St Mary de Lode Church
Encyclopedia
St Mary de Lode Church, Archdeacon Street, Gloucester GL1 2QT, is a Church of England
church immediately outside the grounds of Gloucester Cathedral
, which is believed to be on the site of the first Christian church in Britain. The church is in the Diocese of Gloucester
and Grade I listed by English Heritage
. It has also been known as St. Mary Before the Gate of St. Peter, St. Mary Broad Gate and St. Mary De Port.
to the west of the church, which no longer exists. The church is believed to have been built on the site of an ancient Roman
temple which became the first Christian church in Britain. The Roman mosaic tiled floor can still be seen in the church.
In 1979, archaeological excavations in the nave showed that the church is built over two Roman buildings of the 2nd to 4th and 5th to 6th centuries. There was also evidence of a church on the site Saxon times, or earlier. According to written records, the earliest church on the site dates from the late eleventh century, consisting of a nave, tower and chancel but these were destroyed in a 1190 fire. A new chancel was built in the thirteenth century.
Local legend says that the church was the burial place of King Lucius, who established a bishopric in Gloucester in the second century A.D. In March 1643 and also in 1646, during the English Civil War
, the church was used as a prison to hold royalist soldiers captured by Sir William Waller and Lieut. Col. Edward Massey.
tower and chancel
, and a monument of Bishop John Hooper
stands in its grounds. The nave was rebuilt in the Gothic style in 1826. There is a fifteenth century wooden pulpit and an organ which was moved from Gloucester's St Nicholas Church in 1971. The church also includes stained glass windows commemorating the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars
and the Gloucester poet Ivor Gurney
.
The church is the regular venue for concerts by the Gloucester Music Society.
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church immediately outside the grounds of Gloucester Cathedral
Gloucester Cathedral
Gloucester Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity, in Gloucester, England, stands in the north of the city near the river. It originated in 678 or 679 with the foundation of an abbey dedicated to Saint Peter .-Foundations:The foundations of the present...
, which is believed to be on the site of the first Christian church in Britain. The church is in the Diocese of Gloucester
Diocese of Gloucester
The Diocese of Gloucester is a Church of England diocese based in Gloucester, covering the non-metropolitan county of Gloucestershire. The cathedral is Gloucester Cathedral and the bishop is the Bishop of Gloucester...
and Grade I listed by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
. It has also been known as St. Mary Before the Gate of St. Peter, St. Mary Broad Gate and St. Mary De Port.
History
The word Lode is from the old English word for water course or ferry and in this case it refers to a ferry that once crossed a branch of the River SevernRiver Severn
The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
to the west of the church, which no longer exists. The church is believed to have been built on the site of an ancient Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
temple which became the first Christian church in Britain. The Roman mosaic tiled floor can still be seen in the church.
In 1979, archaeological excavations in the nave showed that the church is built over two Roman buildings of the 2nd to 4th and 5th to 6th centuries. There was also evidence of a church on the site Saxon times, or earlier. According to written records, the earliest church on the site dates from the late eleventh century, consisting of a nave, tower and chancel but these were destroyed in a 1190 fire. A new chancel was built in the thirteenth century.
Local legend says that the church was the burial place of King Lucius, who established a bishopric in Gloucester in the second century A.D. In March 1643 and also in 1646, during the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, the church was used as a prison to hold royalist soldiers captured by Sir William Waller and Lieut. Col. Edward Massey.
Architecture
The church has a NormanNorman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
tower and chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, and a monument of Bishop John Hooper
John Hooper
John Hooper, Johan Hoper, was an English churchman, Anglican Bishop of Gloucester and Worcester. A Protestant Reformer, he was killed during the Marian Persecutions.-Biography:...
stands in its grounds. The nave was rebuilt in the Gothic style in 1826. There is a fifteenth century wooden pulpit and an organ which was moved from Gloucester's St Nicholas Church in 1971. The church also includes stained glass windows commemorating the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars
Royal Gloucestershire Hussars
The Royal Gloucestershire Hussars was a unit of the British Army.Raised in 1795 following William Pitt's 1794 order to raise volunteer bodies of men to defend Great Britain, through various re-organisations, the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars remain today on the establishment of the Territorial...
and the Gloucester poet Ivor Gurney
Ivor Gurney
Ivor Bertie Gurney was an English composer and poet.-Life:Born at 3 Queen Street, Gloucester in 1890, the second of four children of David Gurney, a tailor, and his wife Florence, a seamstress, Gurney showed musical ability early...
.
Today
St Mary de Lode remains a functioning church with regular services and a Sunday School.The church is the regular venue for concerts by the Gloucester Music Society.