Details
LINCOLN
SK9771NE MINSTER YARD
1941-1/9/244 (South side (off))
08/10/53 Bishop's Palace (remains)
GV I
Former Bishop's Palace. East hall c1175, built for Bishop
Chesney. West hall, kitchen and service buildings to south,
1186-1224, for Hugh of Avalon and Hugh of Wells. Repaired and
crenellated (Licentia Crenellandi 1329) by Bishop Burghersh.
Gate tower, west hall bay window and chapel range, 1436-1449,
for Bishop Alnwick. Partly demolished 1648. Chapel range
demolished 1725. Restored 1838. Alnwick Tower Restored 1838.
Former stables, now offices, c1876. Dressed stone and ashlar.
Roofless except for Alnwick Tower and former stables.
PLAN: east hall and undercroft, west hall with service rooms
and kitchen to south, gate tower, chapel range with audience
chamber, stable range. The two halls are on opposite sides of
a wedge shaped courtyard, open to the south and closed by the
northern gate tower.
EXTERIOR: east hall has to north a four-centred arched doorway
and remains of a traceried window. Tunnel vaulted undercroft
with fireplace to west and shaft of spiral stair to
south-east.
West hall, 4 bays, formerly aisled, has a canted bay window,
mid C15, to the north-west. At the south-west end, a porch,
mid C13, with a steep arched doorway flanked by smaller blank
arches, with shafts, stiff-leaf capitals and dogtooth
ornament. To the south, a similar triple doorway formerly
leading to the kitchen, pantry and buttery. This is said to be
the earliest complete example of this arrangement. To the
south, below and beyond the chapel of the adjoining Edward
King House, is a rib-vaulted bay with arches to east and west,
with unusual billet moulding. To south, a blocked doorway with
shafts.
Kitchen has to west and to south, 3 buttresses with 3 setoffs.
Gatehouse tower, 3 stages, has moulded plinth, string courses
and crenellated parapet. To north-west, a canted projection
with octagonal stair turret. North side has a moulded doorway
with shafts and hoodmould and traceried panelled doors. Above
it, a canted crenellated oriel window. South side has a
similar doorway, and above it, a 2-light cross casement with
four-centred arched head. Third stage has a similar window on
each side.
INTERIOR has a star-vaulted chamber with cove-moulded doorways
to east and west, that to east leading via a star-vaulted
passage to the ante-chapel which has a tunnel vaulted room
beneath it.
Chapel range, to north-east, has remains of the audience
chamber and oratory with square and rectangular aumbries. At
the west end, a large cusped ogee headed sideboard recess,
flanked by segmental pointed doorways with linked hoodmoulds.
Stable range, 3 bays, Tudor Revival style, has coped parapet
and gables, elliptical headed carriage openings and flat
headed mullioned windows with hoodmoulds.
This building is of unusual importance as a medieval domestic
building and because it was the residence of St Hugh,
1136-1200, and Robert Grossteste, 1235-1253.
Scheduled Ancient Monument, County No.97?
(Buildings of England : Lincolnshire: Pevsner N: Lincolnshire:
London: 1989-: 485-488).
Listing NGR: SK9778671662
