Carlisle Cathderal Church and Priory of St Mary

In the civil parish of Carlisle.
In the historic county of Cumberland (Modern Authority of Cumbria, 1974 county of Cumbria).

Carlisle Cathedral started life as the church to St Mary's Priory, a house of Augustinian Cannons, founded in 1122 by Henry I. In 1133, Henry I established the Diocese of Carlisle and the Priory Church as its Cathedral. Brooke writes there is little evidence of security within the church itself although closer examination of the church does suggest that elements of defence were included at the design stages ie most windows are positioned well above ground level. The claustral buildings were fortified with a perimeter wall and gatehouse and a strong frater, as well as two pele towers for the bishop and prior (qv).

This site has been described as a;
Fortified Ecclesiastical site.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Possible.
Major remains.

listed building

Images of England

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NY39905596

PastScape number; 10643, 10639, 10645, 10680

Books

Brooke, C.J., 2000, Safe Sanctuaries (Edinburgh; John Donald) p273-279
Pevsner, N., 1967, The Buildings of England: Cumberland and Westmorland (Harmondsworth, Penguin) p88-94
Billings, R.W., 1840, Carlisle Cathedral

Journal Articles

Perriam, D.R., 1987, ‘The demolition of the Priory of St Mary, Carlisle' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol87 p127-58

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

Speed, John, 1611-12, The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britain [http://faculty.oxy.edu/horowitz/home/johnspeed/Cities7.htm]

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The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of English Heritage and other individuals and organisations.

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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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Carlisle Cathderal Church and Priory of St Mary

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NY39905596

Sources of information, references and further reading