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The Bishop's Barn, Wells

15th-century religious buildings and structuresBarns in EnglandBuildings and structures in Wells, SomersetGrade I listed agricultural buildingsGrade I listed buildings in Mendip District
History of SomersetScheduled monuments in Mendip DistrictTithe barns in EuropeWells Cathedral
Bishop's Barn, Wells
Bishop's Barn, Wells

The Bishop's Barn in Silver Street, Wells, Somerset, England, was built as a tithe barn in the 15th century. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building, and scheduled as an ancient monument.It was built of local stone roughly squared, with Doulting ashlar dressings and a Westmorland slate roof. The barn has 12 bays with a cruck roof with double collar beams and arched wind braces.Royalist troops were quartered in the barn during the Bloody Assizes. It 1887 the barn was given to the City of Wells by Bishop Lord Arthur Hervey for recreation and amusement.During the 1970s the barn was used as a music venue, and hosted bands such as Supertramp, Status Quo and Slade, with audiences of up to 1,500. These bands were promoted at the venue by local Wells teenagers Gordon Poole and Tony Leach. It is now managed by the Wells Recreation Ground Trust. The barn and adjacent recreation ground can be booked for events.In 2014 the Wells Recreation Ground Trust commissioned architects to survey the buildings and develop options for its repair and future use in conjunction with the Somerset Buildings Preservation Trust. The advisory group identified a plan for improvements to the barn, including the installation of central heating and repairs to the walls and roof, estimated to cost at least £400,000 over five years.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article The Bishop's Barn, Wells (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

The Bishop's Barn, Wells
Silver Street, Wells

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Latitude Longitude
N 51.2059 ° E -2.6435 °
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Silver Street

Silver Street
BA5 1UN Wells
England, United Kingdom
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Bishop's Barn, Wells
Bishop's Barn, Wells
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Wells, Somerset
Wells, Somerset

Wells () is a cathedral city and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset, located on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills, 21 miles (34 km) south-east of Weston-super-Mare, 22 mi (35 km) south-west of Bath and 23 mi (37 km) south of Bristol. Although the population recorded in the 2011 census was only 10,536, (increased to 12,000 by 2018) and with a built-up area of just 3.244 km2 (1.253 sq mi), Wells has had city status since medieval times, because of the presence of Wells Cathedral. Often described as England's smallest city, it is actually second smallest to the City of London in area and population, but unlike London it is not part of a larger urban agglomeration. Wells takes its name from three wells dedicated to Saint Andrew, one in the market place and two within the grounds of the Bishop's Palace and cathedral. A small Roman settlement surrounded them, which grew in importance and size under the Anglo-Saxons when King Ine of Wessex founded a minster church there in 704. The community became a trading centre based on cloth making and Wells is notable for its 17th-century involvement in both the English Civil War and the Monmouth Rebellion. In the 19th century, transport infrastructure improved with stations on three different railway lines. However, since 1964 the city has been without a railway link. The cathedral and the associated religious and medieval architectural history provide much of the employment. The city has a variety of sporting and cultural activities and houses several schools including The Blue School, a state coeducational comprehensive school that was founded in 1641, and the private Wells Cathedral School, which was founded possibly as early as 909 and is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in the United Kingdom. Wells's historic architecture has led to the city being used as a shooting location for numerous films and television programmes.

St John's Priory, Wells
St John's Priory, Wells

St John's Priory in Wells, Somerset, England, from the 14th century. Along with its boundary walls and railings it has been designated as a Grade I listed building.The initial development was as a hospital for poor, aged and sick men by 1210. The original foundation was by Jocelin of Wells, after his consecration in 1204, along with his brother Hugh of Wells.It was made into a priory in 1350 providing accommodation for a prior, chaplain and ten brothers, which lasted until the dissolution of the monasteries when it had an income of £40 per year. It then became crown property until 1575 when it was given to Sir Christopher Hatton and later became the property of Baron Brooke.Land was donated to St John's in both 1667 and 1716.The former priory building may also have been used as a guest house for visitors to Wells Cathedral and the Bishop's Palace. There was a cemetery associated with the building. The history of the buildings is set out in 33 deeds including one from 1738 which is displayed in the dining room.The land surrounding the priory was disturbed and remaining archaeological remains destroyed around 1850 when new roads and a school were built on the site. This also involved demolition of some of the building. In the 1860s the building was owned by the Lovell family.The two-storey stone building was an open hall but a first floor corridor and bedrooms have been added. The roof is supported by cruck trusses and purlins. Dendochronology has shown the wood used for the roof was felled in the winter of 1313 to 1314.

Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral

Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a Roman Catholic cathedral from around 1175 to replace an earlier church on the site since 705, it became an Anglican cathedral when King Henry VIII split from Rome. It is moderately sized for an English cathedral. Its broad west front and large central tower are dominant features. It has been called "unquestionably one of the most beautiful" and "most poetic" of English cathedrals.Its Gothic architecture is mostly inspired from Early English style of the late 12th to early 13th centuries, lacking the Romanesque work that survives in many other cathedrals. Building began about 1175 at the east end with the choir. Historian John Harvey sees it as Europe's first truly Gothic structure, breaking the last constraints of Romanesque. The stonework of its pointed arcades and fluted piers bears pronounced mouldings and carved capitals in a foliate, "stiff-leaf" style. Its Early English front with 300 sculpted figures is seen as a "supreme triumph of the combined plastic arts in England". The east end retains much ancient stained glass. Unlike many cathedrals of monastic foundation, Wells has many surviving secular buildings linked to its chapter of secular canons, including the Bishop's Palace and the 15th-century residential Vicars' Close. It is a Grade I listed building.