600. The east
wall of the 'Bear and Baculus' on the opposite corner
of Brook Street with High Street, is timber-framed
and contains a 15th-century ogee-arched door or
window head with chamfered jambs. Smoke
encrustation on this feature, which can only be seen
from No. 50, indicates that it had been exposed
towards an adjoining house whose hall had an open
hearth.
Opposite Lord Leicester's Hospital is a timberframed building known as the Elizabethan House,
constructed late in the 15th or early in the 16th
century. It has a small central hall between end crosswings of two stories, jettied at their gable ends
towards the street. The east wing may have contained the original entrance passage. Extensions at
the rear include a single-storied, framed, one-bay
structure, probably a kitchen, and a two-storied wing
against the south end of the solar wing, probably
built late in the 17th century. By the middle of the
19th century this served as a malting, probably its
original purpose, and the south wall of the solar wing
was removed on the upper floor for ease of access to
it. The hall was floored probably as late as 1700, and
the present stair was added in the mid 18th century.
The 16th century is less well represented in the
centre of Warwick. Nos. 23-25 Jury Street, originally one house, incorporate a wing of c. 1550, but
the most important house of this date is the former
Anchor Inn, next to Lord Leicester's Hospital. An
early-17th-century porch of two stories with decorated framework including chevrons, was added to a
two-storied close-studded hall range of the first half
of the 16th century. The hall has a cross-wing east
of the porch with open framing, possibly an earlier
feature. At the rear is a large framed two-story
building with attics, added in the 17th century,
originally having a lodging or parlour at first-floor
level, lit with large windows. This was later used as
a malthouse when the house itself became an inn
and, like the porch, has framing decorated with
chevrons together with quarter rounds.