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Summary

The Church House, also the Church Ale House, was built on the site of the present Red Lion Inn in the late 15th century. The oldest part of the Inn is probably the remains of the Church House. A parish house, now demolished, was built between the the Church House and the churchyard in 1650 and in 1791 the Church House Chamber, now the Red Lion garage, was added to the western end of the Church House.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX99NE/21

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CHURCH HOUSE (First mentioned, XV - 1496 AD to 1496 AD)

Full description

Whitaker, R., 1910, Untitled Source, 51 (Unknown). SDV128323.

The Church House, Broadclyst. The Church House was on or near the present site of the Red Lion Inn.

Copeland, G. W., 1963, Devonshire Church Houses: Part 4, 138 (Article in Serial). SDV7678.

As the Red Lion, which is outside the churchyard, is an old building, it may have been the Church House. On 3rd September 1605 the body known as the Eight Men 'set apart the Little Chamber within the Great Chamber of the Church House for a Council Chamber'. Their Act Book is also said to refer to a gallery, a hall and parlour, a 'littell chamber within the hall', and a cellar. This looks like a reference to the Church House, although it may also refer to the almshouses built and endowed by Henry Burroughs in 1605 and still standing a little south of the church (see PRN 10173). Other details: Part 4.

Copeland, G. W., 1964, Devonshire Church Houses: Part 5, Pl.7 (Article in Serial). SDV299096.

Hogben, G. M., 1997, Church House, Broadclyst (Correspondence). SDV128326.

The deeds of the Church House were a gift from James Chudleigh to Broadclyst Village in 1496. The Red Lion Inn once faced into Queen Square when the entrance to the churchyard was from the north.

Unknown, 1998, Research on the Red Lion Inn, Broadclyst (Un-published). SDV351647.

Land was granted in 1496 for the building of the Church House. The Red Lion is on or close to the site.

Hogben, G., 1999, Evidence for placing Broadclyst Church House, or Church Ale House, on the site of the present
‘Red Lion’ Public House or incorporated within its environs (Un-published). SDV364003.

In a Deed of Gift, circa 1496, James Chudleigh, Lord of the Manor of Broadclyst, is recorded as giving a parcel of land to the 'Eight men of Broadclyst' for the building of a Church House. The eight men, who are named in the deed, were the governing body for Broadclyst.
The location of the parcel of land is given, which places the Church House on the site of the present Red Lion Inn. The skittle alley is considered to be much older than the rest of the building and may be, therefore, the remains of the Church House. A small old door reached by stone steps may have led to the 'upper chamber' within which was the 'littol chamber', the meeting room of the Eight Men. The rooms below were used as a schoolroom and later, according to the Act Book of the Eight Men of 1605, as a place where the poor could be set to work.
The 1496 deed also indicates that the Church House was also the Church Ale House.
A parish house was built between the Inn and the churchyard in 1650 and is shown on a Killerton Estate Map of 1790. And in 1791 another house, the Church House Chamber, and which was to be used for meetings, was built at the western end of the Church House, accounting for the two large fireplaces above the Red Lion Garage.
The Church House Chamber is recorded as two cottages on the Broadclyst Tithe Apportionment of 1844 and was subsequently converted into a Bier House, Coach House and Stables. [The Church House is recorded by this time as the Red Lion Inn.]

National Trust, 2000, Killerton Estate Archaeological Survey. Part 3. The Cottages and Broadclyst, 325 (Report - Survey). SDV128325.

The Church House was built opposite the Red Lion Garage in the Glebe Field against the churchyard + church gate. It is recorded as being on one side of the market place which was the present Queens Square and included the site of the Red Lion. The wall around Glebe Field is built of large squared volcanic blocks suggesting they came from an important building. Inside the field is a platform c0.2m-0.3m high.

Unknown, Unknown, Clyston Church House. Translated from Latin Deed of 1496 (Un-published). SDV321081.

Small plot of land 14m x 7.3m given by James Chudleigh to eight men in 1496, to construct a 'church house' for the parishoners. The land was between the cemetery to the west and the market place to the east.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV128323	Unknown: Whitaker, R.. 1910. History of the Church of St John the Baptist, Broadclyst. 51.
SDV128325	Report - Survey: National Trust. 2000. Killerton Estate Archaeological Survey. Part 3. The Cottages and Broadclyst. National Trust Archaeological Survey Report. A4 Stapled + Digital. 325.
SDV128326	Correspondence: Hogben, G. M.. 1997. Church House, Broadclyst. Letter to SMR. Letter + Digital.
SDV299096	Article in Serial: Copeland, G. W.. 1964. Devonshire Church Houses: Part 5. Transactions of the Devonshire Association. 96. A5 Paperback. Pl.7.
SDV321081	Un-published: Unknown. Unknown. Clyston Church House. Translated from Latin Deed of 1496. Medieval Document: Translated from Latin Deed. No. 37900. A3 Single Sheet + Digital.
SDV351647	Un-published: Unknown. 1998. Research on the Red Lion Inn, Broadclyst. A4 Unbound.
SDV364003	Un-published: Hogben, G.. 1999. Evidence for placing Broadclyst Church House, or Church Ale House, on the site of the present ‘Red Lion’ Public House or incorporated within its environs. Digital. [Mapped feature: #1274 ]
	Linked documents:1
SDV7678	Article in Serial: Copeland, G. W.. 1963. Devonshire Church Houses: Part 4. Transactions of the Devonshire Association. 95. A5 Hardback. 138.

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV1039 - Unnamed Event

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