Maidstone Archbishops Palace

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Maideston

In the civil parish of Maidstone.
In the historic county of Kent (Modern Authority of Kent, 1974 county of Kent).

Leland c1540 mentions a castle 'well maintained by the Archbishop of Canterbury'. Leland possibly referring to the fortified manor house Mote Place (qv), although palace more likely. Palace was constructed between 1346-66, enlarged in 1486 and the latter half of C16. The existing remains are mainly C16 but as a high status building it is likely that the C14 palace had some defensive features.

This site has been described as a;
Palace.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Possible.
Nothing visible remains.

listed building

Images of England

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TQ75935544

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 415124

Books

Emery, Anthony, 2006, Greater Medieval Houses Vol3 (Cambridge) p320-25, 370-3
Salter, Mike, 2000, The Castles of Kent (Malvern) p56
Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p171
King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol1 p237
Newman, John, 1980, The Buildings of England: West Kent and the Weald p405-6
Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p306
Beale Post, 1856, History of the college of All Saints, Maidstone
Hasted, Edward, 1778-99, A History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent Vol2 p95

Journal Articles

Rigold, S.E., 1969, 'Maidstone: the archiepiscopla precinct' Archaeological Journal Vol126 p252-4
Goodsall, R.H., 1958, Archaeologia Cantiana Vol72 p2
1924, Archaeological Journal Vol81 p377
1905, Archaeological Journal Vol62 p185
Whichcord, J., 1855, Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol10 p34

Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)

William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/kenteng.html#kent11]
Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p250, 255
Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol4 p47

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*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.

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