More information : (Area centred NY 399559). Carlisle Cathedral precinct has a long history of occupation. It was within the Roman town and was occupied from the Flavian period through to the 4th century. An Augustinian priory was founded in 1122, became a cathedral priory in 1133, and was suppressed in 1540. (See NY 35 NE 45).
The site has been continually in use as a cathedral precinct since the 12th century. The cathedral and precinct buildings are still in use by the Church of England.
Excavations in Castle Street and Annetwell Street in the 1970s and early 1980s, and minor excavations immediately outside the cathedral in 1983 have established that the precinct contains well-preserved deposits of Roman origin, and deposits recording the history of the Medieval and post-Medieval church, its buildings and structures. The site is one of only 16 ancient cathedral precincts in England. It is considered to be of exceptional archaeological importance by the Cathedral Advisory Commission for England, and by the Council for British Archaeology. (See illustration card).
(The grid reference given by Authority 1, as NY 398559 is inaccurate). (1) |