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CHURCH OF ST MARY IN CASTRO

ALTERNATIVE NAME:

KING LUCIUS CHURCH, CHURCH OF ST MARY

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Late Saxon Church situated within the defences of Dover Castle. A minster was founded at St Mary in Castro by 640 but in 696 was transferred to St Martin's Church in the town. The church is thought to be was built before 1020 and reuses Roman building material within it fabric and at some point used the Roman lighthouse as its belfry. The church was extensively repaired in 1582 but was in little use from the end of the 16th century. By 1724 its bells had been removed and the building was in ruins. It was used as a Fives' Court in the early 1790s and a garrison coal store during the Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815). During the modernising of the castle in mid 19th century the church was restored. This was carried out by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1862. An additional restoration was undertaken by William Butterfield in 1888.

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(TR 32634182) St. Mary's Church (NAT) (1)

There is nothing definite to indicate a date for the church of St Mary-in-the-Castle, Dover, but it is probably early 11th century, altered in the 12th century and restored in the 19th century. It contains some Roman brick. (2-8)

In normal use. (9)

(TR 32634182) St Mary's Church, Dover Castle, Dover.
The church of St. Mary has a commanding position within the castle on the eastern heights at Dover is unique in having had a Roman lighthouse as a western annexe, to which an upper door in the west wall of the church appears to have communicated. The church may be dated to about 1000 AD consisting of a nave, chancel, transepts and a low central tower (see illustration card no 1). Only the lower stage of the lighthouse is now Roman, the upper part having been rebuilt or refaced in the 15th century; and the church itself was left roofless in the 18th century, to become a ruin, which was used as a coal-store for the barracks until it was restored in 1860-62 under the direction of Sir George Gilbert Scott. Drawings of the church before the restoration showed it not only roofless but with most of its gables fallen. Much of the present detail depends, therefore on Scott's interpretation of what he saw as vestiges of the original fabric. The double-splayed windows, faced externally with re-used Roman tiles, are replicas rather than the genuine Saxon ones. The fabric of the church is of mixed composition, the walls are of flint, but with some stone and tile, while the facings of the windows are largely of tiles, and the quoins are partly of tile and partly of large dressed stones. The church is surrounded by a plinth upon which the walls stand. It is possible that St Mary in Castro was the site of a pre-Conquest minster, transferred to the new site in the town at some date in the later 10th or early 11th century. (10-16)

1050 Church of St Mary Sub-Castro, Dover Castle.
TR 3241 1/49 Grade A
The latest possible date for the foundation of the church is C.1020 AD. The exterior is of 2 storeys flint with some reused Roman brick window dressings and some modern ashlar dressings. Modern tiled roof and restored tower. The church was roofless and used a s a coalstore in the C18 but was restored for use as a garrison church to the Castleby Sir Gilbert Scott in 1862. The interior contains a Chancel arch of Roman brick, a blocked Saxon doorway and the site of a Military or soldiers altar of AD 1225. There is a Victorian wood roof and stained glass windows. Mosaics by Butterfield 1888. (17)

A minster was founded in St Mary in Castro by King Eadbald (died 640), and transferred to St Martin's in the town in 696. The church was built before AD 1020 using Roman brick, it was ruinous in the 18th century and was used as a coal store before restoration in 1862. The Roman lighthouse was used as its bell tower. (18)

The church was known as King Lucius' Church during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. It was extensively repaired in 1582 but was little used from the end of the 16th century. By 1724 its bells had been removed and the building was in ruins. It was used as a Fives' Court in the early 1790s and a garrison coal store during the Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815). During the mid 19th century modernising of the castle the church was restored by Sir George Gilbert Scott. This took place in 1862. An additional restoration was undertaken by William Butterfield in 1888. (19)

There is an 11th century grave cover built into the westernmost arch of the sedilia at the south-east corner of the nave, and a 10th-11th century baluster in the eastern most arch of the sedilia at the south-west end of the nave. Parts of four 10th or 11th century balusters and an 11th century decorative panel were destroyed during WWII. (20)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 1:1250 1956

( 2) by G Baldwin Brown 1925 The arts in early England, volume 2. Anglo-Saxon architecture

Page(s)353-4

( 3) List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest

Ministry of Housing and Local Government (1050/11/A/December 1947) Page(s)1

( 4) Royal Archaeological Institute The Archaeological Journal

J T Micklethwaite 53, 1896 Page(s)327

( 5) Kent Archaeological Society Archaeologia Cantiana : being contributions to the history and archaeology of Kent

G G Scott 5, 1863 Page(s)1-18

( 6) Journal of the British Archaeological Association

J T Irvine 41, 1885 Page(s)284-8

( 7) Journal of the British Archaeological Association

Scott Robertson 40, 1884 Page(s)109-10

( 8) Royal Archaeological Institute The Archaeological Journal

R Graham 78, 1921 Page(s)229

( 9) Field Investigators Comments

F1 ASP 20-MAY-1964

( 10) Royal Archaeological Institute The Archaeological Journal

C A Raleigh Radford 130, 1973 Page(s)131-3

( 11) by H M Taylor and Joan Taylor 1965 Anglo-Saxon architecture : volume 1

Page(s)214-7

( 12) by John Newman 1983 North east and east Kent

The Buildings of England Page(s)291-2

( 13) by E A Fisher 1969 Anglo-Saxon towers : an architectural and historical study

Page(s)159-60

( 14) General reference

Ant & Topo Cabinet 4 1808 (J Storer)

( 15) General reference

Munimenta Antiqua Vol 3 1804 p143 (E King)

( 16) General reference

Clapham. 1930. English Romanesque Architecture before the Conquest Page(s)102

( 17) List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest

DOE (HHR) District of Dover, 17 December 1973. 685

(18) by David Knowles and R Neville Hadcock 1971 Medieval religious houses in England and Wales

Page(s)424, 472

( 19) Jonathan Coad 1995 English Heritage book of Dover Castle and the defences of Dover

Jonathan Coad, 1995

(20) by Dominic Tweddle, Martin Biddle and Birthe Kjolbye-Biddle 1995 Corpus of Anglo-Saxon stone sculpture, volume 4 : south-east England

Page(s)139-142

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