Monument Type(s):

• FRANCISCAN FRIARY (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1540 AD)
• TOWN GATE (Constructed, 13th century - 1246 AD to 1267 AD)

Summary

This site represents: a franciscan friary of medieval date, a town gate of medieval date.

Related records

Associated Finds: None recorded

Associated Events

• ESA4867 - 2001 Evaluation of land to S of Century Cinema, St Julian's Friars, Shrewsbury by Marches Archaeology
• ESA7590 - 2015 Conservation management survey of the town walls, Shrewsbury, by SCAS

Description

Gate, giving access through town wall to the Franciscan Friary outside [PRN 01523]. Permission was given by the king in July 1246 for the friars to raise the town wall next to their new house and to insert a gate in it for easy access to the town. In 1267 the friars received permission to enlarge the gate so that carts could pass through it [<1>]. The site has not been excavated and there is no evidence to suggest how long the gate survived or when it was demolished (VCH refs are to CCR 1242-7, 445; CPR, 1266-72, 113) <2>

Burghley's map of 1575 [<3>] shows that the gateway still existed at that date, but it is not shown on Speed's map of 1610 [<4>]. A trench excavated on the west side of St Julian's Friars in 2001 exposed a short length of wall projecting northwards from the town wall and disappearing under the street. Though very little of the wall was available for excavation, it appeared to butt the town wall and to be sealed by a medieval dump of river cobbles behind the town wall. The evidence therefore points to it being a medieval structure, and it may well have been part of a gateway structure added onto the inner face of the town wall.<5>

A conservation management plan was prepared in 2015 for the entire circuit of town walls surrounding Shrewsbury (excluding around Shrewsbury Castle at the NE corner). This provides a general historic overview of the development of the town defences, together with detailed analysis and management recommendations for individual sections (in gazetteer form in volume 2). This feature is identified as 12d, a gate or postern giving access to the town's Franciscan friary. <6>

<01> Gaydon A T (ed), 1973, Victoria County History 2: Ecclesiastical Organisation, Religious Houses, Schools and Sports, p90 (Volume). SSA540.

<02> Baker Nigel J, UAD Analysis, 07/04/1997 (SMR comment). SSA20432.

<03> Burghley (for Burghley, by ?Symonds J), 1575, The Burghley Map of Shrewsbury (Map). SSA5543.

<04> Speed J, 1610, Speed's Plan of Shrewsbury (Map). SSA5574.

<05> Tavener Nick, 2001, Land to the South of the former Century Cinema, St Julian's Friars: report on an archaeological evaluation (Excavation report). SSA20880.

<06> Hannaford Hugh R, 2015, Shrewsbury Town Walls: a conservation management plan (2 volumes), Gazetteer 12d (Management report). SSA28223.

Sources

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.