Site of early medieval bishops' palace, moat and grange, Chapel Hill (EHER 6410)

Now destroyed. The site of a an episcopal palace and grange of the Bishops of London since the late 10th century. The location is thought to have been marked by the earthworks of a moat and fishponds. Traces of the palace were extant until the 19th century but have since been built over.

The site of a manor of the Bishops of London since the late 10th century (see also EHER 6409 for details of the manor). The Bishops had an episcopal palace and grange here (this record). Traces of the palace, and a chapel (see EHER 6407) were extant until the last century but have now been built over. <1> The palace was refered to by Newcourt in 1710 (<2>) and in 1893 Kenworthy (<3>) stated that its site was marked by `the broken ground, with moats or fish ponds, in an orchard on the west side of the road crossing Chapel Hill and near to the top of the hill'. In a later article (<4>), Kenworthy 'indicated the site on a sketch map, on the west side of Mill Lane in the grounds of Parsonage Farm'. According to Morant (<5>) the site was 'near the present Parsonage' (see EHER 6411). Newcourt had referred to the site in this way also. A documentary reference of 1242 (possibly <6>) shows that the bishop's palace had at least one fish pond. <2> - <8> NRHE data transfer: Site of Bishop's Palace, 'near the present Parsonage'. The broken ground, with moats or fish-ponds, in an orchard on the west side of the road crossing Chapel Hill (TL 767227), marks the place where the Bishops resided when they visited Braintree. <9> <10> November 1972. Field survey. No trace and no local knowledge of the Bishop's Palace, and the accuracy of Kenworthy's plan cannot be verified. <11> Documentary research records the presence of a Church, Bishop's Palace and Chapel (TL 72 SE 13) at this location. <12>