GATEHOUSE
The comprehensive gazetteer and bibliography of the medieval castles, fortifications and palaces of England, Wales, the Islands.
 
 
Home
The listings
Other Info
Books
Links
Downloads
Contact
 
Print Page 
 
Next Record 
Previous Record 
Back to list 

Mayfield; The Old Palace

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
The Convent of the Holy Child Jesus, St Leonard's Mayfield School

In the civil parish of Mayfield.
In the historic county of Sussex.
Modern Authority of East Sussex.
1974 county of East Sussex.
Medieval County of Sussex (Rape of Pevensey).

OS Map Grid Reference: TQ587271
Latitude 51.02137° Longitude 0.26140°

Mayfield; The Old Palace has been described as a certain Palace.

There are masonry ruins/remnants remains.

This is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*.

Description

Remains of a medieval palace of the Archbishops of Canterbury converted into a school by E W Pugin in 1863-6. Some C13 work. But the main portion is the C14 hall, now the school chapel. Stone. Tiled roof. Three tall pointed windows of 2 tiers of trefoil-headed lights with triangles above, each trefoil-shaped. Buttresses flanking the windows. Vaulted entrance to south-west. Adjoining this is a C14 tower and C15 well-house. Additions of 1863-6 by E W Pugin to north-east. (Listing report)

Mayfield Palace of the Archbishops of Canterbury was one of the many manor houses of the south that helped to support the dignity and feed the retinue of the mediaeval archbishops; it may be compared with the similar palace at Croydon. It was in the hands of the Anglican church from the time of Dunstan to that of Cranmer and has seen its share of historical events. An important council was held here in 1332 under Archbishop Meopham, who died in Mayfield as did both Stratford and Islip, Cranmer treated with the king for the exchange of Mayfield for other lands and it passed through the hands of many owners. Sir Thomas Gresham held it for a time and here entertained Queen Elizabeth,
In 1740 it was dismantled and left to go to ruin. Its preservation is due to the Dowager Duchess of Leeds, who purchased it and connected it with a convent of the Roman Church. (Jackson 1927)
Links to archaeological and architectural databases, mapping and other online resources

Data >
PastScape   County HER       Listing   I. O. E.
Maps >
Streetmap   NLS maps   Where's the path   Old-Maps      
Data/Maps > 
Magic   V. O. B.   Geology   LiDAR   Open Domesday  
Air Photos > 
Bing Maps   Google Maps   Getmapping   ZoomEarth      
Photos >
CastleFacts   Geograph   Flickr   Panoramio      

Sources of information, references and further reading
Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.
It is an offence to disturb a Scheduled Monument without consent. It is a destruction of everyone's heritage to remove archaeological evidence from ANY site without proper recording and reporting.
Don't use metal detectors on historic sites without authorisation.
The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of Historic England, County Historic Environment Records and other individuals and organisations. It may also contain information licensed under the Open Government Licence. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes.
The author and compiler of Gatehouse does not receive any income from the site and funds it himself. The information within this site is provided freely for educational purposes only.
The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.
Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.
The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown. Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.
Please help to make this as useful a resource as possible by contacting Gatehouse if you see errors, can add information or have suggestions for improvements in functality and design.
Help is acknowledged.
*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.
This record last updated 26/07/2017 09:19:31

Home | Books | Links | Fortifications and Castles | Other Information | Help | Downloads | Author Information | Contact
¤¤¤¤¤