Litten_Chapel_Newbury_Geograph-3288460-by-Bill-Nicholls

Litten Chapel is an early 16th chapel associated with the old medieval hospital of

St Bartholomew Bartholomew was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Most scholars today identify Bartholomew as Nathanael, who appears in the Gospel of John (1:45–51; cf. 21:2). New Testament references The name ''Bartholomew ...

in Newbury,

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

, England. The single storey chapel contains a set of carved timber roof trusses that are a notable example of post-medieval craftsmanship. The structure is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

and a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

under the care of

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

Description

The early 16th century chapel of the old hospital of St Bartholomew is located in Newbury, England. Adjacent to the chapel is Litten House, a Grade II* Listed Building. The chapel is a single storey tile roofed building, rectangular in layout. The building was constructed in

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

rubble Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture; undressed especially as a filling-in. Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as 'brash' (compare cornbrash)."Rubble" def. 2., "Brash n. 2. def. 1. ''Oxford English Dictionar ...

; the east gable end is built in brick. There were originally two windows on each side wall. One window was remodeled in 1947 and was converted to a doorway. The chapel contains a well-preserved carved timber roof trusses (the tie-beams have been removed), which were uncovered in the 1980. They are an important example of early post-medieval craftsmanship. The structure was remodeled in the 19th and 20th centuries and the building was later turned into a school. The building was shortened at its east end around 1825 when Newton Road, Newbury was widened. There are current plans to convert the chapel into a residential property.

History

The chapel was part of the old St Bartholomew hospital in Newbury. A hospital at the site existed in records in the early 13th century. "The commissioners of Henry VIII, in 1546, reported that the origin of the hospital was unknown, but that it was founded to maintain a priest to sing in the hospital, and two poor men to pray there continually." The buildings later included a chapel and accommodations for the aged and infirm. The present chapel was added to the site in the early 16th century. The chapel was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1950, and was also designated an ancient scheduled monument in 1979. It is under the care of

References

{{coord, 51.39654, -1.32667, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Buildings and structures in Newbury, Berkshire Grade II* listed buildings in Berkshire Scheduled monuments in Berkshire

Description

History

See also

References