Building record 10640/4 - Abbey of St Werburgh - East Monastic Range

The east monastic range of the former Abbey of St Werburgh, now the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary (CHER 10641) consisted of the chapter house and its vestibule vestibule, slype and warming room, with the site of dormitory (now destroyed except for its cellars) and day and night stairs at each end. Abutting the north transept of the church (CHER 10640/1) is the chapter house, and it is entered by the vestibule. This (the vestibule) is of thirteenth century date and has piers running into vaults without intervening capitals. The chapter house was probably built before 1129 as it received the body of Hugh Lupus for burial in that year, but the present rib-vaulted ceiling dates to c1240, together with five lancet windows. It contains a thirteenth century cope cupboard with ironwork. To the north of the vestibule is the slype - a passage that would have formerly led to an infirmary. The slype is of early English style and has a vault of four bays (1, 2). North of this is a warming room or parlour with two large former fireplaces; of four by two bays with octagonal piers and an early English doorway (2). Above this arrangement was the dormitory which fell into ruins in the nineteenth century. At the north end is day stair that was to the dormitory, with a window opening onto the cloister in form of quatrefoil in a circle (2). The position of the night stair, by which monks descended from dormitory into the church, is marked by doorway on outside of the north transept wall (1). Following the Dissolution, the chapter house continued in use, together with a room over the vestibule on its west which later disappeared (5). The dormitory was intact in 1589, when the roof was repaired and locks were fitted to the doors. By 1631, when it contained a chamber inhabited perhaps by one of the conducts (the chaplains paid to read prayers in the cathedral), it had probably been subdivided (5). In the 1850s, the entrance to the chapter house from the east cloister was rebuilt by Hussey, while Bloomfield restored the north side of the chapter house and added five grisaille side windows in 1882/1883. He also rebuilt the roof to a steeper pitch in 1894 and renewed the west gable (5).

<1> Burne, R. V. H., 1962, The Monks of Chester. The History of St Werburgh's Abbey (Book). SCH3213.

<2> Pevsner N & Hubbard E, 1971, The Buildings of England: Cheshire, /146 (Book). SCH3078.

<3> Harris, B.E., 1979, Bartholomew City Guides - Chester, /75-76 (Book). SCH394.

<4> Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Revised List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, City of Chester Intra Mural 1998/ 376-381 (Unpublished Report). SCH4570.

<5> Lewis C.P & Thacker A.T. (eds), 2005, Victoria County History - A History of the County of Chester: Volume Vii, The City of Chester - The City of Chester, Culture, Buildings, Institutions (Book). SCH6522.